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10 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
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266 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
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275 Copyright \copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
276 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
279 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
280 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
281 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
282 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
283 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
284 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
285 License'' in the Emacs manual.
287 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
288 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
289 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
291 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
292 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
293 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
294 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
302 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
304 Copyright (C) 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
306 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
307 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
308 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
309 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
310 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
311 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
312 License'' in the Emacs manual.
314 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
315 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
316 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
318 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
319 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
320 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
321 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
329 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
332 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
333 Copyright @copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
335 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
336 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
337 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
338 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
339 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
340 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
341 License'' in the Emacs manual.
343 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
344 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
345 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
347 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
348 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
349 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
350 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
359 @top The Gnus Newsreader
363 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
364 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
365 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
368 This manual corresponds to Oort Gnus v0.01.
379 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
380 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
382 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
383 being accused of plagiarism:
385 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
386 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
387 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
388 can even read news with it!
390 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
391 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
392 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
393 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
394 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
400 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
401 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
402 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
403 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
404 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
405 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
406 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
407 * Various:: General purpose settings.
408 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
409 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
410 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
411 * Key Index:: Key Index.
414 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
418 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
419 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
420 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
421 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
422 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
423 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
424 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
425 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
426 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
427 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
428 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
432 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
433 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
434 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
438 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
439 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
440 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
441 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
442 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
443 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
444 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
445 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
446 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
447 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
448 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
449 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
450 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
451 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
452 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
453 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
454 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
458 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
459 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
460 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
464 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
465 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
466 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
467 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
468 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
472 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
473 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
474 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
475 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
479 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
480 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
481 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
482 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
483 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
484 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
485 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
486 * Threading:: How threads are made.
487 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
488 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
489 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
490 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
491 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
492 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
493 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
494 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
495 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
496 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
497 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
498 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
499 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
500 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
501 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
502 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
503 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
504 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
505 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
506 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
507 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
509 Summary Buffer Format
511 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
512 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
513 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
514 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
518 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
519 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
521 Reply, Followup and Post
523 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
524 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
525 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
526 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
530 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
531 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
532 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
533 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
534 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
535 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
539 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
540 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
542 Customizing Threading
544 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
545 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
546 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
547 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
551 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
552 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
553 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
554 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
555 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
556 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
560 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
561 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
562 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
566 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
567 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
568 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
569 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
570 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
571 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
572 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
573 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
575 Alternative Approaches
577 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
578 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
580 Various Summary Stuff
582 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
583 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
584 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
585 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
589 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
590 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
591 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
592 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
593 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
597 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
598 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
599 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
600 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
601 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
602 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
603 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
604 * Using GPG:: How to use GPG and MML to sign and encrypt messages
608 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
609 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
610 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
611 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
612 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
613 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
614 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
618 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
619 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
620 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
621 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
622 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
623 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
624 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
628 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
629 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
633 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
634 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
635 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
636 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
637 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
638 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
639 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
640 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
641 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
642 * Washing Mail:: Removing cruft from the mail you get.
643 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
644 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
645 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
649 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
650 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
651 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
653 Choosing a Mail Backend
655 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
656 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
657 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
658 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
659 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
660 * Comparing Mail Backends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
664 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
665 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
666 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
667 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
671 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
672 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
673 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
674 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
675 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
676 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
680 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
684 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
685 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
686 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
690 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
691 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
692 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
696 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
697 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
701 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
702 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
703 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
704 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
705 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
706 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
707 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
708 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
709 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
710 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
714 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
715 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
716 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
720 * Group Agent Commands::
721 * Summary Agent Commands::
722 * Server Agent Commands::
726 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
727 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
728 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
729 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
730 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
731 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
732 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
733 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
734 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
735 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
736 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
737 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
738 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
739 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
740 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
741 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
745 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
746 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
747 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
748 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
752 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
753 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
754 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
758 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
759 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
760 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
761 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
762 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
763 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
764 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
765 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
766 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
767 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
768 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
769 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
770 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
771 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
772 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
773 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
774 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
775 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
779 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
780 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
781 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
782 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
783 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
787 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
788 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
789 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
790 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
794 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
795 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
796 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
797 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
798 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
802 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
803 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
804 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
805 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
806 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
807 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
808 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
809 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
813 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
814 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
815 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
816 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
817 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
818 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
819 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
820 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
821 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
825 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
826 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
827 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
828 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
829 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
833 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
834 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
835 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
836 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
840 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
841 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
842 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
843 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
844 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
845 * Group Info:: The group info format.
846 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
847 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
848 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
852 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
853 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
854 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
855 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
856 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
857 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
861 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
862 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
866 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
867 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
873 @chapter Starting Gnus
878 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
879 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
882 @findex gnus-other-frame
883 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
884 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
885 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
887 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
888 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
889 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
891 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
892 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
895 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
896 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
897 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
898 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
899 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
900 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
901 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
902 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
903 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
904 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
905 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
909 @node Finding the News
910 @section Finding the News
913 @vindex gnus-select-method
915 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
916 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
917 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
918 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
921 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
922 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
925 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
928 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
931 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
934 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
935 certainly be much faster.
937 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
939 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
940 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
941 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
942 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
943 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
944 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
946 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
947 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
948 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
949 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
951 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
952 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
953 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
954 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
955 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
956 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
957 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
958 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
959 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
962 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
964 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
965 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
966 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
967 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
968 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
969 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
971 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
973 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
974 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
975 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
976 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
977 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
978 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
981 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
982 would typically set this variable to
985 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
990 @section The First Time
991 @cindex first time usage
993 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
994 be subscribed by default.
996 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
997 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
998 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
999 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1002 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1003 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1004 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1006 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
1007 help you with most common problems.
1009 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
1010 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1014 @node The Server is Down
1015 @section The Server is Down
1016 @cindex server errors
1018 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
1019 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1020 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
1022 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1023 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1024 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1025 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1026 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1027 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1028 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1030 @findex gnus-no-server
1031 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1033 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1034 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1035 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
1036 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1037 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1038 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1039 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1043 @section Slave Gnusae
1046 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
1047 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1048 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
1049 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1051 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1052 @code{.newsrc} file.
1054 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
1055 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1056 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1057 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1058 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1059 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1060 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1062 Anyway, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1063 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
1064 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1065 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1066 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
1067 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1068 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1069 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1071 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1072 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
1075 @node Fetching a Group
1076 @section Fetching a Group
1077 @cindex fetching a group
1079 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1080 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1081 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
1082 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1083 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1084 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1090 @cindex subscription
1092 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1093 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1094 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1095 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1096 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1097 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1098 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1099 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the backends for new groups even
1100 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1103 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1104 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1105 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1109 @node Checking New Groups
1110 @subsection Checking New Groups
1112 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1113 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1114 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1115 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
1116 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1117 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1118 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1119 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1120 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1121 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1123 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1124 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1125 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1126 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1127 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1128 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
1129 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1130 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1131 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1132 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1133 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1135 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
1136 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1137 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1138 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1139 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1140 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1143 @node Subscription Methods
1144 @subsection Subscription Methods
1146 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1147 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1148 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1150 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1151 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1153 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1157 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1158 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1159 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1160 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1161 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1163 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1164 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1165 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1166 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1168 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1169 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1170 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1172 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1173 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1174 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1175 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1176 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1177 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1178 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1179 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1180 up. Or something like that.
1182 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1183 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1184 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
1185 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1186 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1188 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1189 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1190 Kill all new groups.
1192 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1193 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1194 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1195 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1196 topic parameter that looks like
1202 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1205 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1210 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1211 A closely related variable is
1212 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1213 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
1214 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1215 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1218 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1219 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1220 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1221 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1224 @node Filtering New Groups
1225 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1227 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1228 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1229 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1232 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1235 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1236 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1237 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1238 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1239 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1240 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1241 subscribing these groups.
1242 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1243 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1245 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1246 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1247 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1248 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1249 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1250 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1251 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1252 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1254 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1255 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1256 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1257 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1258 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1259 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1260 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1261 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1262 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
1263 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
1265 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1266 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1269 @node Changing Servers
1270 @section Changing Servers
1271 @cindex changing servers
1273 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
1274 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1275 very flaky and you want to use another.
1277 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1278 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1282 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1283 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1284 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1285 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1288 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1289 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1290 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1291 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1293 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1294 @findex gnus-change-server
1295 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1296 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1297 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1298 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1299 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1301 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1302 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1303 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1304 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1305 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1307 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1308 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1309 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1310 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1311 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1312 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1314 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1315 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1316 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1320 @section Startup Files
1321 @cindex startup files
1326 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1327 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1329 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1330 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1331 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1332 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1333 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1334 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1335 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1337 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1338 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1339 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1340 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1341 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1342 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1344 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1345 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1346 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1347 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1348 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
1349 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1350 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1351 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
1352 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1353 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1355 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1356 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1357 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1358 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1359 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1360 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1361 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1362 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1363 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1364 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1365 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1366 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1368 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1369 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1370 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1371 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1373 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1374 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1375 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1376 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1377 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1378 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1379 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1380 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1381 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1382 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1385 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1386 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1388 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1389 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1392 @vindex gnus-init-file
1393 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1394 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1395 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1396 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1397 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1398 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1399 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1400 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1401 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1407 @cindex dribble file
1410 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
1411 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1412 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1413 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1414 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1417 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1418 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1421 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1422 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
1423 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1425 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1426 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1427 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
1428 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1429 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1430 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
1432 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1433 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1434 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1437 @node The Active File
1438 @section The Active File
1440 @cindex ignored groups
1442 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1443 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1444 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1446 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1447 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
1448 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1449 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
1450 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1451 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1452 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1455 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1456 @c if you set it to anything else.
1458 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1460 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1461 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
1462 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1464 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1465 you actually subscribe to.
1467 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1468 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
1469 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
1470 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1472 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1473 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1474 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1475 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1476 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1477 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1479 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1480 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1481 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1484 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
1485 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1486 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1487 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1488 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1489 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1491 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1492 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1494 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1495 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1497 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1498 secondary select methods.
1501 @node Startup Variables
1502 @section Startup Variables
1506 @item gnus-load-hook
1507 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1508 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1509 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1510 times you start Gnus.
1512 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1513 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1514 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1516 @item gnus-startup-hook
1517 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1518 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1520 @item gnus-started-hook
1521 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1522 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1525 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1526 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1527 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1528 generating the group buffer.
1530 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1531 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1532 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1533 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1534 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1535 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1536 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1537 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1539 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1540 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1541 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1542 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1543 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1544 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1546 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1547 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1548 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1550 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1551 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1552 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1554 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1555 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1556 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1557 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1563 @chapter Group Buffer
1564 @cindex group buffer
1566 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1567 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1568 long as Gnus is active.
1572 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1573 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group.ps,height=9cm}}
1574 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1575 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1576 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1577 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1578 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1579 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1585 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1586 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1587 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1588 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1589 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1590 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1591 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1592 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1593 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1594 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1595 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1596 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1597 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1598 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1599 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1600 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1601 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1605 @node Group Buffer Format
1606 @section Group Buffer Format
1609 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1610 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1611 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1615 @node Group Line Specification
1616 @subsection Group Line Specification
1617 @cindex group buffer format
1619 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1620 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1622 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1625 25: news.announce.newusers
1626 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1631 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1632 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1633 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1634 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1636 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1637 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1638 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1639 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1640 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1641 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1643 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1645 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1646 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1647 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1648 never examined by Gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1651 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1652 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1653 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1655 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1660 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1663 Whether the group is subscribed.
1666 Level of subscribedness.
1669 Number of unread articles.
1672 Number of dormant articles.
1675 Number of ticked articles.
1678 Number of read articles.
1681 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1682 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1685 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1688 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1697 Newsgroup description.
1700 @samp{m} if moderated.
1703 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1712 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1716 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1719 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1720 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1721 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1722 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1723 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1726 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1728 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1732 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1735 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1739 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1740 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1741 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1742 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1743 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1744 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1749 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1750 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1751 group, or a bogus native group.
1754 @node Group Modeline Specification
1755 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1756 @cindex group modeline
1758 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1759 The mode line can be changed by setting
1760 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1761 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1765 The native news server.
1767 The native select method.
1771 @node Group Highlighting
1772 @subsection Group Highlighting
1773 @cindex highlighting
1774 @cindex group highlighting
1776 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1777 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1778 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1779 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1780 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1782 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1786 (cond (window-system
1787 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1788 (defface my-group-face-1
1789 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1790 (defface my-group-face-2
1791 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1792 (defface my-group-face-3
1793 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1794 (defface my-group-face-4
1795 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1796 (defface my-group-face-5
1797 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1799 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1800 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1801 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1802 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1803 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1804 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1807 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1809 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1816 The number of unread articles in the group.
1820 Whether the group is a mail group.
1822 The level of the group.
1824 The score of the group.
1826 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1828 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1829 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1831 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1832 topic being inserted.
1835 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1836 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1837 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1839 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1840 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1841 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1842 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1843 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1846 @node Group Maneuvering
1847 @section Group Maneuvering
1848 @cindex group movement
1850 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1851 expected, hopefully.
1857 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1858 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1859 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1865 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1866 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1867 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1871 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1872 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1876 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1877 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1881 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1882 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1883 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1887 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1888 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1889 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1892 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1898 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1899 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1900 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1905 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1906 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1907 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1911 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1912 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1913 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1916 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1917 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1918 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1919 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1923 @node Selecting a Group
1924 @section Selecting a Group
1925 @cindex group selection
1930 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1931 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1932 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1933 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1934 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1935 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1936 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1937 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1938 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1939 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{N})} oldest articles.
1941 Thus, @kbd{SPC} enters the group normally, @kbd{C-u SPC} offers old
1942 articles, @kbd{C-u 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 newest articles, and @kbd{C-u
1943 - 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 oldest ones.
1945 When you are in the group (in the Summary buffer), you can type
1946 @kbd{M-g} to fetch new articles, or @kbd{C-u M-g} to also show the old
1951 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1952 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1953 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1954 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1955 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1959 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1960 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1961 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1962 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1963 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1964 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1965 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1966 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
1967 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
1968 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
1971 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1972 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1973 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1974 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1975 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1978 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
1979 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
1980 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
1981 doing any processing of its contents
1982 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
1983 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
1984 manner will have no permanent effects.
1988 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
1989 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
1990 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
1991 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
1992 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
1993 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
1994 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
1995 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
1998 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
1999 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
2000 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
2001 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
2006 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
2007 full summary buffer.
2010 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
2013 Select the highest scored article in the group when entering the
2018 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function will
2019 be called to place point on a subject line, and/or select some article.
2020 Useful functions include:
2023 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-subject
2024 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article, but
2025 don't select the article.
2027 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-article
2028 Select the first unread article.
2030 @item gnus-summary-best-unread-article
2031 Select the highest-scored unread article.
2035 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2036 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
2037 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2041 @node Subscription Commands
2042 @section Subscription Commands
2043 @cindex subscription
2051 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2052 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2053 Toggle subscription to the current group
2054 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2060 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2061 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2062 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2063 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2069 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2070 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2071 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2077 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2078 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2081 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2082 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2083 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2084 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2085 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2091 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2092 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2096 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2097 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2100 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2101 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2102 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2103 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2104 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2105 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2106 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2107 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2108 @file{.newsrc} file.
2112 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2122 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2123 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2124 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2125 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2126 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2127 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2132 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2133 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2134 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2138 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2139 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2140 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2142 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2143 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2144 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2145 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
2146 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2147 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2154 @section Group Levels
2158 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2159 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2160 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2161 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2162 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2164 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2170 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2171 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2172 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2173 prompted for a level.
2176 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2177 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2178 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2179 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2180 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2181 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2182 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2183 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2184 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2185 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2186 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2187 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2188 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2189 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2190 reasons of efficiency.
2192 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2193 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2195 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2196 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2197 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2198 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2199 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2200 groups are hidden, in a way.
2202 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2203 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2204 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2205 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2206 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2207 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2209 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2210 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2211 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2212 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2213 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2214 list of killed groups.)
2216 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2217 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2218 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2220 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2221 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2222 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2223 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2224 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2225 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2226 relevant valid ranges.
2228 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2229 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2230 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2231 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2232 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2233 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2236 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2237 one with the best level.
2239 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2240 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2241 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2244 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2245 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2246 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2247 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2250 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2251 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2252 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2253 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2255 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2256 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2257 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2258 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2259 to 5. The default is 6.
2263 @section Group Score
2268 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2269 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2270 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2273 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2274 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2275 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2276 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2277 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2278 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2279 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2280 least significant part.))
2282 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2283 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2284 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2285 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2286 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2287 action after each summary exit, you can add
2288 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2289 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2290 slow things down somewhat.
2293 @node Marking Groups
2294 @section Marking Groups
2295 @cindex marking groups
2297 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2298 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2299 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2300 bidding on those groups.
2302 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2303 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2304 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2312 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2313 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2319 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2320 Remove the mark from the current group
2321 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2325 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2326 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2330 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2331 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2335 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2336 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2340 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2341 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2342 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2345 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2347 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2348 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2349 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2350 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2351 the command to be executed.
2354 @node Foreign Groups
2355 @section Foreign Groups
2356 @cindex foreign groups
2358 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2359 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2360 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2361 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2368 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2369 @cindex making groups
2370 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2371 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2372 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2376 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2377 @cindex renaming groups
2378 Rename the current group to something else
2379 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2380 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2386 @findex gnus-group-customize
2387 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2391 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2392 @cindex renaming groups
2393 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2394 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2398 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2399 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2400 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2404 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2405 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2406 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2410 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2412 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2413 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2418 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2419 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2423 @cindex (ding) archive
2424 @cindex archive group
2425 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2426 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2427 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2428 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2429 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2430 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2431 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2435 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2437 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2438 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2439 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2440 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2444 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2446 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2447 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2448 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2452 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2453 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2455 Make a group based on some file or other
2456 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2457 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2458 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
2459 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
2460 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{nsmail} and @code{forward}.
2461 If you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2462 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2466 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2467 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2468 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2469 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2473 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2478 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2479 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2480 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2481 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2482 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
2483 @xref{Web Searches}.
2485 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
2486 to a particular group by using a match string like
2487 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
2490 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2491 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2492 This function will delete the current group
2493 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2494 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2495 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2496 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2497 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2501 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2502 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2503 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2507 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2508 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2509 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2512 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2515 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2516 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2517 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2518 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2519 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2520 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2524 @node Group Parameters
2525 @section Group Parameters
2526 @cindex group parameters
2528 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2529 Here's an example group parameter list:
2532 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2536 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2537 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2538 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2539 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2541 Some parameters have correspondant customizable variables, each of which
2542 is an alist of regexps and values.
2544 The following group parameters can be used:
2549 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2552 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2555 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2556 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2557 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2558 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2559 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2561 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2562 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2563 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2564 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2565 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2566 list address instead.
2568 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-address-alist}.
2572 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2575 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2578 It is totally ignored
2579 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2580 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2582 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2583 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2584 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2585 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2586 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2588 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2589 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2590 sending the message.
2592 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-list-alist}.
2596 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2597 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2598 of whether it has any unread articles.
2600 @item broken-reply-to
2601 @cindex broken-reply-to
2602 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2603 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2604 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2605 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2606 broken behavior. So there!
2610 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2611 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2615 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2616 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2617 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2622 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2623 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2624 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2625 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2626 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2627 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2628 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2632 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2633 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2634 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2636 See also @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups}.
2639 @cindex total-expire
2640 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2641 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2642 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2643 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2646 See also @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups}.
2650 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2651 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2652 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2653 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2654 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2655 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2658 @cindex score file group parameter
2659 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2660 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2661 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2664 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2665 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2666 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2667 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2670 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2671 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2672 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2673 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2676 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2677 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2681 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2684 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2689 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2690 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2691 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2695 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2696 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2697 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2699 See also @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}.
2701 @item ignored-charsets
2702 Elements that look like @code{(ignored-charsets x-known iso-8859-1)}
2703 will make @code{iso-8859-1} and @code{x-unknown} ignored; that is, the
2704 default charset will be used for decoding articles.
2706 See also @code{gnus-group-ignored-charsets-alist}.
2709 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2710 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2711 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2712 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2713 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2715 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2716 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2717 like this in the group parameters:
2722 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2726 An item like @code{(banner . "regex")} causes any part of an article
2727 that matches the regular expression "regex" to be stripped. Instead of
2728 "regex", you can also use the symbol @code{signature} which strips the
2729 last signature or any of the elements of the alist
2730 @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}.
2732 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2733 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2734 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2735 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2736 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2737 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2738 @code{eval}ed there.
2740 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2741 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2742 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2743 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2744 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2748 Use the @kbd{G p} or the @kbd{G c} command to edit group parameters of a
2749 group. (@kbd{G p} presents you with a Lisp-based interface, @kbd{G c}
2750 presents you with a Customize-like interface. The latter helps avoid
2751 silly Lisp errors.) You might also be interested in reading about topic
2752 parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}).
2755 @node Listing Groups
2756 @section Listing Groups
2757 @cindex group listing
2759 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2767 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2768 List all groups that have unread articles
2769 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2770 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2771 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2772 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2779 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2780 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2781 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2782 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2783 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2784 unsubscribed groups).
2788 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2789 List all unread groups on a specific level
2790 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2791 with no unread articles.
2795 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2796 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2797 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2798 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2803 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2804 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2808 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2809 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2810 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2814 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2815 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2819 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2820 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2821 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2822 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2823 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2824 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2825 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2826 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2830 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2831 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2832 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2836 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2837 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2838 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2842 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
2843 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
2847 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
2848 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
2852 @findex gnus-group-list-limit
2853 List groups limited within the current selection
2854 (@code{gnus-group-list-limit}).
2858 @findex gnus-group-list-flush
2859 Flush groups from the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-flush}).
2863 @findex gnus-group-list-plus
2864 List groups plus the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-plus}).
2868 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2869 @cindex visible group parameter
2870 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2871 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2872 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2873 get the same effect.
2875 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2876 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2877 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2878 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2879 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2882 @node Sorting Groups
2883 @section Sorting Groups
2884 @cindex sorting groups
2886 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2887 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2888 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2889 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2890 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2891 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2896 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2897 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2898 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2900 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2901 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2902 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2904 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2905 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2906 Sort by group level.
2908 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2909 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2910 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
2912 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2913 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2914 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2915 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
2917 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2918 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2919 Sort by number of unread articles.
2921 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
2922 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
2923 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
2925 @item gnus-group-sort-by-server
2926 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-server
2927 Sort alphabetically on the Gnus server name.
2932 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
2933 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
2937 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
2938 some sorting criteria:
2942 @kindex G S a (Group)
2943 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2944 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
2945 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2948 @kindex G S u (Group)
2949 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
2950 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
2951 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2954 @kindex G S l (Group)
2955 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
2956 Sort the group buffer by group level
2957 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
2960 @kindex G S v (Group)
2961 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
2962 Sort the group buffer by group score
2963 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2966 @kindex G S r (Group)
2967 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
2968 Sort the group buffer by group rank
2969 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2972 @kindex G S m (Group)
2973 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
2974 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
2975 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
2979 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
2980 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2982 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
2983 commands will sort in reverse order.
2985 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
2989 @kindex G P a (Group)
2990 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
2991 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
2992 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
2995 @kindex G P u (Group)
2996 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
2997 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
2998 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
3001 @kindex G P l (Group)
3002 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
3003 Sort the groups by group level
3004 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
3007 @kindex G P v (Group)
3008 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
3009 Sort the groups by group score
3010 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3013 @kindex G P r (Group)
3014 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
3015 Sort the groups by group rank
3016 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3019 @kindex G P m (Group)
3020 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
3021 Sort the groups alphabetically by backend name
3022 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
3028 @node Group Maintenance
3029 @section Group Maintenance
3030 @cindex bogus groups
3035 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
3036 Find bogus groups and delete them
3037 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
3041 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
3042 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
3043 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
3044 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
3045 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
3049 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
3050 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
3051 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
3052 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}).
3055 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
3056 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3057 Run all articles in all groups through the expiry process
3058 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3063 @node Browse Foreign Server
3064 @section Browse Foreign Server
3065 @cindex foreign servers
3066 @cindex browsing servers
3071 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3072 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3073 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3074 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3077 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3078 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3079 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3080 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3082 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3087 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3088 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3092 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3093 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3096 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3097 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3098 Enter the current group and display the first article
3099 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3102 @kindex RET (Browse)
3103 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3104 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3108 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3109 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3110 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3116 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3117 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3121 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3122 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3123 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3128 @section Exiting Gnus
3129 @cindex exiting Gnus
3131 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
3136 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3137 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
3138 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3139 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3143 @findex gnus-group-exit
3144 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3145 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3149 @findex gnus-group-quit
3150 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3151 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3154 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3155 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3156 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
3157 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
3158 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3163 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
3164 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
3165 trying to customize meta-variables.
3170 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3171 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3172 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3178 @section Group Topics
3181 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3182 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3183 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3184 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3185 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3186 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3190 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3191 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group-topic.ps,height=9cm}}
3202 2: alt.religion.emacs
3205 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3207 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3208 13: comp.sources.unix
3211 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3213 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3214 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3215 is a toggling command.)
3217 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3218 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
3219 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
3220 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
3223 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3224 the hook for the group mode:
3227 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3231 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3232 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3233 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3234 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3235 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3239 @node Topic Variables
3240 @subsection Topic Variables
3241 @cindex topic variables
3243 Now, if you select a topic, it will fold/unfold that topic, which is
3244 really neat, I think.
3246 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3247 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3248 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3261 Number of groups in the topic.
3263 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3265 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3268 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3269 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3270 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3273 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3274 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3276 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3277 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3278 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3281 @node Topic Commands
3282 @subsection Topic Commands
3283 @cindex topic commands
3285 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3286 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3287 definitions slightly.
3293 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3294 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3295 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3299 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3300 Move the current group to some other topic
3301 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3302 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3306 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3307 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3311 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3312 Copy the current group to some other topic
3313 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3314 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3318 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3319 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3320 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3324 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3325 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3326 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3330 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3331 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3332 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3333 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3334 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3335 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3336 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3339 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3340 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3344 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3345 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3346 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3350 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3351 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3352 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3356 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3357 Toggle hiding empty topics
3358 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3362 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3363 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3364 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
3367 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3368 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3369 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3370 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
3374 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3376 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3377 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3378 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3379 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3382 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3383 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3384 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3385 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3389 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3391 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3392 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3393 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3394 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3395 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3396 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3399 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3400 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3401 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the expiry
3402 process (if any) (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}).
3406 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3407 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3408 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3412 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3413 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3414 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3419 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3420 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3423 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3424 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3425 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3429 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3430 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3431 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3435 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3436 @cindex group parameters
3437 @cindex topic parameters
3439 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3440 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3446 @subsection Topic Sorting
3447 @cindex topic sorting
3449 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3455 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3456 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3457 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3458 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3461 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3462 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3463 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3464 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3467 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3468 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3469 Sort the current topic by group level
3470 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3473 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3474 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3475 Sort the current topic by group score
3476 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3479 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3480 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3481 Sort the current topic by group rank
3482 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3485 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3486 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3487 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
3488 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3492 @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group sorting.
3495 @node Topic Topology
3496 @subsection Topic Topology
3497 @cindex topic topology
3500 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3506 2: alt.religion.emacs
3509 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3511 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3512 13: comp.sources.unix
3515 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3516 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3517 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3522 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3523 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3527 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3528 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3529 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3530 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3531 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3532 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3534 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3535 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3536 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3539 @node Topic Parameters
3540 @subsection Topic Parameters
3541 @cindex topic parameters
3543 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3544 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3545 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3547 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3552 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3553 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3554 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3559 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3560 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3561 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3562 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3568 2: alt.religion.emacs
3572 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3574 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3575 13: comp.sources.unix
3579 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3580 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3581 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3582 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3583 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3584 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3586 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3587 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3588 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3589 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3590 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3592 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3593 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3594 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3595 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3596 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3597 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3598 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3599 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3602 @node Misc Group Stuff
3603 @section Misc Group Stuff
3606 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3607 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
3608 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3609 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3616 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3617 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3618 @xref{Server Buffer}.
3622 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3623 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a
3624 prefix, the current group name will be used as the default.
3628 @findex gnus-group-mail
3629 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
3633 Variables for the group buffer:
3637 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3638 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3639 is called after the group buffer has been
3642 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3643 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3644 is called after the group buffer is
3645 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3648 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3649 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3650 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3651 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3653 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3654 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3655 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3656 whether they are empty or not.
3658 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3659 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3660 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
3661 non-ASCII group names.
3665 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3666 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
3669 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3670 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3671 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names.
3672 It is used to show non-ASCII group names.
3676 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3677 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
3682 @node Scanning New Messages
3683 @subsection Scanning New Messages
3684 @cindex new messages
3685 @cindex scanning new news
3691 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
3692 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
3693 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
3694 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
3695 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
3696 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
3701 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
3702 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
3703 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
3704 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
3705 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
3706 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
3707 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
3709 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
3710 @cindex activating groups
3712 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
3713 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
3718 @findex gnus-group-restart
3719 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
3720 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
3721 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
3725 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3726 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3728 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3729 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3733 @node Group Information
3734 @subsection Group Information
3735 @cindex group information
3736 @cindex information on groups
3743 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
3744 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
3747 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
3748 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
3749 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
3750 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
3751 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
3752 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
3753 for fetching the file.
3755 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
3756 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
3760 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
3762 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
3763 @cindex describing groups
3764 @cindex group description
3765 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
3766 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
3767 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
3771 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
3772 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
3773 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
3780 @findex gnus-version
3781 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
3785 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
3786 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
3789 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
3792 @findex gnus-info-find-node
3793 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
3797 @node Group Timestamp
3798 @subsection Group Timestamp
3800 @cindex group timestamps
3802 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
3803 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
3804 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
3807 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
3810 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
3812 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
3813 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
3816 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3817 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
3820 This will result in lines looking like:
3823 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
3824 0: custom 19961002T012713
3827 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
3828 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
3832 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3833 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
3838 @subsection File Commands
3839 @cindex file commands
3845 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
3846 @vindex gnus-init-file
3847 @cindex reading init file
3848 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
3849 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
3853 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
3854 @cindex saving .newsrc
3855 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
3856 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
3857 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
3860 @c @kindex Z (Group)
3861 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
3862 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3867 @node Summary Buffer
3868 @chapter Summary Buffer
3869 @cindex summary buffer
3871 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3872 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3874 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3875 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3877 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3880 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3881 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3882 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3883 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3884 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3885 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3886 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3887 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3888 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3889 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
3890 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
3891 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
3892 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
3893 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
3894 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
3895 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
3896 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
3897 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
3898 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
3899 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
3900 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
3901 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3902 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3903 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3904 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3905 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
3906 or reselecting the current group.
3907 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3908 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3909 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
3913 @node Summary Buffer Format
3914 @section Summary Buffer Format
3915 @cindex summary buffer format
3919 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
3920 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary.ps,width=7.5cm}}
3921 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-article.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
3927 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
3928 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
3929 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
3930 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
3933 @findex mail-extract-address-components
3934 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
3935 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
3936 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
3937 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
3938 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
3939 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
3940 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
3941 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
3942 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
3943 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead:
3946 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
3947 'mail-extract-address-components)
3950 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
3951 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
3952 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
3953 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
3956 @node Summary Buffer Lines
3957 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
3959 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3960 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
3961 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
3962 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
3963 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3965 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
3967 The following format specification characters are understood:
3973 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
3974 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
3976 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
3977 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
3978 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
3980 Full @code{From} header.
3982 The name (from the @code{From} header).
3984 The name, code @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header
3985 (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
3987 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
3988 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
3989 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
3990 may be more thorough.
3992 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
3995 Number of lines in the article.
3997 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported in some
3998 methods (like nnfolder).
4000 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4002 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
4003 pushes everything after it off the screen).
4005 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
4006 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4008 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
4009 for adopted articles.
4011 One space for each thread level.
4013 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
4018 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
4019 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
4023 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
4025 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
4026 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
4027 default level. If the difference between
4028 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
4029 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
4037 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
4039 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
4045 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
4046 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
4048 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
4049 article has any children.
4055 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4056 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4057 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4058 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4059 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4060 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4063 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4064 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
4065 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4066 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4067 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4068 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4070 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4071 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4073 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
4076 @node To From Newsgroups
4077 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4081 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4082 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4083 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4084 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4085 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4089 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4090 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4091 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4095 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4096 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4099 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4100 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4103 @findex gnus-extra-header
4104 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4105 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4106 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4109 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4113 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4114 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4115 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4116 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4117 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4118 headers are used instead.
4122 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4123 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4124 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
4125 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
4128 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4129 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4130 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4131 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4133 In summary, you'd typically put something like the following in
4137 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4139 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4140 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4141 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20f%]%) %s\n")
4142 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4146 Now, this is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4147 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4154 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4155 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4158 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4159 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4161 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4162 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4163 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4164 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4166 Here are the elements you can play with:
4172 Unprefixed group name.
4174 Current article number.
4176 Current article score.
4180 Number of unread articles in this group.
4182 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4185 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4186 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4187 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4188 and no unselected ones.
4190 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4191 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4193 Subject of the current article.
4195 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4197 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4199 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4201 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4203 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4205 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4209 @node Summary Highlighting
4210 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4214 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4215 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4216 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4217 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4218 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4220 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4221 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4222 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4223 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4225 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4226 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4227 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4228 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4230 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4231 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4232 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4233 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4234 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4235 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4238 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4239 ((> score default) . bold))
4241 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4242 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4246 @node Summary Maneuvering
4247 @section Summary Maneuvering
4248 @cindex summary movement
4250 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4251 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4253 None of these commands select articles.
4258 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4259 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4260 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4261 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4262 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4266 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4267 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4268 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4269 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4270 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4273 @kindex G g (Summary)
4274 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4275 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4276 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4279 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4280 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4281 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4282 to the group buffer.
4284 Variables related to summary movement:
4288 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4289 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4290 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4291 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
4292 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4293 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4294 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
4295 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
4296 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
4297 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
4298 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
4299 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
4300 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
4301 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
4303 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4304 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4305 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4306 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4307 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4308 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4309 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4311 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4313 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4314 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4315 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4316 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4317 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4319 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4320 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4321 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4322 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4323 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4324 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4325 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4326 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4329 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4330 the given number of lines from the top.
4335 @node Choosing Articles
4336 @section Choosing Articles
4337 @cindex selecting articles
4340 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4341 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4345 @node Choosing Commands
4346 @subsection Choosing Commands
4348 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4349 and they all select and display an article.
4351 If you want to fetch new articles or redisplay the group, see
4352 @ref{Exiting the Summary Buffer}.
4356 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4357 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4358 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4359 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4364 @kindex G n (Summary)
4365 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4366 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4367 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4372 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4373 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4374 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4379 @kindex G N (Summary)
4380 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4381 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4386 @kindex G P (Summary)
4387 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4388 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4391 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4392 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4393 Go to the next article with the same subject
4394 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4397 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4398 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4399 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4400 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4404 @kindex G f (Summary)
4406 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4407 Go to the first unread article
4408 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
4412 @kindex G b (Summary)
4414 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
4415 Go to the article with the highest score
4416 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
4421 @kindex G l (Summary)
4422 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
4423 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
4426 @kindex G o (Summary)
4427 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
4429 @cindex article history
4430 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
4431 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
4432 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
4433 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
4434 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
4435 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
4440 @kindex G j (Summary)
4441 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
4442 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
4443 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
4448 @node Choosing Variables
4449 @subsection Choosing Variables
4451 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
4454 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4455 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4456 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
4457 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
4458 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
4459 the server and display it in the article buffer.
4461 @item gnus-select-article-hook
4462 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
4463 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
4464 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
4466 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
4467 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
4468 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
4469 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
4470 @findex gnus-unread-mark
4471 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
4472 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
4473 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
4474 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
4475 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
4476 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
4477 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
4478 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
4479 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
4484 @node Paging the Article
4485 @section Scrolling the Article
4486 @cindex article scrolling
4491 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4492 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4493 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
4494 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
4495 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4498 @kindex DEL (Summary)
4499 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
4500 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
4503 @kindex RET (Summary)
4504 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
4505 Scroll the current article one line forward
4506 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
4509 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
4510 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
4511 Scroll the current article one line backward
4512 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
4516 @kindex A g (Summary)
4518 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
4519 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4520 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
4521 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
4522 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
4523 the way it came from the server.
4525 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
4526 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
4527 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
4530 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4535 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
4540 @kindex A < (Summary)
4541 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
4542 Scroll to the beginning of the article
4543 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
4548 @kindex A > (Summary)
4549 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
4550 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
4554 @kindex A s (Summary)
4556 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
4557 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
4558 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
4562 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
4563 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
4568 @node Reply Followup and Post
4569 @section Reply, Followup and Post
4572 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
4573 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
4574 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
4575 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
4579 @node Summary Mail Commands
4580 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
4582 @cindex composing mail
4584 Commands for composing a mail message:
4590 @kindex S r (Summary)
4592 @findex gnus-summary-reply
4593 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
4594 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
4595 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
4596 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
4601 @kindex S R (Summary)
4602 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
4603 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
4604 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
4605 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
4606 command uses the process/prefix convention.
4609 @kindex S w (Summary)
4610 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
4611 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
4612 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
4613 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4614 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
4617 @kindex S W (Summary)
4618 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
4619 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
4620 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
4621 the process/prefix convention.
4624 @kindex S v (Summary)
4625 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply
4626 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article
4627 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{very wide reply} is a reply
4628 that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4629 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers in all the process/prefixed
4630 articles. This command uses the process/prefix convention.
4633 @kindex S W (Summary)
4634 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
4635 Mail a very wide reply to the current article and include the original
4636 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
4637 the process/prefix convention.
4641 @kindex S o m (Summary)
4642 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
4643 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
4644 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
4645 Forward the current article to some other person
4646 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If no prefix is given, the message
4647 is forwarded according to the value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime})
4648 and (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
4649 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
4650 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
4651 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
4652 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
4653 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
4654 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
4659 @kindex S m (Summary)
4660 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
4661 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
4662 Send a mail to some other person
4663 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
4666 @kindex S D b (Summary)
4667 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
4668 @cindex bouncing mail
4669 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
4670 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
4671 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
4672 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
4673 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
4674 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
4675 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
4676 very well fail, though.
4679 @kindex S D r (Summary)
4680 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
4681 Not to be confused with the previous command,
4682 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
4683 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
4684 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
4685 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
4686 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
4687 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
4688 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
4690 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
4691 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
4692 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
4693 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
4694 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
4696 This command understands the process/prefix convention
4697 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4700 @kindex S O m (Summary)
4701 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
4702 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
4703 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
4704 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4707 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
4708 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
4709 @cindex crossposting
4710 @cindex excessive crossposting
4711 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
4712 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
4714 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
4715 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
4716 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
4717 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
4718 command understands the process/prefix convention
4719 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
4723 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4726 @node Summary Post Commands
4727 @subsection Summary Post Commands
4729 @cindex composing news
4731 Commands for posting a news article:
4737 @kindex S p (Summary)
4738 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
4739 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
4740 Post an article to the current group
4741 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
4746 @kindex S f (Summary)
4747 @findex gnus-summary-followup
4748 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
4749 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
4753 @kindex S F (Summary)
4755 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
4756 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
4757 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
4758 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
4759 process/prefix convention.
4762 @kindex S n (Summary)
4763 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
4764 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4765 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
4768 @kindex S N (Summary)
4769 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
4770 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4771 message through mail and include the original message
4772 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
4773 the process/prefix convention.
4776 @kindex S o p (Summary)
4777 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
4778 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
4779 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}).
4780 If no prefix is given, the message is forwarded according to the value
4781 of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}) and
4782 (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
4783 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
4784 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
4785 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
4786 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
4787 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
4788 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
4791 @kindex S O p (Summary)
4792 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
4794 @cindex making digests
4795 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
4796 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
4797 process/prefix convention.
4800 @kindex S u (Summary)
4801 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
4802 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
4803 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
4804 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
4807 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4810 @node Summary Message Commands
4811 @subsection Summary Message Commands
4815 @kindex S y (Summary)
4816 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
4817 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
4818 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
4819 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
4820 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4825 @node Canceling and Superseding
4826 @subsection Canceling Articles
4827 @cindex canceling articles
4828 @cindex superseding articles
4830 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
4831 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
4833 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
4835 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
4837 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
4838 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
4839 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
4840 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
4841 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
4842 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4844 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
4845 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
4848 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
4849 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
4850 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
4852 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
4853 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
4854 your original article.
4856 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
4858 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
4859 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
4860 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
4863 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
4864 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
4865 have posted almost the same article twice.
4867 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
4868 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
4869 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
4870 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
4871 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
4872 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
4873 header by substituting one of those words for the word
4874 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
4875 you would do normally. The previous article will be
4876 canceled/superseded.
4878 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
4881 @node Marking Articles
4882 @section Marking Articles
4883 @cindex article marking
4884 @cindex article ticking
4887 There are several marks you can set on an article.
4889 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
4890 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
4891 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
4893 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
4896 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
4897 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
4898 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
4902 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
4906 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
4907 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
4908 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
4912 @node Unread Articles
4913 @subsection Unread Articles
4915 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
4920 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
4921 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
4923 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
4924 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
4925 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
4926 tick it. However, articles can be expired (from news servers by the
4927 news server software, Gnus itself never expires ticked messages), so if
4928 you want to keep an article forever, you'll have to make it persistent
4929 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
4932 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
4933 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
4935 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
4936 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
4937 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
4940 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
4941 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
4943 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
4948 @subsection Read Articles
4949 @cindex expirable mark
4951 All the following marks mark articles as read.
4956 @vindex gnus-del-mark
4957 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
4958 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
4961 @vindex gnus-read-mark
4962 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
4965 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
4966 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
4967 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
4970 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
4971 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
4974 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
4975 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
4978 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
4979 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
4982 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
4983 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
4986 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
4987 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
4990 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
4991 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
4994 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
4995 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
4999 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
5000 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
5001 (@code{gnus-duplicated-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
5005 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
5006 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
5008 One more special mark, though:
5012 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
5013 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
5015 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
5016 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
5017 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
5018 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
5024 @subsection Other Marks
5025 @cindex process mark
5028 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
5034 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
5035 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
5036 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
5037 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
5038 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
5041 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
5042 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
5043 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
5044 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
5046 @vindex gnus-forwarded-mark
5047 All articles that you have forwarded will be marked with an @samp{O} in
5048 the second column (@code{gnus-forwarded-mark}).
5051 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
5052 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
5053 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5056 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
5057 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
5058 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
5059 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
5062 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
5063 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
5064 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
5065 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
5066 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
5069 @vindex gnus-process-mark
5070 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
5071 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
5072 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
5073 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
5074 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
5078 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
5079 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
5080 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
5082 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
5083 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
5084 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
5088 @subsection Setting Marks
5089 @cindex setting marks
5091 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
5096 @kindex M c (Summary)
5097 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5098 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5099 @cindex mark as unread
5100 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5101 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5107 @kindex M t (Summary)
5108 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5109 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5110 @xref{Article Caching}.
5115 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5116 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5117 Mark the current article as dormant
5118 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5122 @kindex M d (Summary)
5124 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5125 Mark the current article as read
5126 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5130 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5131 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5132 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5137 @kindex M k (Summary)
5138 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5139 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5140 and then select the next unread article
5141 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5145 @kindex M K (Summary)
5146 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5147 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5148 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5149 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5152 @kindex M C (Summary)
5153 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5154 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5155 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5158 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5159 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5160 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5161 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5164 @kindex M H (Summary)
5165 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5166 Catchup the current group to point
5167 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5170 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5171 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5172 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5173 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5176 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5177 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5178 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5179 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5183 @kindex M e (Summary)
5185 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5186 Mark the current article as expirable
5187 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5190 @kindex M b (Summary)
5191 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5192 Set a bookmark in the current article
5193 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5196 @kindex M B (Summary)
5197 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5198 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5199 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5202 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5203 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5204 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5205 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5208 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5209 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5210 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5211 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5214 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5215 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5216 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5217 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5218 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5221 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
5222 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
5223 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
5224 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
5225 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
5226 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
5227 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
5228 The default is @code{t}.
5231 @node Generic Marking Commands
5232 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
5234 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
5235 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
5236 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
5237 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
5238 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
5241 Multiply these five behaviors with five different marking commands, and
5242 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
5245 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
5246 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
5247 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
5248 to list in this manual.
5250 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
5251 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
5252 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
5253 article, you could say something like:
5256 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
5257 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5258 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
5264 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5265 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
5269 @node Setting Process Marks
5270 @subsection Setting Process Marks
5271 @cindex setting process marks
5278 @kindex M P p (Summary)
5279 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
5280 Mark the current article with the process mark
5281 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
5282 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
5286 @kindex M P u (Summary)
5287 @kindex M-# (Summary)
5288 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
5289 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
5292 @kindex M P U (Summary)
5293 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
5294 Remove the process mark from all articles
5295 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
5298 @kindex M P i (Summary)
5299 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
5300 Invert the list of process marked articles
5301 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
5304 @kindex M P R (Summary)
5305 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
5306 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5307 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
5310 @kindex M P G (Summary)
5311 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
5312 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5313 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
5316 @kindex M P r (Summary)
5317 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
5318 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
5321 @kindex M P t (Summary)
5322 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5323 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5324 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5327 @kindex M P T (Summary)
5328 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5329 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5330 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5333 @kindex M P v (Summary)
5334 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
5335 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
5336 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
5339 @kindex M P s (Summary)
5340 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
5341 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5344 @kindex M P S (Summary)
5345 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
5346 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
5347 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
5350 @kindex M P a (Summary)
5351 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
5352 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5355 @kindex M P b (Summary)
5356 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
5357 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
5358 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
5361 @kindex M P k (Summary)
5362 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
5363 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
5364 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
5367 @kindex M P y (Summary)
5368 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
5369 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
5370 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
5373 @kindex M P w (Summary)
5374 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
5375 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
5376 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
5380 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
5381 set process marks based on article body contents.
5388 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
5389 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
5390 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
5393 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
5394 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
5395 additional articles.
5401 @kindex / / (Summary)
5402 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
5403 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
5404 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
5407 @kindex / a (Summary)
5408 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
5409 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
5410 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
5413 @kindex / x (Summary)
5414 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
5415 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
5416 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
5417 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}).
5421 @kindex / u (Summary)
5423 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
5424 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
5425 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
5426 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
5427 dormant articles will also be excluded.
5430 @kindex / m (Summary)
5431 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
5432 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
5433 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
5436 @kindex / t (Summary)
5437 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
5438 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
5439 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
5440 articles younger than that number of days.
5443 @kindex / n (Summary)
5444 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
5445 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
5446 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
5447 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5450 @kindex / w (Summary)
5451 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
5452 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
5453 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
5457 @kindex / v (Summary)
5458 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
5459 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
5460 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
5464 @kindex M S (Summary)
5465 @kindex / E (Summary)
5466 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
5467 Include all expunged articles in the limit
5468 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
5471 @kindex / D (Summary)
5472 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
5473 Include all dormant articles in the limit
5474 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
5477 @kindex / * (Summary)
5478 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
5479 Include all cached articles in the limit
5480 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
5483 @kindex / d (Summary)
5484 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
5485 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
5486 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
5489 @kindex / M (Summary)
5490 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
5491 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
5494 @kindex / T (Summary)
5495 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
5496 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
5499 @kindex / c (Summary)
5500 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
5501 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
5502 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
5505 @kindex / C (Summary)
5506 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
5507 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
5508 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
5509 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
5517 @cindex article threading
5519 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
5520 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
5521 hierarchical fashion.
5523 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
5524 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
5525 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
5526 or simply missing. Weird news propagation exacerbates the problem,
5527 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
5528 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
5529 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
5531 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
5535 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
5538 A tree-like article structure.
5541 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
5544 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
5545 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
5546 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
5547 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
5548 called loose threads.
5550 @item thread gathering
5551 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
5553 @item sparse threads
5554 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
5555 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
5561 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
5562 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
5566 @node Customizing Threading
5567 @subsection Customizing Threading
5568 @cindex customizing threading
5571 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
5572 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
5573 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
5574 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
5579 @subsubsection Loose Threads
5582 @cindex loose threads
5585 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
5586 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
5587 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
5588 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
5589 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
5590 read or killed the root in a previous session.
5592 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
5593 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
5594 There are four possible values:
5598 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
5599 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-adopt.ps,width=7.5cm}}
5600 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-empty.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5601 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-none.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5602 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-dummy.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5607 @cindex adopting articles
5612 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
5613 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
5614 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
5615 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
5618 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
5619 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
5620 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
5621 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
5622 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
5623 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
5624 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
5627 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
5628 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
5629 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
5633 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
5634 display them after one another.
5637 Don't gather loose threads.
5640 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
5641 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
5642 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
5643 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
5644 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
5645 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
5646 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
5647 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
5648 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
5649 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
5650 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
5652 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
5653 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
5654 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
5657 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
5658 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
5659 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
5660 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
5661 simplification is used.
5663 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5664 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5665 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
5666 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
5668 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
5670 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5676 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
5677 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
5678 "answer" "reference" "announce"
5679 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
5684 (mapconcat 'identity
5685 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
5687 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
5690 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
5693 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
5694 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
5695 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
5696 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
5697 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
5698 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
5700 Useful functions to put in this list include:
5703 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
5704 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
5705 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
5707 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
5708 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
5711 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
5712 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
5713 Remove excessive whitespace.
5716 You may also write your own functions, of course.
5719 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5720 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5721 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
5722 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
5723 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
5724 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
5725 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
5726 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
5728 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5729 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5730 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
5731 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
5732 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
5733 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
5734 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
5735 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
5736 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
5740 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5741 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5742 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
5743 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
5745 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5746 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5747 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
5750 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
5754 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5755 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
5761 @node Filling In Threads
5762 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
5765 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
5766 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
5767 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
5768 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
5769 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
5770 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
5771 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
5772 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
5773 fetching old headers only works if the backend you are using carries
5774 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
5775 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
5776 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
5778 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
5779 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
5780 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
5782 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
5783 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
5784 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
5785 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
5786 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
5787 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
5788 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
5789 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
5790 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
5791 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
5792 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
5793 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
5794 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
5795 @code{nil} by default.
5800 @node More Threading
5801 @subsubsection More Threading
5804 @item gnus-show-threads
5805 @vindex gnus-show-threads
5806 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
5807 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
5808 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
5809 slower and more awkward.
5811 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5812 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5813 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
5816 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
5817 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
5818 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
5819 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
5820 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
5821 threads are expunged.
5823 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
5824 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
5825 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
5828 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5829 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5830 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
5831 this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subject change is ignored. If it
5832 is @code{nil}, which is the default, a change in the subject will result
5835 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
5836 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
5837 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
5840 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
5841 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
5842 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
5843 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
5844 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
5845 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
5846 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
5847 Setting this variable to an alternate value
5848 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
5849 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
5850 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
5855 @node Low-Level Threading
5856 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
5860 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
5861 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
5862 Hook run before parsing any headers.
5864 @item gnus-alter-header-function
5865 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
5866 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
5867 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
5868 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
5869 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
5870 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
5871 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
5872 meaningful. Here's one example:
5875 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
5877 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
5878 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
5880 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
5882 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
5889 @node Thread Commands
5890 @subsection Thread Commands
5891 @cindex thread commands
5897 @kindex T k (Summary)
5898 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
5899 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
5900 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
5901 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
5902 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
5907 @kindex T l (Summary)
5908 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
5909 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
5910 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
5911 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
5914 @kindex T i (Summary)
5915 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
5916 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
5917 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
5920 @kindex T # (Summary)
5921 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5922 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
5923 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5926 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
5927 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5928 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
5929 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5932 @kindex T T (Summary)
5933 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
5934 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
5937 @kindex T s (Summary)
5938 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
5939 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
5940 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
5943 @kindex T h (Summary)
5944 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
5945 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
5948 @kindex T S (Summary)
5949 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
5950 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
5953 @kindex T H (Summary)
5954 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
5955 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
5958 @kindex T t (Summary)
5959 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
5960 Re-thread the current article's thread
5961 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
5962 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
5965 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
5966 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
5967 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
5968 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
5972 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
5973 understand the numeric prefix.
5978 @kindex T n (Summary)
5980 @kindex M-C-n (Summary)
5982 @kindex M-down (Summary)
5983 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
5984 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
5987 @kindex T p (Summary)
5989 @kindex M-C-p (Summary)
5991 @kindex M-up (Summary)
5992 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
5993 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
5996 @kindex T d (Summary)
5997 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
5998 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
6001 @kindex T u (Summary)
6002 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
6003 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
6006 @kindex T o (Summary)
6007 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
6008 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
6011 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
6012 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
6013 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
6014 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
6015 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
6016 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
6017 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
6018 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
6019 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
6020 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
6021 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
6022 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
6026 @node Sorting the Summary Buffer
6027 @section Sorting the Summary Buffer
6029 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
6030 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
6031 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
6032 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6033 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
6034 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6035 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
6036 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
6037 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
6038 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
6039 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
6041 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
6042 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
6043 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
6044 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
6045 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
6047 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
6048 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
6049 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
6051 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
6052 last function in the list. You should probably always include
6053 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
6054 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
6055 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
6056 ascending article order.
6058 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
6059 by number, you could do something like:
6062 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6063 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6064 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6065 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
6068 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
6069 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
6070 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
6071 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
6072 which the articles arrived.
6074 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
6078 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6080 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
6081 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
6084 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
6085 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
6086 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
6087 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
6090 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
6091 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
6092 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
6093 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6094 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6095 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6096 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
6097 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
6098 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
6099 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
6100 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6101 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
6102 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6104 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6108 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6109 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6110 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6115 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6116 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6117 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6118 @cindex article pre-fetch
6121 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
6122 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6123 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6124 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6125 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6127 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6128 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
6130 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
6131 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
6132 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
6133 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
6134 connection is blocked.
6136 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
6137 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
6138 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
6139 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
6141 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
6142 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
6143 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
6144 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
6147 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
6150 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
6151 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
6152 happen automatically.
6154 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
6155 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
6156 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
6157 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
6158 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
6159 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
6160 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
6162 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
6163 @findex gnus-async-read-p
6164 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
6165 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
6166 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
6167 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
6168 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
6169 data structure as the only parameter.
6171 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
6174 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
6175 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
6176 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
6177 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
6180 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
6183 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
6184 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
6185 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
6187 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
6188 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
6189 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
6190 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
6194 Remove articles when they are read.
6197 Remove articles when exiting the group.
6200 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
6202 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
6203 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
6204 @c from the next group.
6207 @node Article Caching
6208 @section Article Caching
6209 @cindex article caching
6212 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
6213 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
6214 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
6215 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
6216 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
6218 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
6220 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6221 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
6222 @vindex gnus-use-cache
6223 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
6224 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
6225 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
6226 cache is flat or hierarchical is controlled by the
6227 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
6229 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
6230 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
6231 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
6232 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
6233 as dormant, and don't worry.
6235 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
6237 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
6238 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
6239 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
6240 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
6241 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
6242 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
6243 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
6244 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
6245 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
6246 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
6248 @findex gnus-jog-cache
6249 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
6250 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
6251 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
6252 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
6253 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
6254 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
6255 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
6256 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
6257 not then be downloaded by this command.
6259 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
6260 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
6261 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
6262 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
6263 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
6264 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
6266 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
6267 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
6268 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
6269 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
6270 variables, the group is not cached.
6272 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
6273 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
6274 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
6275 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
6276 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
6277 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
6278 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
6279 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
6280 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
6284 @node Persistent Articles
6285 @section Persistent Articles
6286 @cindex persistent articles
6288 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
6289 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
6290 useful in my opinion.
6292 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
6293 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
6294 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
6295 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
6296 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
6297 the expiry going on at the news server.
6299 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
6300 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
6301 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
6307 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
6308 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
6311 @kindex M-* (Summary)
6312 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
6313 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
6314 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
6318 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
6320 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
6321 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
6322 interested in persistent articles:
6325 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
6329 @node Article Backlog
6330 @section Article Backlog
6332 @cindex article backlog
6334 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
6335 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
6336 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
6337 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
6338 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
6339 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
6340 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
6341 increase memory usage some.
6343 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
6344 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
6345 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
6346 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
6347 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
6348 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
6349 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
6351 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
6354 @node Saving Articles
6355 @section Saving Articles
6356 @cindex saving articles
6358 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
6359 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
6360 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
6361 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
6362 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
6364 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
6365 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
6366 unwanted headers before saving the article.
6368 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
6369 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
6370 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
6371 deleted before saving.
6377 @kindex O o (Summary)
6379 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
6380 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
6381 Save the current article using the default article saver
6382 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
6385 @kindex O m (Summary)
6386 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
6387 Save the current article in mail format
6388 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
6391 @kindex O r (Summary)
6392 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
6393 Save the current article in rmail format
6394 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
6397 @kindex O f (Summary)
6398 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
6399 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
6400 Save the current article in plain file format
6401 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
6404 @kindex O F (Summary)
6405 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
6406 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
6407 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
6410 @kindex O b (Summary)
6411 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
6412 Save the current article body in plain file format
6413 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
6416 @kindex O h (Summary)
6417 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
6418 Save the current article in mh folder format
6419 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
6422 @kindex O v (Summary)
6423 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
6424 Save the current article in a VM folder
6425 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
6428 @kindex O p (Summary)
6429 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
6430 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
6431 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
6434 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
6435 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
6436 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
6437 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
6438 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
6439 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
6440 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
6441 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
6442 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
6443 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
6444 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
6445 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
6449 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
6450 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
6451 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
6452 functions below, or you can create your own.
6456 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6457 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6458 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
6459 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
6460 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
6461 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6462 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
6464 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
6465 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
6466 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
6467 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
6468 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6469 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
6471 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
6472 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
6473 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
6474 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
6475 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
6476 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6477 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
6479 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
6480 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
6481 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
6482 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6483 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
6485 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
6486 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
6487 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
6488 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
6489 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
6492 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
6493 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
6494 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
6495 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
6496 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
6498 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
6499 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
6500 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
6501 reader to use this setting.
6504 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
6505 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
6506 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
6507 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
6510 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
6511 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
6512 available functions that generate names:
6516 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
6517 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
6518 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
6520 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
6521 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
6522 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
6524 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
6525 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
6526 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
6528 @item gnus-plain-save-name
6529 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
6530 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
6532 @item gnus-sender-save-name
6533 @findex gnus-sender-save-name
6534 File names like @file{~/News/larsi}.
6537 @vindex gnus-split-methods
6538 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
6539 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
6540 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
6541 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
6545 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
6546 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
6547 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
6548 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
6551 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
6552 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
6553 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
6554 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
6555 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
6556 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
6557 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
6558 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
6559 called returns a string or a list of strings.
6561 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
6562 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
6563 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
6564 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
6566 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
6567 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
6568 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
6571 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
6572 lots of mail groups called things like
6573 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
6574 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
6575 following will do just that:
6578 (defun my-save-name (group)
6579 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
6580 (substring group (match-end 0))))
6582 (setq gnus-split-methods
6583 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
6588 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6589 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
6590 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
6591 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
6592 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
6593 all the files in the top level directory
6594 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
6595 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
6596 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
6597 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
6599 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
6600 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
6601 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
6602 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
6603 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
6606 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
6610 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
6611 (setq gnus-default-article-saver 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
6614 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
6615 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
6616 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
6617 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
6620 @node Decoding Articles
6621 @section Decoding Articles
6622 @cindex decoding articles
6624 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
6625 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
6628 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
6629 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
6630 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
6631 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
6632 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
6633 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
6637 @cindex article series
6638 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
6639 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
6640 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
6641 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
6642 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
6644 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
6645 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
6646 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
6648 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
6649 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
6650 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
6652 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
6653 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
6654 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
6657 @node Uuencoded Articles
6658 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
6660 @cindex uuencoded articles
6665 @kindex X u (Summary)
6666 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
6667 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
6668 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
6671 @kindex X U (Summary)
6672 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
6673 Uudecodes and saves the current series
6674 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
6677 @kindex X v u (Summary)
6678 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
6679 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
6682 @kindex X v U (Summary)
6683 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
6684 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
6685 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
6689 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
6690 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
6691 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
6692 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
6693 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
6695 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
6696 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
6697 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
6698 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
6701 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
6702 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
6703 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
6704 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
6705 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
6706 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
6710 @node Shell Archives
6711 @subsection Shell Archives
6713 @cindex shell archives
6714 @cindex shared articles
6716 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
6717 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
6718 some commands to deal with these:
6723 @kindex X s (Summary)
6724 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
6725 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
6728 @kindex X S (Summary)
6729 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
6730 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
6733 @kindex X v s (Summary)
6734 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
6735 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
6738 @kindex X v S (Summary)
6739 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
6740 Unshars, views and saves the current series
6741 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
6745 @node PostScript Files
6746 @subsection PostScript Files
6752 @kindex X p (Summary)
6753 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
6754 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
6757 @kindex X P (Summary)
6758 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
6759 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
6760 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
6763 @kindex X v p (Summary)
6764 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
6765 View the current PostScript series
6766 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
6769 @kindex X v P (Summary)
6770 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
6771 View and save the current PostScript series
6772 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
6777 @subsection Other Files
6781 @kindex X o (Summary)
6782 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
6783 Save the current series
6784 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
6787 @kindex X b (Summary)
6788 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
6789 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
6790 doesn't really work yet.
6794 @node Decoding Variables
6795 @subsection Decoding Variables
6797 Adjective, not verb.
6800 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
6801 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
6802 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
6806 @node Rule Variables
6807 @subsubsection Rule Variables
6808 @cindex rule variables
6810 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
6811 variables are of the form
6814 (list '(regexp1 command2)
6821 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6822 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6824 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
6825 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
6828 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6829 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
6832 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6833 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6834 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
6835 user and default view rules.
6837 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6838 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6839 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
6844 @node Other Decode Variables
6845 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
6848 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6850 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6851 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
6852 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
6853 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
6854 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
6858 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
6859 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
6862 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
6863 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
6864 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
6867 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6868 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6869 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
6870 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
6871 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
6874 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6875 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6876 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
6878 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6879 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6880 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
6881 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
6882 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
6885 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6886 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6887 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
6889 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6890 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6891 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
6892 looking for files to display.
6894 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
6895 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
6896 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
6899 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6900 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6901 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
6904 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6905 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6906 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
6909 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6910 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6911 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
6914 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6915 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6916 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
6917 decoded articles as unread.
6919 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6920 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6921 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
6922 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
6924 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6925 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6926 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
6928 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6929 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6931 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
6932 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
6933 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
6934 @code{metamail} for viewing.
6936 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6937 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6938 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
6939 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
6940 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
6941 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
6942 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
6943 simply dropped them.
6948 @node Uuencoding and Posting
6949 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
6953 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6954 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6955 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
6956 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
6957 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
6958 for you when you post the article.
6960 @item gnus-uu-post-length
6961 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
6962 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
6963 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
6965 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
6966 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
6967 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
6968 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
6969 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
6970 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
6971 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
6973 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6974 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6975 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
6976 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
6977 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
6978 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
6979 Default is @code{t}.
6985 @subsection Viewing Files
6986 @cindex viewing files
6987 @cindex pseudo-articles
6989 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
6990 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
6991 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
6992 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
6993 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
6994 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
6995 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
6997 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
6998 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
6999 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
7000 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
7002 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
7003 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
7004 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
7006 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
7007 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
7008 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
7009 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
7010 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
7012 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
7013 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
7014 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
7015 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
7016 a list of parameters to that command.
7018 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
7019 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
7020 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
7022 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
7023 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
7024 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
7027 @node Article Treatment
7028 @section Article Treatment
7030 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
7031 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
7032 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
7033 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
7034 these articles easier.
7037 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
7038 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
7039 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
7040 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
7041 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
7042 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
7043 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
7044 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
7048 @node Article Highlighting
7049 @subsection Article Highlighting
7050 @cindex highlighting
7052 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
7053 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
7058 @kindex W H a (Summary)
7059 @findex gnus-article-highlight
7060 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7061 Do much highlighting of the current article
7062 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
7063 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
7066 @kindex W H h (Summary)
7067 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
7068 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
7069 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
7070 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
7071 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
7072 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
7073 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
7074 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
7075 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
7076 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
7077 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
7080 @kindex W H c (Summary)
7081 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
7082 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
7084 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
7087 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7089 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7090 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
7091 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
7093 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7094 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
7095 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
7097 @item gnus-cite-face-list
7098 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
7099 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
7100 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
7101 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
7102 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
7104 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
7105 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
7106 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
7108 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7109 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7110 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
7112 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7113 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7114 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
7115 that it's a citation.
7117 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7118 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7119 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
7121 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7122 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7123 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
7125 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
7126 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
7127 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
7128 cited text belonging to the attribution.
7134 @kindex W H s (Summary)
7135 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7136 @vindex gnus-signature-face
7137 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
7138 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
7139 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
7140 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
7141 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
7146 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
7149 @node Article Fontisizing
7150 @subsection Article Fontisizing
7152 @cindex article emphasis
7154 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
7155 @kindex W e (Summary)
7156 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
7157 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
7158 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
7159 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
7161 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
7162 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
7163 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
7164 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
7165 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
7166 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
7167 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
7168 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
7172 (setq gnus-emphasis-alist
7173 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
7174 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
7183 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
7184 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
7185 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
7186 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
7187 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
7188 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
7189 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
7190 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
7191 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
7192 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
7193 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
7194 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
7195 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
7197 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
7198 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
7199 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
7203 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
7206 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
7208 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
7209 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
7210 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
7211 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
7213 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
7216 @node Article Hiding
7217 @subsection Article Hiding
7218 @cindex article hiding
7220 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
7221 too much cruft in most articles.
7226 @kindex W W a (Summary)
7227 @findex gnus-article-hide
7228 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
7229 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
7230 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
7233 @kindex W W h (Summary)
7234 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
7235 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
7239 @kindex W W b (Summary)
7240 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7241 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
7242 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
7245 @kindex W W s (Summary)
7246 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
7247 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
7251 @kindex W W l (Summary)
7252 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
7253 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7254 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
7255 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
7256 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
7257 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
7258 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
7262 @item gnus-list-identifiers
7263 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7264 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
7265 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
7270 @kindex W W p (Summary)
7271 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
7272 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7273 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
7274 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
7275 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
7276 articles that have signatures in them do:
7278 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
7280 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
7282 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
7283 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
7285 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7288 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
7293 @kindex W W P (Summary)
7294 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
7295 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
7296 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
7299 @kindex W W B (Summary)
7300 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
7303 @cindex stripping advertisements
7304 @cindex advertisements
7305 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
7306 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
7307 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
7308 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
7309 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
7310 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
7311 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
7312 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
7313 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
7314 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
7318 @kindex W W c (Summary)
7319 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
7320 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
7321 customizing the hiding:
7325 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7326 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7327 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7328 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7329 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
7330 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
7331 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
7336 Starting point of the hidden text.
7338 Ending point of the hidden text.
7340 Number of characters in the hidden region.
7342 Number of lines of hidden text.
7345 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
7346 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
7347 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
7348 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
7349 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
7354 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
7355 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
7357 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
7358 following two variables:
7361 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7362 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7363 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
7364 50), hide the cited text.
7366 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7367 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7368 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
7373 @kindex W W C (Summary)
7374 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
7375 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
7376 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
7377 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
7378 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
7382 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
7383 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
7384 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
7386 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
7387 citation customization.
7389 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
7393 @node Article Washing
7394 @subsection Article Washing
7396 @cindex article washing
7398 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
7399 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
7401 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
7402 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
7405 @xref{Customizing Articles}, if you want to change how Gnus displays
7406 articles by default.
7411 This is not really washing, it's sort of the opposite of washing. If
7412 you type this, you see the article exactly as it exists on disk or on
7416 @kindex W l (Summary)
7417 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
7418 Remove page breaks from the current article
7419 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
7423 @kindex W r (Summary)
7424 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
7425 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
7426 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
7427 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
7428 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
7429 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
7431 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
7432 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
7433 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
7434 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
7438 @kindex W t (Summary)
7440 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
7441 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
7442 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
7445 @kindex W v (Summary)
7446 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
7447 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
7448 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
7451 @kindex W o (Summary)
7452 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
7453 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
7456 @kindex W d (Summary)
7457 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
7458 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
7460 @cindex M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s
7462 Treat M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s according to
7463 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
7464 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
7465 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
7468 Sm*rtq**t*s are M****s***'s unilateral extension to the character map in
7469 an attempt to provide more quoting characters. If you see something
7470 like @code{\222} or @code{\264} where you're expecting some kind of
7471 apostrophe or quotation mark, then try this wash.
7474 @kindex W w (Summary)
7475 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
7476 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
7478 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
7482 @kindex W Q (Summary)
7483 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
7484 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
7487 @kindex W C (Summary)
7488 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
7489 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
7490 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
7493 @kindex W c (Summary)
7494 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
7495 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
7496 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
7497 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
7498 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
7501 @kindex W q (Summary)
7502 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
7503 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
7504 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
7505 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
7506 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
7507 readable to me. Note that the this is usually done automatically by
7508 Gnus if the message in question has a @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding}
7509 header that says that this encoding has been done.
7512 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
7513 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
7514 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}).
7515 Base64 is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending non-ASCII
7516 (i. e., 8-bit) articles. Note that the this is usually done
7517 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
7518 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding has
7522 @kindex W Z (Summary)
7523 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
7524 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
7525 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
7526 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
7529 @kindex W h (Summary)
7530 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
7531 Treat HTML (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}).
7532 Note that the this is usually done automatically by Gnus if the message
7533 in question has a @code{Content-Type} header that says that this type
7537 @kindex W f (Summary)
7539 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
7540 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
7541 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
7542 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
7549 Look for and display any X-Face headers
7550 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
7551 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
7552 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
7553 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
7554 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
7555 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
7556 The default action under Emacs is to fork off the @code{display}
7557 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For the
7558 @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
7559 like `compface' or `faces-xface' on a GNU/Linux system.}
7560 to view the face. Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image
7561 support, the default action is to display the face before the
7562 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
7563 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
7564 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
7565 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
7566 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
7567 like @code{netpbm} or @code{libgr-progs}.}) If you
7568 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
7572 @kindex W b (Summary)
7573 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
7574 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
7575 @xref{Article Buttons}.
7578 @kindex W B (Summary)
7579 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
7580 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
7581 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
7584 @kindex W W H (Summary)
7585 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body
7586 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
7587 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body}).
7590 @kindex W E l (Summary)
7591 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
7592 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
7593 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
7596 @kindex W E m (Summary)
7597 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
7598 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
7599 lines with a single empty line.
7600 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
7603 @kindex W E t (Summary)
7604 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
7605 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
7606 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
7609 @kindex W E a (Summary)
7610 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
7611 Do all the three commands above
7612 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
7615 @kindex W E A (Summary)
7616 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
7617 Remove all blank lines
7618 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
7621 @kindex W E s (Summary)
7622 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
7623 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
7624 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
7627 @kindex W E e (Summary)
7628 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
7629 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
7630 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
7634 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
7637 @node Article Buttons
7638 @subsection Article Buttons
7641 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
7642 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
7643 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
7644 button on these references.
7646 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
7647 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
7648 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
7653 @item gnus-button-alist
7654 @vindex gnus-button-alist
7655 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
7658 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
7664 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
7665 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
7666 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
7669 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
7670 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
7671 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
7674 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
7675 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
7676 avoid false matches.
7679 This function will be called when you click on this button.
7682 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
7683 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
7687 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
7690 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
7693 @item gnus-header-button-alist
7694 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
7695 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
7696 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
7697 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
7700 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
7703 @var{header} is a regular expression.
7705 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
7706 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
7707 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
7708 default values of the variables above.
7710 @item gnus-article-button-face
7711 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
7712 Face used on buttons.
7714 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
7715 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
7716 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
7720 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
7724 @subsection Article Date
7726 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
7727 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
7728 when the article was sent.
7733 @kindex W T u (Summary)
7734 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
7735 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
7736 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
7739 @kindex W T i (Summary)
7740 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
7742 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
7743 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
7746 @kindex W T l (Summary)
7747 @findex gnus-article-date-local
7748 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
7751 @kindex W T p (Summary)
7752 @findex gnus-article-date-english
7753 Display the date in a format that's easily pronounceable in English
7754 (@code{gnus-article-date-english}).
7757 @kindex W T s (Summary)
7758 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
7759 @findex gnus-article-date-user
7760 @findex format-time-string
7761 Display the date using a user-defined format
7762 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
7763 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
7764 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
7765 for a list of possible format specs.
7768 @kindex W T e (Summary)
7769 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
7770 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
7771 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
7772 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
7773 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
7776 X-Sent: 9 years, 6 weeks, 4 days, 9 hours, 3 minutes, 28 seconds ago
7779 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
7780 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
7783 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
7784 into wonderful absurdities.
7786 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
7789 (gnus-start-date-timer)
7792 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
7793 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
7797 @kindex W T o (Summary)
7798 @findex gnus-article-date-original
7799 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
7800 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
7801 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
7802 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
7803 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
7807 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
7808 preferred format automatically.
7811 @node Article Signature
7812 @subsection Article Signature
7814 @cindex article signature
7816 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7817 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
7818 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
7819 that says what is to be considered a signature is
7820 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
7821 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
7822 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
7823 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
7824 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
7827 (setq gnus-signature-separator
7828 '("^-- $" ; The standard
7829 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
7830 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
7831 ; line of dashes. Shame!
7832 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
7833 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
7834 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
7837 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
7840 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
7841 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
7842 signature when displaying articles.
7846 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
7849 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
7852 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
7853 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
7855 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
7856 in question is not a signature.
7859 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
7860 listed above. Here's an example:
7863 (setq gnus-signature-limit
7864 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
7867 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
7868 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
7869 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
7870 signature after all.
7873 @node Article Miscellania
7874 @subsection Article Miscellania
7878 @kindex A t (Summary)
7879 @findex gnus-article-babel
7880 Translate the article from one language to another
7881 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
7887 @section @sc{mime} Commands
7888 @cindex MIME decoding
7890 @cindex viewing attachments
7892 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
7893 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @sc{mime} part''.
7899 @kindex K v (Summary)
7900 View the @sc{mime} part.
7903 @kindex K o (Summary)
7904 Save the @sc{mime} part.
7907 @kindex K c (Summary)
7908 Copy the @sc{mime} part.
7911 @kindex K e (Summary)
7912 View the @sc{mime} part externally.
7915 @kindex K i (Summary)
7916 View the @sc{mime} part internally.
7919 @kindex K | (Summary)
7920 Pipe the @sc{mime} part to an external command.
7923 The rest of these @sc{mime} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
7928 @kindex K b (Summary)
7929 Make all the @sc{mime} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
7930 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
7934 @kindex K m (Summary)
7935 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
7936 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
7937 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
7938 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
7939 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
7942 @kindex X m (Summary)
7943 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
7944 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
7945 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
7946 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7949 @kindex M-t (Summary)
7950 @findex gnus-summary-display-buttonized
7951 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
7952 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
7955 @kindex W M w (Summary)
7956 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
7957 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
7960 @kindex W M c (Summary)
7961 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
7962 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
7964 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
7965 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
7966 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
7967 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not include
7968 MIME headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic parameter to
7969 the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
7972 @kindex W M v (Summary)
7973 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
7974 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
7981 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
7982 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
7983 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
7984 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
7987 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
7990 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
7994 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
7995 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
7996 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
7997 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
7998 displayed. The default value is @code{(".*/.*")}.
8000 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
8001 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
8002 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
8003 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
8004 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
8005 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
8006 save all jpegs into some directory).
8008 Here's an example function the does the latter:
8011 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
8012 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
8014 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
8015 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
8016 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
8017 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
8018 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
8021 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8022 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8023 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
8032 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
8033 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
8034 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
8035 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
8036 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
8037 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
8038 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
8040 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
8041 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
8042 variable, which is an alist of regexps (to match full group names) and
8043 default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
8045 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
8046 aren't. These blithely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1} even
8047 if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
8048 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
8049 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be set
8050 on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
8051 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit)}, which is
8052 something some agents insist on having in there.
8054 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
8055 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
8056 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @sc{mime}
8057 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
8058 quoted-printable header encoding.
8060 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
8061 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
8062 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
8066 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
8069 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
8070 means encode all charsets),
8072 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
8073 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
8074 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
8081 @cindex coding system aliases
8082 @cindex preferred charset
8084 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
8086 If there are several @sc{mime} charsets that encode the same Emacs
8087 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
8090 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
8091 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
8094 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
8095 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @sc{mime} charset.
8097 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
8100 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
8103 This will almost do the right thing.
8105 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
8109 (codepage-setup 1251)
8110 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
8114 @node Article Commands
8115 @section Article Commands
8122 @kindex A P (Summary)
8123 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
8124 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
8125 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
8126 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
8127 run just before printing the buffer.
8132 @node Summary Sorting
8133 @section Summary Sorting
8134 @cindex summary sorting
8136 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
8137 can't really see why you'd want that.
8142 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
8143 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
8144 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
8147 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
8148 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
8149 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
8152 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
8153 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
8154 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
8157 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
8158 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
8159 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
8162 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
8163 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
8164 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
8167 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
8168 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
8169 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
8172 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
8173 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
8174 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
8177 @kindex C-c C-s C-o (Summary)
8178 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-original
8179 Sort using the default sorting method
8180 (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-original}).
8183 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
8184 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
8185 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
8186 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
8187 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
8191 @node Finding the Parent
8192 @section Finding the Parent
8193 @cindex parent articles
8194 @cindex referring articles
8199 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
8200 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
8201 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
8202 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
8203 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
8204 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
8205 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
8206 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
8207 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
8209 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
8210 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
8211 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
8212 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
8213 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
8217 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
8218 @kindex A R (Summary)
8219 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
8220 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
8223 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
8224 @kindex A T (Summary)
8225 Display the full thread where the current article appears
8226 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
8227 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
8228 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
8229 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
8230 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
8231 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
8233 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
8234 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
8235 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
8236 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
8237 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
8238 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
8241 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
8242 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
8244 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
8245 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
8246 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
8247 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
8248 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
8249 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
8250 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
8253 The current select method will be used when fetching by
8254 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
8255 by giving this command a prefix.
8257 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
8258 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
8259 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
8260 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
8261 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
8262 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
8265 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
8266 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
8267 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
8270 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
8271 then ask Deja if that fails:
8274 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
8276 (nnweb "refer" (nnweb-type dejanews))))
8279 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
8280 not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
8281 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
8282 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
8283 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
8284 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
8287 @node Alternative Approaches
8288 @section Alternative Approaches
8290 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
8291 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
8294 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
8295 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
8300 @subsection Pick and Read
8301 @cindex pick and read
8303 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
8304 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
8305 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
8306 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
8308 @findex gnus-pick-mode
8309 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
8310 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
8311 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
8312 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
8313 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
8315 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
8320 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
8321 Pick the article or thread on the current line
8322 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
8323 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
8324 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
8325 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
8326 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
8327 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
8330 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
8331 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
8332 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
8333 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
8337 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
8338 Unpick the thread or article
8339 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
8340 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
8341 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
8342 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
8343 the thread or article at that line.
8347 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
8348 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
8349 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
8350 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
8351 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
8352 will still be visible when you are reading.
8356 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
8357 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
8358 which is mapped to the same function
8359 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
8361 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
8364 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
8367 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
8368 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
8370 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
8371 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
8372 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
8374 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
8375 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
8376 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
8377 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
8378 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
8379 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
8380 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
8384 @subsection Binary Groups
8385 @cindex binary groups
8387 @findex gnus-binary-mode
8388 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
8389 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
8390 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
8391 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
8392 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
8393 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
8396 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
8397 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
8398 command, when you have turned on this mode
8399 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
8401 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
8402 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
8406 @section Tree Display
8409 @vindex gnus-use-trees
8410 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
8411 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
8412 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
8415 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
8418 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
8419 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
8420 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
8422 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
8423 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
8424 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
8425 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
8426 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
8428 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
8429 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
8430 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
8431 default is @code{modeline}.
8433 @item gnus-tree-line-format
8434 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
8435 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
8436 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
8437 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
8438 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
8439 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
8445 The name of the poster.
8447 The @code{From} header.
8449 The number of the article.
8451 The opening bracket.
8453 The closing bracket.
8458 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
8460 Variables related to the display are:
8463 @item gnus-tree-brackets
8464 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
8465 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
8466 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
8467 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
8468 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
8470 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
8471 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
8472 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
8473 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
8477 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
8478 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
8479 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
8480 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
8481 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
8482 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
8483 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
8484 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
8485 other windows displayed next to it.
8487 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
8488 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
8489 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
8490 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
8491 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
8492 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
8493 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
8497 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
8500 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
8510 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
8514 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
8515 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
8517 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
8519 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
8524 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
8525 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
8526 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
8529 (setq gnus-use-trees t
8530 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
8531 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
8532 (gnus-add-configuration
8536 (summary 0.75 point)
8541 @xref{Windows Configuration}.
8544 @node Mail Group Commands
8545 @section Mail Group Commands
8546 @cindex mail group commands
8548 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
8549 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
8551 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
8552 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8557 @kindex B e (Summary)
8558 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
8559 Expire all expirable articles in the group
8560 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}).
8563 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
8564 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
8565 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
8566 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
8567 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
8568 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
8571 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
8572 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
8573 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
8574 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
8575 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
8576 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
8579 @kindex B m (Summary)
8581 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
8582 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
8583 Move the article from one mail group to another
8584 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
8585 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
8588 @kindex B c (Summary)
8590 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
8591 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
8592 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
8593 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
8594 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
8597 @kindex B B (Summary)
8598 @cindex crosspost mail
8599 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
8600 Crosspost the current article to some other group
8601 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
8602 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
8603 be properly updated.
8606 @kindex B i (Summary)
8607 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
8608 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
8609 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
8610 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
8613 @kindex B r (Summary)
8614 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
8615 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
8616 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
8617 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
8618 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
8619 Marks will be preserved if @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
8620 (which is the default).
8624 @kindex B w (Summary)
8626 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
8627 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
8628 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
8629 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
8630 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
8631 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
8634 @kindex B q (Summary)
8635 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
8636 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
8637 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
8638 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
8641 @kindex B t (Summary)
8642 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
8643 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
8644 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
8647 @kindex B p (Summary)
8648 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
8649 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
8650 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
8651 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
8652 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
8653 article from your news server (or rather, from
8654 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
8655 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
8656 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
8657 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
8658 just not have arrived yet.
8662 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
8663 @cindex moving articles
8664 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
8665 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
8666 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
8667 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
8668 suggestions you find reasonable. (Note that
8669 @code{gnus-move-split-methods} uses group names where
8670 @code{gnus-split-methods} uses file names.)
8673 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
8674 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
8675 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
8676 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
8680 @node Various Summary Stuff
8681 @section Various Summary Stuff
8684 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
8685 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
8686 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
8687 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
8691 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
8692 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
8693 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
8695 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
8696 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
8697 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
8698 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
8699 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
8700 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
8703 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
8704 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
8705 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
8706 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
8707 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
8709 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
8710 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
8711 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
8714 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
8715 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
8716 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
8717 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
8718 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
8719 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
8720 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
8721 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
8722 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
8723 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
8725 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
8726 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
8727 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
8728 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
8729 list of articles to be selected.
8731 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
8732 the list in one particular group:
8735 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
8736 (if (string= group "some.group")
8737 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
8744 @node Summary Group Information
8745 @subsection Summary Group Information
8750 @kindex H f (Summary)
8751 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
8752 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
8753 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
8754 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
8755 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
8756 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
8757 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
8758 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
8759 be used for fetching the file.
8762 @kindex H d (Summary)
8763 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
8764 Give a brief description of the current group
8765 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
8766 rereading the description from the server.
8769 @kindex H h (Summary)
8770 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
8771 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
8772 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
8775 @kindex H i (Summary)
8776 @findex gnus-info-find-node
8777 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
8781 @node Searching for Articles
8782 @subsection Searching for Articles
8787 @kindex M-s (Summary)
8788 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
8789 Search through all subsequent articles for a regexp
8790 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
8793 @kindex M-r (Summary)
8794 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
8795 Search through all previous articles for a regexp
8796 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
8800 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
8801 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
8802 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
8803 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
8804 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
8805 search backward instead.
8807 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
8808 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
8811 @kindex M-& (Summary)
8812 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
8813 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
8814 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
8817 @node Summary Generation Commands
8818 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
8823 @kindex Y g (Summary)
8824 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
8825 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
8828 @kindex Y c (Summary)
8829 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
8830 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
8831 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
8836 @node Really Various Summary Commands
8837 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
8843 @kindex C-d (Summary)
8844 @kindex A D (Summary)
8845 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
8846 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
8847 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
8848 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
8849 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
8850 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
8851 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
8852 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
8856 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
8857 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
8858 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
8859 several documents into one biiig group
8860 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
8861 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
8862 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
8863 command understands the process/prefix convention
8864 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8867 @kindex C-t (Summary)
8868 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
8869 Toggle truncation of summary lines
8870 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
8871 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
8872 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
8876 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
8877 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
8878 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
8881 @kindex M-C-e (Summary)
8882 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
8883 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
8884 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
8887 @kindex M-C-a (Summary)
8888 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
8889 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
8890 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
8895 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
8896 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
8897 @cindex summary exit
8898 @cindex exiting groups
8900 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
8901 group and return you to the group buffer.
8907 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
8909 @findex gnus-summary-exit
8910 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
8911 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
8912 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
8913 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
8914 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
8915 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
8916 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
8917 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
8918 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
8919 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
8923 @kindex Z E (Summary)
8925 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
8926 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
8927 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
8931 @kindex Z c (Summary)
8933 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
8934 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
8935 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
8936 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
8939 @kindex Z C (Summary)
8940 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
8941 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
8942 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
8945 @kindex Z n (Summary)
8946 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
8947 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
8948 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
8951 @kindex Z R (Summary)
8952 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
8953 Exit this group, and then enter it again
8954 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
8955 all articles, both read and unread.
8959 @kindex Z G (Summary)
8960 @kindex M-g (Summary)
8961 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
8962 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
8963 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
8964 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
8965 articles, both read and unread.
8968 @kindex Z N (Summary)
8969 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
8970 Exit the group and go to the next group
8971 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
8974 @kindex Z P (Summary)
8975 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
8976 Exit the group and go to the previous group
8977 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
8980 @kindex Z s (Summary)
8981 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
8982 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
8983 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
8984 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
8985 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
8988 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
8989 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
8990 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
8991 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
8993 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
8994 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
8995 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
8996 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
8997 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
8998 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
8999 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
9000 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
9001 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
9002 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
9003 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
9004 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
9006 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
9008 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
9009 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
9010 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
9011 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
9012 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
9013 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
9014 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
9015 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
9016 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
9019 @node Crosspost Handling
9020 @section Crosspost Handling
9024 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
9025 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
9026 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
9027 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
9028 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
9029 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
9032 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
9033 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
9034 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
9035 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
9036 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
9038 @cindex cross-posting
9041 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
9042 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
9043 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
9044 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
9045 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
9046 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
9047 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
9048 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
9049 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
9050 the cross reference mechanism.
9052 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
9053 @cindex overview.fmt
9054 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
9055 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
9056 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
9057 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
9058 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
9059 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
9062 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
9063 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
9064 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
9069 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
9072 @node Duplicate Suppression
9073 @section Duplicate Suppression
9075 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
9076 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
9077 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
9078 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
9083 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
9084 is evil and not very common.
9087 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
9088 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
9091 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
9092 different @sc{nntp} servers.
9095 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
9098 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
9099 well, but these four are the most common situations.
9101 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
9102 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
9103 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
9104 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
9105 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
9106 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
9107 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
9110 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
9111 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
9112 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
9113 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
9114 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
9118 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
9119 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
9120 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
9122 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
9123 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
9124 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
9125 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
9126 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
9127 session are suppressed.
9129 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
9130 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
9131 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
9132 suppression list. The default is 10000.
9134 @item gnus-duplicate-file
9135 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
9136 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
9137 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
9140 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
9141 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
9142 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
9143 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
9144 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
9145 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
9146 to you to figure out, I think.
9151 Gnus is able to verify PGP or S/MIME signed messages or decrypt PGP
9156 To verify or decrypt PGP messages, you have to install mailcrypt or
9162 @item mm-verify-option
9163 @vindex mm-verify-option
9164 Option of verifying signed parts. @code{never}, not verify;
9165 @code{always}, always verify; @code{known}, only verify known
9166 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9168 @item mm-decrypt-option
9169 @vindex mm-decrypt-option
9170 Option of decrypting encrypted parts. @code{never}, no decryption;
9171 @code{always}, always decrypt @code{known}, only decrypt known
9172 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9176 @node Article Buffer
9177 @chapter Article Buffer
9178 @cindex article buffer
9180 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
9181 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
9182 tell Gnus otherwise.
9185 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
9186 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
9187 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
9188 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
9189 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
9193 @node Hiding Headers
9194 @section Hiding Headers
9195 @cindex hiding headers
9196 @cindex deleting headers
9198 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
9199 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
9201 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
9202 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
9203 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
9204 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
9205 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
9206 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
9207 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
9208 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
9209 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
9211 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
9215 @item gnus-visible-headers
9216 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
9217 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
9218 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
9219 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
9221 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
9222 the article and the subject, you'd say:
9225 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
9228 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9231 @item gnus-ignored-headers
9232 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
9233 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
9234 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
9235 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
9236 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
9238 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
9239 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
9242 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
9245 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9248 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
9249 variable will have no effect.
9253 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
9254 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
9255 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
9256 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
9257 the headers are to be displayed.
9259 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
9260 and then the subject, you might say something like:
9263 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
9266 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
9267 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
9269 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
9270 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
9271 You can hide further boring headers by setting
9272 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
9273 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
9274 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
9275 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
9278 These conditions are:
9281 Remove all empty headers.
9283 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
9284 @code{Newsgroups} header.
9286 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
9289 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
9292 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
9293 the current groups's @code{to-address} parameter.
9295 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
9298 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
9300 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
9303 To include these three elements, you could say something like;
9306 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
9307 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
9310 This is also the default value for this variable.
9314 @section Using @sc{mime}
9317 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
9318 while people stand around yawning.
9320 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
9321 while all newsreaders die of fear.
9323 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
9324 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
9325 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
9327 @vindex gnus-display-mime-function
9328 @findex gnus-display-mime
9329 Gnus pushes @sc{mime} articles through @code{gnus-display-mime-function}
9330 to display the @sc{mime} parts. This is @code{gnus-display-mime} by
9331 default, which creates a bundle of clickable buttons that can be used to
9332 display, save and manipulate the @sc{mime} objects.
9334 The following commands are available when you have placed point over a
9338 @findex gnus-article-press-button
9340 @itemx BUTTON-2 (Article)
9341 Toggle displaying of the @sc{mime} object
9342 (@code{gnus-article-press-button}).
9344 @findex gnus-mime-view-part
9345 @item M-RET (Article)
9347 Prompt for a method, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
9348 method (@code{gnus-mime-view-part}).
9350 @findex gnus-mime-save-part
9352 Prompt for a file name, and then save the @sc{mime} object
9353 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part}).
9355 @findex gnus-mime-copy-part
9357 Copy the @sc{mime} object to a fresh buffer and display this buffer
9358 (@code{gnus-mime-copy-part}).
9360 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-type
9362 View the @sc{mime} object as if it were a different @sc{mime} media type
9363 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-type}).
9365 @findex gnus-mime-pipe-part
9367 Output the @sc{mime} object to a process (@code{gnus-mime-pipe-part}).
9369 @findex gnus-mime-inline-part
9371 Insert the contents of the @sc{mime} object into the buffer
9372 (@code{gnus-mime-inline-part}) as text/plain. If given a prefix, insert
9373 the raw contents without decoding. If given a numerical prefix, you can
9374 do semi-manual charset stuff (see
9375 @code{gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist} in @pxref{Paging the
9378 @findex gnus-mime-action-on-part
9380 Interactively run an action on the @sc{mime} object
9381 (@code{gnus-mime-action-on-part}).
9385 Gnus will display some @sc{mime} objects automatically. The way Gnus
9386 determines which parts to do this with is described in the Emacs MIME
9389 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the article
9390 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
9391 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
9392 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
9393 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume button,
9394 because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you, and you
9395 try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the program
9396 to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly decides
9397 to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
9399 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
9401 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
9404 @node Customizing Articles
9405 @section Customizing Articles
9406 @cindex article customization
9408 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
9409 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
9410 called automatically when you select the articles.
9412 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
9413 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
9414 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
9415 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
9417 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
9418 for sensible values.
9422 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
9425 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
9428 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
9431 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
9434 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
9438 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
9439 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
9440 regexps in the list.
9443 A list where the first element is not a string:
9445 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
9446 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
9447 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
9451 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
9456 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
9457 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
9458 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
9459 considered to contain just a single part.
9461 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
9462 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
9463 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
9464 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
9465 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
9466 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
9467 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
9469 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
9470 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
9471 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
9472 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
9475 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last)
9476 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
9477 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
9478 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
9479 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
9480 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
9481 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
9482 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
9483 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
9484 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
9485 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation-maybe (t, integer)
9486 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp (t, last, integer)
9487 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
9488 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
9489 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
9490 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
9491 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
9492 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
9493 @item gnus-treat-date-english (head)
9494 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
9495 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
9496 @item gnus-treat-date-iso8601 (head)
9497 @item gnus-treat-date-user-defined (head)
9498 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
9499 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
9500 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
9501 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
9502 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
9503 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
9504 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
9505 @item gnus-treat-display-picons (head)
9506 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
9507 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
9508 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
9509 @item gnus-treat-translate
9512 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
9513 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
9514 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
9515 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
9516 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
9520 @node Article Keymap
9521 @section Article Keymap
9523 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
9524 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
9525 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
9526 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
9529 A few additional keystrokes are available:
9534 @kindex SPACE (Article)
9535 @findex gnus-article-next-page
9536 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
9539 @kindex DEL (Article)
9540 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
9541 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
9544 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
9545 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
9546 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
9547 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
9548 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
9551 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
9552 @findex gnus-article-mail
9553 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
9554 given a prefix, include the mail.
9558 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
9559 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
9560 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
9564 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
9565 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
9566 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
9569 @kindex TAB (Article)
9570 @findex gnus-article-next-button
9571 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
9572 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
9575 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
9576 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
9577 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
9583 @section Misc Article
9587 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
9588 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
9589 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
9590 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
9593 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
9594 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
9596 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
9597 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
9599 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
9600 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
9601 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
9602 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
9603 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
9604 the contents of the article buffer.
9606 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
9607 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
9608 Hook called in article mode buffers.
9610 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
9611 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
9612 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
9613 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
9615 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
9616 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
9617 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
9618 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
9619 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
9624 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
9625 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
9628 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
9631 @vindex gnus-break-pages
9633 @item gnus-break-pages
9634 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
9635 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
9636 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
9637 paging will not be done.
9639 @item gnus-page-delimiter
9640 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
9641 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
9646 @node Composing Messages
9647 @chapter Composing Messages
9648 @cindex composing messages
9651 @cindex sending mail
9657 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
9658 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
9659 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
9660 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The
9661 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
9662 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
9665 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
9666 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
9667 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
9668 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
9669 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
9670 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
9671 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
9672 * Using GPG:: How to use GPG and MML to sign and encrypt messages
9675 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
9676 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
9682 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
9685 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
9686 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
9687 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
9688 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
9690 @item gnus-add-to-list
9691 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
9692 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
9693 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
9698 @node Posting Server
9699 @section Posting Server
9701 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
9702 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
9704 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
9706 @vindex gnus-post-method
9708 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will post using the same
9709 select method as you're reading from (which might be convenient if
9710 you're reading lots of groups from different private servers).
9711 However. If the server you're reading from doesn't allow posting,
9712 just reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
9713 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
9714 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
9717 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
9720 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
9721 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
9722 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
9723 the ``current'' server, to get back the default behaviour, for posting.
9725 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
9726 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
9728 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
9729 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
9732 Finally, if you want to always post using the native select method,
9733 you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
9737 @section Mail and Post
9739 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
9743 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
9744 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
9745 @cindex mailing lists
9747 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
9748 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
9749 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
9750 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
9751 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
9752 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
9753 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
9754 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
9755 still a pain, though.
9759 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
9760 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
9761 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
9764 @findex ispell-message
9766 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
9769 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
9770 you're in, you could say something like the following:
9773 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
9776 ((string-match "^de\\." gnus-newsgroup-name)
9777 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
9779 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
9782 Modify to suit your needs.
9785 @node Archived Messages
9786 @section Archived Messages
9787 @cindex archived messages
9788 @cindex sent messages
9790 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
9791 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
9792 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
9793 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
9796 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
9797 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
9798 use to store sent messages. The default is:
9802 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
9803 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
9804 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
9805 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
9808 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
9809 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likable select method
9810 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
9811 directory chosen, you could say something like:
9814 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
9815 '(nnfolder "archive"
9816 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
9817 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
9818 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
9821 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
9823 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
9824 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
9825 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
9827 This variable can be used to do the following:
9831 Messages will be saved in that group.
9833 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
9834 message will not be stored in the select method given by
9835 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
9836 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
9837 has the default value shown above. Then setting
9838 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
9839 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
9840 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
9842 @item a list of strings
9843 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
9844 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
9845 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
9847 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
9852 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
9854 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
9857 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
9859 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
9862 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
9864 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
9865 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
9866 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
9867 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
9872 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
9873 '((if (message-news-p)
9878 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
9879 messages in one file per month:
9882 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
9883 '((if (message-news-p)
9885 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
9888 (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
9889 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
9891 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
9892 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
9893 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
9894 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
9895 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
9896 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
9897 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
9898 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
9899 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
9900 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
9902 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
9903 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
9904 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
9905 this will disable archiving.
9908 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
9909 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
9910 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
9911 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
9912 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
9915 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
9916 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
9917 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
9920 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
9921 but the latter is the preferred method.
9923 @item gnus-inews-mark-gcc-as-read
9924 @vindex gnus-inews-mark-gcc-as-read
9925 If non-@code{nil}, automatically mark @code{Gcc} articles as read.
9930 @node Posting Styles
9931 @section Posting Styles
9932 @cindex posting styles
9935 All them variables, they make my head swim.
9937 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
9938 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
9939 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
9942 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
9943 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
9944 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
9945 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
9946 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
9951 (signature "Peace and happiness")
9952 (organization "What me?"))
9954 (signature "Death to everybody"))
9955 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
9956 (organization "Emacs is it")))
9959 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
9960 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
9961 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
9962 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
9963 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
9964 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
9965 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
9966 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
9968 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
9969 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
9970 If it is the symbol @code{header}, then Gnus will look for header (the
9971 next element in the match) in the original article , and compare that to
9972 the last regexp in the match. If it's a function symbol, that function
9973 will be called with no arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the
9974 variable will be referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be
9975 @code{eval}ed. In any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value,
9976 then the style is said to @dfn{match}.
9978 Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
9979 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} @var{value})} pair. The
9980 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
9981 @code{organization}, @code{address}, @code{name} or @code{body}. The
9982 attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
9983 a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
9984 article; if the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed.
9985 If the attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the
9986 result is thrown away.
9988 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
9989 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
9990 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
9991 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
9992 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
9993 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable.
9995 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
9996 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
9997 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
9999 @findex message-mail-p
10000 @findex message-news-p
10002 So here's a new example:
10005 (setq gnus-posting-styles
10007 (signature-file "~/.signature")
10009 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
10010 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
10012 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
10013 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
10014 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
10016 (signature my-news-signature))
10017 (header "to" "larsi.*org"
10018 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
10019 ((posting-from-work-p)
10020 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
10021 (address "user@@bar.foo")
10022 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
10023 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
10025 (From (save-excursion
10026 (set-buffer gnus-article-buffer)
10027 (message-fetch-field "to"))))
10029 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
10032 The @samp{nnml:.*} rule means that you use the @code{To} address as the
10033 @code{From} address in all your outgoing replies, which might be handy
10034 if you fill many roles.
10041 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
10042 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
10043 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
10044 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
10045 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
10047 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
10048 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
10049 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
10050 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
10051 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
10055 @vindex nndraft-directory
10056 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
10057 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
10058 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
10059 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
10060 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
10061 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
10063 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
10064 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
10067 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
10068 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
10069 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
10070 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
10071 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
10072 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
10073 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
10074 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
10075 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
10076 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
10077 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
10078 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
10079 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
10080 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
10082 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
10083 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
10084 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
10086 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
10087 @kindex D e (Draft)
10088 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
10089 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
10090 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
10092 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
10095 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
10096 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
10097 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
10098 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
10099 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
10100 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
10101 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
10104 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
10105 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
10106 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
10109 @node Rejected Articles
10110 @section Rejected Articles
10111 @cindex rejected articles
10113 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
10114 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
10115 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
10116 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
10118 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
10119 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
10120 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
10121 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
10122 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
10124 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
10125 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
10126 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
10132 Gnus has an ALPHA support to GPG that's provided by @file{gpg.el}. See
10133 @code{mm-verify-option} and @code{mm-decrypt-option} to enable Gnus to
10134 verify or decrypt messages accordingly.
10136 To use this correctly with GPG, you'll need the following lisp code in your
10137 @file{~/.emacs} or @file{~/.gnus}:
10141 (setq mml2015-use 'gpg)
10142 (setq gpg-temp-directory (expand-file-name "~/.gnupg/tmp"))
10145 The @code{gpg-temp-directory} need to point to a directory with permissions set
10146 to 700, for your own safety.
10148 If you want to benefit of PGP2.6 compatibility, you might create a script named
10149 @file{gpg-2comp} with these instructions:
10153 exec gpg --rfc1991 "$@@"
10156 If you don't want to use such compatibility, you can add the following line to
10157 your @file{~/.emacs} or @file{~/.gnus}:
10160 (setq gpg-command-default-alist (quote ((gpg . "gpg") (gpg-2comp . "gpg"))))
10163 To sign or encrypt your message you may choose to use the MML Security
10164 menu or @kbd{C-c C-m s p} to sign your message using PGP/MIME, @kbd{C-c
10165 C-m s s} to sign your message using S/MIME. There's also @kbd{C-c C-m c
10166 p} to encrypt your message with PGP/MIME and @kbd{C-c C-m c s} to
10167 encrypt using S/MIME.
10169 Gnus will ask for your passphrase and then it will send your message, if
10170 you've typed it correctly.
10172 @node Select Methods
10173 @chapter Select Methods
10174 @cindex foreign groups
10175 @cindex select methods
10177 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
10178 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
10179 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
10180 personal mail group.
10182 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
10183 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
10184 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
10185 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
10186 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
10187 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
10189 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
10190 we do just that (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
10192 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
10195 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
10196 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
10197 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
10198 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
10199 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
10201 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
10204 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
10205 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
10206 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
10207 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
10208 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
10209 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
10210 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
10214 @node Server Buffer
10215 @section Server Buffer
10217 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
10218 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
10219 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
10220 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
10221 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
10222 backend represents a virtual server.
10224 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
10225 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
10226 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
10227 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
10229 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
10230 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
10231 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
10232 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
10233 Anyway, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
10234 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
10235 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
10237 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
10238 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
10241 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
10242 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
10243 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
10244 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
10245 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
10246 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
10247 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
10250 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
10251 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
10254 @node Server Buffer Format
10255 @subsection Server Buffer Format
10256 @cindex server buffer format
10258 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
10259 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
10260 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
10261 variable, with some simple extensions:
10266 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
10269 The name of this server.
10272 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
10275 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
10278 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
10279 The mode line can also be customized by using the
10280 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
10281 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
10291 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
10294 @node Server Commands
10295 @subsection Server Commands
10296 @cindex server commands
10302 @findex gnus-server-add-server
10303 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
10307 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
10308 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
10311 @kindex SPACE (Server)
10312 @findex gnus-server-read-server
10313 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
10317 @findex gnus-server-exit
10318 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
10322 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
10323 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
10327 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
10328 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
10332 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
10333 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
10337 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
10338 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
10342 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
10343 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
10344 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
10349 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
10350 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
10351 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
10352 a mail backend that has gotten out of sync.
10357 @node Example Methods
10358 @subsection Example Methods
10360 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
10363 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
10366 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
10372 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
10373 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
10376 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
10377 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
10379 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
10380 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
10384 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
10387 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
10388 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
10390 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
10391 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
10392 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
10396 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
10399 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
10402 Here's the method for a public spool:
10406 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
10407 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
10413 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
10414 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
10415 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
10416 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
10417 should probably look something like this:
10421 (nntp-address "the.firewall.machine")
10422 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
10423 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
10424 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
10425 ("telnet" "the.real.nntp.host" "nntp")))
10428 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
10429 compressed connection over the modem line, you could create a virtual
10430 server that would look something like this:
10434 (nntp-address "copper.uio.no")
10435 (nntp-rlogin-program "ssh")
10436 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
10437 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
10438 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
10439 ("telnet" "news.uio.no" "nntp")))
10442 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
10443 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
10444 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
10445 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
10448 @node Creating a Virtual Server
10449 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
10451 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
10452 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
10454 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
10455 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
10456 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
10458 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
10460 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
10461 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
10462 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
10463 will contain the following:
10473 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
10474 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
10475 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
10478 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
10479 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
10480 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
10483 @node Server Variables
10484 @subsection Server Variables
10486 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
10487 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
10488 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
10489 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
10490 won't change the "derived" variables.
10492 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
10493 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
10494 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
10495 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
10496 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
10497 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
10498 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
10499 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
10500 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
10504 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
10505 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
10506 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
10510 @node Servers and Methods
10511 @subsection Servers and Methods
10513 Wherever you would normally use a select method
10514 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
10515 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
10516 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
10520 @node Unavailable Servers
10521 @subsection Unavailable Servers
10523 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
10524 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
10525 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
10526 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
10527 actually the case or not.
10529 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
10530 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
10531 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
10532 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
10533 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
10534 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
10535 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
10536 it will regard that server as ``down''.
10538 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
10539 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
10541 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{Server Buffer}) and poke it
10542 with the following commands:
10548 @findex gnus-server-open-server
10549 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
10550 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
10554 @findex gnus-server-close-server
10555 Close the connection (if any) to the server
10556 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
10560 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
10561 Mark the current server as unreachable
10562 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
10565 @kindex M-o (Server)
10566 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
10567 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
10568 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
10571 @kindex M-c (Server)
10572 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
10573 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
10574 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
10578 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
10579 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
10580 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
10586 @section Getting News
10587 @cindex reading news
10588 @cindex news backends
10590 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
10591 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
10592 or it can read from a local spool.
10595 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
10596 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
10601 @subsection @sc{nntp}
10604 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
10605 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
10606 server as the, uhm, address.
10608 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
10609 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
10610 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
10611 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
10613 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
10614 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
10615 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
10617 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
10622 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
10623 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
10624 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
10626 @cindex authentification
10627 @cindex nntp authentification
10628 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
10629 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
10630 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
10631 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
10632 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
10633 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
10634 present in this hook.
10636 @item nntp-authinfo-function
10637 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
10638 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
10639 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
10640 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
10641 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
10642 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
10643 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
10644 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
10645 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
10646 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
10647 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
10651 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
10654 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
10656 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
10657 @samp{default}. In addition Gnus introduces two new tokens, not present
10658 in the original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
10659 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
10660 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
10661 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to and
10662 @samp{force} is explained below.
10666 Here's an example file:
10669 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
10670 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
10673 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
10674 have to be first, for instance.
10676 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
10677 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
10678 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
10679 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
10680 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
10681 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
10682 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
10684 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
10685 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
10691 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
10692 previously mentioned.
10694 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
10696 @item nntp-server-action-alist
10697 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
10698 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
10699 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
10700 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
10703 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
10704 '(("innd" (ding))))
10707 You probably don't want to do that, though.
10709 The default value is
10712 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
10713 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
10716 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
10717 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
10719 @item nntp-maximum-request
10720 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
10721 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
10722 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
10723 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
10724 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
10725 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
10726 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
10728 @item nntp-connection-timeout
10729 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
10730 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
10731 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
10732 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
10733 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
10734 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
10735 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
10736 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
10737 no timeouts are done.
10739 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
10740 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
10741 @c @cindex PPP connections
10742 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
10743 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
10744 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
10745 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
10746 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
10747 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
10748 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
10749 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
10750 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
10751 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
10753 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
10754 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
10755 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
10756 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
10757 @c described above.
10759 @item nntp-server-hook
10760 @vindex nntp-server-hook
10761 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
10764 @findex nntp-open-rlogin
10765 @findex nntp-open-telnet
10766 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
10767 @item nntp-open-connection-function
10768 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
10769 This function is used to connect to the remote system. Four pre-made
10770 functions are supplied:
10773 @item nntp-open-network-stream
10774 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
10777 @item nntp-open-rlogin
10778 Does an @samp{rlogin} on the
10779 remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet} to the @sc{nntp} server
10782 @code{nntp-open-rlogin}-related variables:
10786 @item nntp-rlogin-program
10787 @vindex nntp-rlogin-program
10788 Program used to log in on remote machines. The default is @samp{rsh},
10789 but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
10791 @item nntp-rlogin-parameters
10792 @vindex nntp-rlogin-parameters
10793 This list will be used as the parameter list given to @code{rsh}.
10795 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
10796 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
10797 User name on the remote system.
10801 @item nntp-open-telnet
10802 Does a @samp{telnet} to the remote system and then another @samp{telnet}
10803 to get to the @sc{nntp} server.
10805 @code{nntp-open-telnet}-related variables:
10808 @item nntp-telnet-command
10809 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
10810 Command used to start @code{telnet}.
10812 @item nntp-telnet-switches
10813 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
10814 List of strings to be used as the switches to the @code{telnet} command.
10816 @item nntp-telnet-user-name
10817 @vindex nntp-telnet-user-name
10818 User name for log in on the remote system.
10820 @item nntp-telnet-passwd
10821 @vindex nntp-telnet-passwd
10822 Password to use when logging in.
10824 @item nntp-telnet-parameters
10825 @vindex nntp-telnet-parameters
10826 A list of strings executed as a command after logging in
10829 @item nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
10830 @vindex nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
10831 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the remote machine. The default is
10832 @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
10834 @item nntp-open-telnet-envuser
10835 @vindex nntp-open-telnet-envuser
10836 If non-@code{nil}, the @code{telnet} session (client and server both)
10837 will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for login name.
10838 This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
10842 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
10843 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
10844 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
10845 you must have SSLay installed
10846 (@uref{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also need
10847 @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distribution, for instance). You then
10848 define a server as follows:
10851 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
10853 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
10855 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
10856 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
10857 (nntp-port-number "snews")
10858 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
10863 @item nntp-end-of-line
10864 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
10865 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
10866 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
10867 using @code{rlogin} to talk to the server.
10869 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
10870 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
10871 User name on the remote system when using the @code{rlogin} connect
10875 @vindex nntp-address
10876 The address of the remote system running the @sc{nntp} server.
10878 @item nntp-port-number
10879 @vindex nntp-port-number
10880 Port number to connect to when using the @code{nntp-open-network-stream}
10883 @item nntp-buggy-select
10884 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
10885 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
10887 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
10888 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
10889 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
10890 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
10893 @item nntp-xover-commands
10894 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
10897 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
10898 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
10902 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
10903 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
10904 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
10905 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
10906 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
10907 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
10908 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
10909 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
10910 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
10911 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
10912 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
10914 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
10915 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
10916 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
10918 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
10919 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
10920 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
10921 server closes connection.
10923 @item nntp-record-commands
10924 @vindex nntp-record-commands
10925 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
10926 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestamp) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
10927 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
10928 that doesn't seem to work.
10934 @subsection News Spool
10938 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
10939 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
10940 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
10943 Anyway, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
10944 anything else) as the address.
10946 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
10947 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
10948 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
10949 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
10953 @item nnspool-inews-program
10954 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
10955 Program used to post an article.
10957 @item nnspool-inews-switches
10958 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
10959 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
10961 @item nnspool-spool-directory
10962 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
10963 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
10964 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
10966 @item nnspool-nov-directory
10967 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
10968 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
10969 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
10971 @item nnspool-lib-dir
10972 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
10973 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
10975 @item nnspool-active-file
10976 @vindex nnspool-active-file
10977 The path to the active file.
10979 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
10980 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
10981 The path to the group descriptions file.
10983 @item nnspool-history-file
10984 @vindex nnspool-history-file
10985 The path to the news history file.
10987 @item nnspool-active-times-file
10988 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
10989 The path to the active date file.
10991 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
10992 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
10993 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
10996 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
10997 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
10999 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
11000 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
11001 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
11007 @section Getting Mail
11008 @cindex reading mail
11011 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
11015 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
11016 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
11017 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
11018 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
11019 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
11020 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
11021 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
11022 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
11023 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
11024 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
11025 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
11026 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
11027 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
11031 @node Mail in a Newsreader
11032 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
11034 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
11035 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
11036 of a culture shock.
11038 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
11039 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
11041 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
11042 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
11043 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
11044 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
11046 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
11048 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
11049 deleted? How awful!
11051 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
11052 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
11053 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
11054 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
11057 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
11058 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
11059 they want to treat a message.
11061 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
11062 via SMTP, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
11063 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
11064 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
11065 archived somewhere else.
11067 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
11068 These are transported via @sc{nntp}, and are therefore news. But we may need
11069 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
11070 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
11071 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
11073 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
11074 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
11075 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
11077 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
11078 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
11081 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
11082 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
11083 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
11084 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
11085 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
11087 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
11088 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
11089 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
11090 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
11091 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
11092 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
11096 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
11097 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
11099 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
11100 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
11101 and things will happen automatically.
11103 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
11104 mail" backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
11107 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
11108 '((nnml "private")))
11111 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
11112 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
11113 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
11114 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
11115 like any other group.
11117 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
11120 (setq nnmail-split-methods
11121 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11122 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
11126 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
11127 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
11128 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
11131 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
11132 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
11133 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
11136 @node Splitting Mail
11137 @subsection Splitting Mail
11138 @cindex splitting mail
11139 @cindex mail splitting
11141 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
11142 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
11143 to be split into groups.
11146 (setq nnmail-split-methods
11147 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11148 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
11149 ("mail.other" "")))
11152 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
11153 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
11154 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
11155 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
11156 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
11157 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
11158 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
11161 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
11164 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
11165 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
11166 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
11167 mail belongs in that group.
11169 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
11170 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
11171 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
11172 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
11173 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
11174 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
11176 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
11177 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
11178 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
11179 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
11180 thinks should carry this mail message.
11182 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
11183 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
11184 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
11185 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
11187 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
11188 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
11189 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
11190 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
11191 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
11193 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
11196 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
11197 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
11198 links. If that's the case for you, set
11199 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
11200 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
11202 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
11203 @kindex nnmail-split-history
11204 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
11205 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
11206 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
11207 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
11210 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
11211 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
11212 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
11213 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
11214 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
11215 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
11216 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
11217 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
11218 month's rent money.
11222 @subsection Mail Sources
11224 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
11225 POP mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a maildir, for
11229 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
11230 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
11231 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
11235 @node Mail Source Specifiers
11236 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
11238 @cindex mail server
11241 @cindex mail source
11243 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
11244 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
11249 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
11252 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
11253 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
11254 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
11257 The following mail source types are available:
11261 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
11267 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
11268 environment variable or @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}.
11271 An example file mail source:
11274 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
11277 Or using the default path:
11283 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best to
11284 use POP or @sc{imap} or the like to fetch the mail. You can not use ange-ftp
11285 file names here---it has no way to lock the mail spool while moving the
11288 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
11292 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
11295 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
11299 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
11302 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
11304 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
11307 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
11311 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used when
11312 you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files. Setting
11313 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-nil forces Gnus to
11314 scan the mail source only once. This is particularly useful if you want
11315 to scan mail groups at a specified level.
11321 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
11325 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
11329 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
11330 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
11331 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
11332 predicate are considered.
11336 Script run before/after fetching mail.
11340 An example directory mail source:
11343 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
11348 Get mail from a POP server.
11354 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
11355 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
11358 The port number of the POP server. This can be a number (eg,
11359 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
11360 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
11361 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}. On some systems you might
11362 need to specify it as @samp{"pop-3"} instead.
11365 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
11369 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
11373 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This should be
11374 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
11377 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
11380 The valid format specifier characters are:
11384 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
11385 included in this string.
11388 The name of the server.
11391 The port number of the server.
11394 The user name to use.
11397 The password to use.
11400 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
11401 corresponding keywords.
11404 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
11405 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
11408 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
11409 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
11412 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
11413 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
11416 @item :authentication
11417 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
11418 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
11423 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
11424 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
11426 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
11427 default user name, and default fetcher:
11433 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
11436 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
11437 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
11440 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
11443 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
11447 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
11448 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
11449 contains exactly one mail.
11455 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
11456 taken from the @code{MAILDIR} environment variable or
11459 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
11460 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
11462 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
11463 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
11464 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
11467 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
11468 from locking problems).
11472 Two example maildir mail sources:
11475 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/" :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
11479 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/" :subdirs ("new"))
11483 Get mail from a @sc{imap} server. If you don't want to use @sc{imap}
11484 as intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie with nnimap), for
11485 some reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar to a POP server
11486 and fetches articles from a given @sc{imap} mailbox. @xref{IMAP}, for
11493 The name of the @sc{imap} server. The default is taken from the
11494 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
11497 The port number of the @sc{imap} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
11498 @samp{993} for SSL connections.
11501 The user name to give to the @sc{imap} server. The default is the login
11505 The password to give to the @sc{imap} server. If not specified, the user is
11509 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
11510 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
11511 @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{ssl} or the default @samp{network}.
11513 @item :authentication
11514 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is one
11515 of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now, this
11516 means @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default
11520 When using the `shell' :stream, the contents of this variable is
11521 mapped into the `imap-shell-program' variable. This should be a
11522 @code{format}-like string (or list of strings). Here's an example:
11528 The valid format specifier characters are:
11532 The name of the server.
11535 User name from `imap-default-user'.
11538 The port number of the server.
11541 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
11542 corresponding keywords.
11545 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
11546 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
11549 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
11550 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
11551 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @sc{imap} client and mark some
11552 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{nil}.
11553 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
11554 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 §6.4.4.
11557 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
11558 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
11559 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
11560 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 §2.3.2.
11563 If non-nil, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the mailbox
11564 after finishing the fetch.
11568 An example @sc{imap} mail source:
11571 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com" :stream kerberos4 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
11575 Get mail from a webmail server, such as www.hotmail.com,
11576 webmail.netscape.com, www.netaddress.com, www.my-deja.com.
11578 NOTE: Now mail.yahoo.com provides POP3 service, so @sc{pop} mail source
11581 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
11582 required for url "4.0pre.46".
11584 WARNING: Mails may lost. NO WARRANTY.
11590 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
11591 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
11594 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
11598 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
11602 If non-nil, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to trash
11603 folder after finishing the fetch.
11607 An example webmail source:
11610 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail :user "user-name" :password "secret")
11615 @item Common Keywords
11616 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
11622 If non-nil, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you use
11623 directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this example:
11627 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
11632 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
11633 useful when you use local mail and news.
11638 @subsubsection Function Interface
11640 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
11641 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
11642 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
11643 consider the following mail-source setting:
11646 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
11647 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
11650 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
11651 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
11652 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
11653 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
11654 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
11656 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
11659 @node Mail Source Customization
11660 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
11662 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
11663 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
11667 @item mail-source-crash-box
11668 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
11669 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
11670 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
11672 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
11673 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
11674 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
11676 @item mail-source-directory
11677 @vindex mail-source-directory
11678 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
11679 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
11680 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
11683 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
11684 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
11685 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
11686 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
11687 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
11688 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
11690 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
11691 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
11692 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
11697 @node Fetching Mail
11698 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
11700 @vindex mail-sources
11701 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
11702 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
11703 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
11704 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
11706 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
11707 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
11710 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
11711 mail server, you'd say something like:
11716 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
11717 :password "secret")))
11720 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
11724 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
11725 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
11728 :password "secret")))
11732 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
11733 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
11734 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
11735 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
11736 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
11737 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
11741 @node Mail Backend Variables
11742 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
11744 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
11748 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
11749 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
11750 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
11751 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
11753 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
11754 @item nnmail-split-hook
11755 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
11756 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
11757 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
11758 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
11759 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
11760 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
11761 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
11762 in the buffer will show up in any files.
11763 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
11766 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
11767 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
11768 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
11769 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
11770 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
11771 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
11772 starting to handle the new mail) and
11773 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
11774 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
11775 default file modes the new mail files get:
11778 (add-hook 'gnus-pre-get-new-mail-hook
11779 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
11781 (add-hook 'gnus-post-get-new-mail-hook
11782 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
11785 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
11786 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
11787 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
11788 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
11789 (assuming use of @code{nnml} backend) or files (assuming use of
11790 @code{nnfolder} backend) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
11791 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
11793 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
11794 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
11795 @findex delete-file
11796 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
11798 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
11799 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
11800 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
11801 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
11802 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
11807 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
11808 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
11809 @cindex mail splitting
11810 @cindex fancy mail splitting
11812 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
11813 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
11814 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
11815 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
11816 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
11817 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
11819 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
11822 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
11823 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
11824 ;; from real errors.
11825 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
11827 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
11828 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
11829 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
11830 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
11831 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
11832 ;; Other mailing lists...
11833 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
11834 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
11835 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
11836 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
11837 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
11838 ;; message was really cross-posted.
11839 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
11840 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
11842 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
11843 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
11847 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
11848 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
11849 the five possible split syntaxes:
11854 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
11855 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
11859 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
11860 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
11861 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
11862 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
11863 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
11864 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
11865 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
11866 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
11869 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
11870 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
11871 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
11872 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
11875 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
11876 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
11879 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
11880 this message. Use with extreme caution.
11883 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
11884 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
11885 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
11886 function should return a @var{split}.
11888 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
11889 body of the messages:
11892 (defun split-on-body ()
11894 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
11895 (goto-char (point-min))
11896 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
11901 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the first
11902 element is @code{!}, then SPLIT will be processed, and FUNC will be
11903 called as a function with the result of SPLIT as argument. FUNC should
11907 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
11911 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
11912 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
11913 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
11914 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
11915 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
11917 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
11918 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
11919 are expanded as specified by the variable
11920 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
11921 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
11924 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
11925 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
11926 when all this splitting is performed.
11928 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
11929 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
11930 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
11933 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
11936 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
11937 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
11939 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
11940 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
11941 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
11942 groupings 1 through 9.
11944 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
11945 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
11946 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
11947 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
11948 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
11949 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
11950 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
11951 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
11952 it once per thread.
11954 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to a
11955 non-nil value. And then you can include
11956 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} using the colon feature, like so:
11958 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
11959 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
11960 ;; other splits go here
11964 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
11965 non-nil, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees in the
11966 file specified by the variable @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file},
11967 together with the group it is in (the group is omitted for non-mail
11968 messages). When mail splitting is invoked, the function
11969 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks at the References (and
11970 In-Reply-To) header of each message to split and searches the file
11971 specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file} for the message ids.
11972 When it has found a parent, it returns the corresponding group name. It
11973 is recommended that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a
11974 somewhat higher number than the default so that the message ids are
11975 still in the cache. (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some 300
11977 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
11978 When @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus
11979 also records the message ids of moved articles, so that the followup
11980 messages goes into the new group.
11983 @node Group Mail Splitting
11984 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
11985 @cindex mail splitting
11986 @cindex group mail splitting
11988 @findex gnus-group-split
11989 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
11990 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
11991 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
11992 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
11993 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
11994 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
11995 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
11996 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
11998 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
11999 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
12000 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
12001 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
12003 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
12004 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
12005 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
12006 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
12007 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
12008 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
12009 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
12011 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
12012 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
12013 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
12014 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
12015 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
12016 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
12017 @code{gnus-group-split}.
12019 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
12020 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
12021 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
12022 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
12023 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
12024 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
12025 that group is used as the catch-all group. Even though this variable is
12026 often used just to name a group, it may also be set to an arbitrarily
12027 complex fancy split (after all, a group name is a fancy split), and this
12028 may be useful to split mail that doesn't go to any mailing list to
12029 personal mail folders. Note that this fancy split is added as the last
12030 element of a @code{|} split list that also contains a @code{&} split
12031 with the rules extracted from group parameters.
12033 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
12038 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
12039 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
12041 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
12042 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
12043 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
12044 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
12046 ((split-spec . catch-all))
12049 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
12050 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
12051 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
12054 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
12055 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
12056 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
12060 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
12061 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
12062 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
12066 (: gnus-mlsplt-fancy GROUPS NO-CROSSPOST CATCH-ALL)
12069 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
12070 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
12071 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
12072 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} is the fallback
12073 fancy split, used like @var{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}.
12074 If @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
12075 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
12076 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
12077 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
12079 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
12080 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
12081 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
12082 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
12083 used to enable @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
12084 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
12085 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
12086 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
12087 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
12089 @findex gnus-group-split-update
12090 However, if you change group parameters, you'd have to update
12091 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
12092 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
12093 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
12094 you. For example, add to your @file{.gnus}:
12097 (gnus-group-split-setup AUTO-UPDATE CATCH-ALL)
12100 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
12101 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
12102 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
12103 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional, equivalent to @code{nil}),
12104 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
12107 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
12108 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
12109 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
12110 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
12112 @node Incorporating Old Mail
12113 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
12115 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
12116 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
12117 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
12120 Doing so can be quite easy.
12122 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
12123 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
12124 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
12125 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
12126 your @code{nnml} groups.
12132 Go to the group buffer.
12135 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
12136 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
12139 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
12142 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
12143 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
12146 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
12147 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
12150 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
12151 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
12152 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
12153 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
12154 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
12156 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
12157 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
12158 using the new mail backend.
12161 @node Expiring Mail
12162 @subsection Expiring Mail
12163 @cindex article expiry
12165 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
12166 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
12167 different approach to mail reading.
12169 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
12170 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
12171 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
12172 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
12173 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
12174 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
12177 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
12178 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
12179 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
12180 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
12181 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
12182 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
12183 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
12184 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
12186 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
12187 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
12188 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
12189 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
12190 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
12191 column in the summary buffer.
12193 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
12194 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
12195 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
12196 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
12199 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
12201 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
12202 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
12203 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
12206 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
12207 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
12208 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
12209 groups expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
12210 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
12212 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
12213 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
12216 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
12217 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
12220 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
12221 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
12223 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
12224 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
12225 don't really mix very well.
12227 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
12228 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
12229 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
12230 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
12233 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
12234 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
12235 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
12236 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
12239 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
12241 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
12243 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
12245 ((string= group "mail.junk")
12247 ((string= group "important")
12253 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
12254 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
12256 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
12257 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
12258 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
12261 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
12262 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
12264 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
12265 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
12266 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them to
12267 other groups instead of deleting them. The variable @code{nnmail-expiry-target}
12268 (and the @code{expiry-target} group parameter) controls this. The
12269 variable supplies a default value for all groups, which can be
12270 overridden for specific groups by the group parameter.
12271 default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a string (which
12272 should be the name of the group the message should be moved to), or a
12273 function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to the message in
12274 question, and with the name of the group being moved from as its
12275 parameter) which should return a target -- either a group name or
12278 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
12280 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
12284 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
12285 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
12286 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
12287 easier for procmail users.
12289 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
12290 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
12291 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
12292 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
12293 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
12294 caution. Even more dangerous is the
12295 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
12296 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
12297 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
12298 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
12299 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
12300 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
12301 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
12304 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
12306 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
12307 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
12308 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
12309 auto-expire turned on.
12313 @subsection Washing Mail
12314 @cindex mail washing
12315 @cindex list server brain damage
12316 @cindex incoming mail treatment
12318 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
12319 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
12320 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
12321 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
12322 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
12323 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
12325 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
12326 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
12327 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
12330 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
12331 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
12332 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
12333 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
12336 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
12337 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
12338 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
12339 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
12340 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
12343 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
12344 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
12345 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
12346 Emacs running on MS machines.
12350 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
12351 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
12352 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
12353 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
12356 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
12357 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
12358 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
12359 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
12361 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
12362 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
12363 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
12364 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
12365 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
12366 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
12367 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
12370 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
12371 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
12374 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
12375 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
12378 This can also be done non-destructively with
12379 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
12381 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
12382 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
12383 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
12385 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
12386 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
12388 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
12389 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
12390 @code{References} headers.
12394 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
12395 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
12396 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
12400 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
12401 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
12402 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
12409 @subsection Duplicates
12411 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
12412 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
12413 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
12414 @cindex duplicate mails
12415 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
12416 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
12417 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
12418 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
12419 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
12420 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
12421 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
12422 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
12423 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
12424 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
12425 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
12426 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
12427 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
12429 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
12430 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
12431 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
12432 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
12434 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
12437 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
12438 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
12442 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
12443 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
12444 ("gnus-warning" "duplication of message" "duplicate")
12445 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
12446 (any mail "mail.misc")
12453 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12454 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:")
12459 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
12460 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
12461 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
12462 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
12463 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
12466 @node Not Reading Mail
12467 @subsection Not Reading Mail
12469 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
12470 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
12471 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
12473 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
12474 @code{nil}, none of the backends will ever attempt to read incoming
12475 mail, which should help.
12477 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12478 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
12479 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
12480 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
12481 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
12482 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
12483 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
12484 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
12485 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
12486 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
12487 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
12489 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
12490 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
12494 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
12495 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
12497 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
12498 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
12499 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
12501 There are five different mail backends in the standard Gnus, and more
12502 backends are available separately. The mail backend most people use
12503 (because it is the fastest and most flexible) is @code{nnml}
12504 (@pxref{Mail Spool}).
12507 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
12508 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
12509 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
12510 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
12511 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
12512 * Comparing Mail Backends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
12516 @node Unix Mail Box
12517 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
12519 @cindex unix mail box
12521 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
12522 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
12523 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
12524 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
12525 which group it belongs in.
12527 Virtual server settings:
12530 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
12531 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
12532 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory.
12534 @item nnmbox-active-file
12535 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
12536 The name of the active file for the mail box.
12538 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
12539 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
12540 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
12546 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
12550 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
12551 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
12552 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
12553 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
12554 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
12556 Virtual server settings:
12559 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
12560 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
12561 The name of the rmail mbox file.
12563 @item nnbabyl-active-file
12564 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
12565 The name of the active file for the rmail box.
12567 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12568 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12569 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail.
12574 @subsubsection Mail Spool
12576 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
12578 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
12579 format. It should be used with some caution.
12581 @vindex nnml-directory
12582 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
12583 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
12584 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
12585 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
12587 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
12590 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
12591 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
12592 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
12593 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
12594 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
12595 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
12596 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
12597 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
12599 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
12600 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
12601 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
12602 backend when it comes to reading mail.
12604 Virtual server settings:
12607 @item nnml-directory
12608 @vindex nnml-directory
12609 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
12611 @item nnml-active-file
12612 @vindex nnml-active-file
12613 The active file for the @code{nnml} server.
12615 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
12616 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
12617 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
12620 @item nnml-get-new-mail
12621 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
12622 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail.
12624 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
12625 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
12626 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
12628 @item nnml-nov-file-name
12629 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
12630 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
12632 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
12633 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
12634 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
12638 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
12639 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
12640 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
12641 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
12642 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
12643 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
12644 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
12649 @subsubsection MH Spool
12651 @cindex mh-e mail spool
12653 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
12654 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
12655 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
12656 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
12658 Virtual server settings:
12661 @item nnmh-directory
12662 @vindex nnmh-directory
12663 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory.
12665 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
12666 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
12667 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail.
12670 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
12671 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
12672 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
12673 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
12674 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
12675 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
12676 to set this variable to @code{t}.
12681 @subsubsection Mail Folders
12683 @cindex mbox folders
12684 @cindex mail folders
12686 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
12687 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
12688 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
12691 Virtual server settings:
12694 @item nnfolder-directory
12695 @vindex nnfolder-directory
12696 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
12698 @item nnfolder-active-file
12699 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
12700 The name of the active file.
12702 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
12703 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
12704 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File Format}.
12706 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
12707 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
12708 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail.
12710 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
12711 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
12712 @cindex backup files
12713 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
12714 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
12715 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
12716 your @file{.emacs} file:
12719 (defun turn-off-backup ()
12720 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
12722 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
12725 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
12726 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
12727 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
12728 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
12729 extract some information from it before removing it.
12731 @item nnfolder-nov-is-evil
12732 @vindex nnfolder-nov-is-evil
12733 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
12738 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
12739 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
12740 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
12741 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
12742 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
12743 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
12746 @node Comparing Mail Backends
12747 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Backends
12749 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{backend} is the common word for a
12750 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
12751 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
12752 and so selection of a suitable backend is required in order to get that
12753 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
12755 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
12756 typically done by @sc{nntp} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
12757 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
12758 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @sc{nntp} server), and
12759 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
12760 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
12761 @code{nnspool} backends, to select between these methods, if one happens
12762 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
12765 The goal in selecting a mail backend is to pick one which
12766 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
12767 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
12768 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
12773 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
12774 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
12775 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
12776 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
12777 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
12778 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
12779 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
12780 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
12781 this backend, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
12782 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
12783 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
12784 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
12785 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
12790 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
12791 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
12792 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
12793 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
12794 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
12795 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
12796 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
12797 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
12798 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
12799 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
12800 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
12801 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
12802 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
12803 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
12805 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
12806 filesystem, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
12811 @code{nnml} is the backend which smells the most as though you were
12812 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
12813 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
12814 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
12815 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
12816 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
12817 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
12818 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
12819 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
12820 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
12821 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
12822 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
12823 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
12824 provided by the active file and overviews.
12826 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
12827 resource which defines available places in the filesystem to put new
12828 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
12829 tight, shared filesystems. But if you live on a personal machine where
12830 the filesystem is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
12833 It is also problematic using this backend if you are living in a
12834 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
12839 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
12840 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
12841 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
12842 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
12843 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
12844 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
12845 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
12849 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
12850 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
12851 itself puts *all* one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
12852 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
12853 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
12854 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
12855 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
12856 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
12857 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
12859 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
12860 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
12861 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
12862 friendly mail backend all over.
12867 @node Browsing the Web
12868 @section Browsing the Web
12870 @cindex browsing the web
12874 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
12875 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
12876 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
12877 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
12878 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
12879 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
12880 even know what a news group is.
12882 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
12883 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
12884 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
12885 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
12886 you mad in the end.
12888 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
12891 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of backends for providing
12892 interfaces to these sources.
12895 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
12896 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
12897 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
12898 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
12899 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
12902 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
12904 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
12905 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @sc{html} data
12906 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus backend
12907 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these backends,
12908 though, you should be ok.
12910 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
12911 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
12912 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
12913 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
12914 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
12918 @subsection Web Searches
12922 @cindex InReference
12923 @cindex Usenet searches
12924 @cindex searching the Usenet
12926 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
12927 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
12928 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
12929 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
12930 searches without having to use a browser.
12932 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
12933 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
12934 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
12935 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
12936 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
12938 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
12939 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
12940 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
12941 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
12942 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
12943 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
12944 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
12945 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
12946 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
12947 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
12950 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
12951 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
12952 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
12953 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
12954 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
12955 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
12957 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
12958 to use @code{nnweb}.
12960 Virtual server variables:
12965 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
12966 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
12970 @vindex nnweb-search
12971 The search string to feed to the search engine.
12973 @item nnweb-max-hits
12974 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
12975 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
12978 @item nnweb-type-definition
12979 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
12980 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
12981 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
12986 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
12990 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
12993 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
12996 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
13000 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
13007 @subsection Slashdot
13011 Slashdot (@uref{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
13012 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
13013 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
13015 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
13016 following in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
13019 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
13020 '((nnslashdot "")))
13023 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} backend for new comments
13024 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
13025 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
13026 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
13027 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
13030 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
13031 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
13033 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
13034 comments), some light @sc{html}izations will be performed. In
13035 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
13036 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
13037 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @sc{html}
13038 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
13041 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
13044 @item nnslashdot-threaded
13045 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
13046 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
13047 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
13048 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
13049 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
13050 but much, much slower than untreaded.
13052 @item nnslashdot-login-name
13053 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
13054 The login name to use when posting.
13056 @item nnslashdot-password
13057 @vindex nnslashdot-password
13058 The password to use when posting.
13060 @item nnslashdot-directory
13061 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
13062 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default value is
13063 @samp{~/News/slashdot/}.
13065 @item nnslashdot-active-url
13066 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
13067 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
13068 news articles and comments. The default is
13069 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
13071 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
13072 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
13073 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
13075 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
13077 @item nnslashdot-article-url
13078 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
13079 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
13081 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
13083 @item nnslashdot-threshold
13084 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
13085 The score threshold. The default is -1.
13087 @item nnslashdot-group-number
13088 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
13089 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
13090 updated. The default is 0.
13097 @subsection Ultimate
13099 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
13101 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@uref{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
13102 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
13103 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
13104 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
13106 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
13107 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
13108 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
13109 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
13110 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
13111 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
13112 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
13114 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
13117 @item nnultimate-directory
13118 @vindex nnultimate-directory
13119 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
13120 @samp{~/News/ultimate/}.
13125 @subsection Web Archive
13127 @cindex Web Archive
13129 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
13130 @uref{http://www.egroups.com/} and
13131 @uref{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
13132 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
13135 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
13136 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
13137 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET an_egroup RET egroups RET
13138 www.egroups.com RET your@@email.address RET}. (Substitute the
13139 @sc{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
13140 @sc{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
13141 backend by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
13143 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
13146 @item nnwarchive-directory
13147 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
13148 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
13149 @samp{~/News/warchive/}.
13151 @item nnwarchive-login
13152 @vindex nnwarchive-login
13153 The account name on the web server.
13155 @item nnwarchive-passwd
13156 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
13157 The password for your account on the web server.
13161 @node Customizing w3
13162 @subsection Customizing w3
13168 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
13169 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
13170 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
13172 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
13173 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
13174 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
13177 (eval-after-load "w3"
13179 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
13180 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
13181 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
13182 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
13184 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
13187 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
13188 @sc{html} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
13192 @node Other Sources
13193 @section Other Sources
13195 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
13196 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
13200 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
13201 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
13202 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
13203 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
13204 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
13205 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
13209 @node Directory Groups
13210 @subsection Directory Groups
13212 @cindex directory groups
13214 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
13215 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
13218 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
13219 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
13220 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
13221 backend to read directories. Big deal.
13223 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
13224 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
13225 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
13226 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
13227 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
13229 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
13231 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
13232 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
13233 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
13234 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
13237 @node Anything Groups
13238 @subsection Anything Groups
13241 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
13242 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
13243 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
13246 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
13247 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
13248 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
13249 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
13250 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
13251 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
13252 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
13253 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
13254 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
13255 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
13258 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
13259 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
13260 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
13261 in the article buffer, just as usual.
13263 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
13264 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
13265 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
13266 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
13268 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
13269 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
13270 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
13271 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
13272 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
13273 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
13274 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
13275 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
13280 @item nneething-map-file-directory
13281 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
13282 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
13283 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
13285 @item nneething-exclude-files
13286 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
13287 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
13288 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
13290 @item nneething-include-files
13291 @vindex nneething-include-files
13292 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
13293 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
13295 @item nneething-map-file
13296 @vindex nneething-map-file
13297 Name of the map files.
13301 @node Document Groups
13302 @subsection Document Groups
13304 @cindex documentation group
13307 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
13308 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
13315 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
13320 The standard Unix mbox file.
13322 @cindex MMDF mail box
13324 The MMDF mail box format.
13327 Several news articles appended into a file.
13330 @cindex rnews batch files
13331 The rnews batch transport format.
13332 @cindex forwarded messages
13335 Forwarded articles.
13338 Netscape mail boxes.
13341 MIME multipart messages.
13343 @item standard-digest
13344 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
13347 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
13350 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
13351 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
13352 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
13355 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
13356 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
13357 group. And that's it.
13359 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
13360 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
13361 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
13362 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
13363 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
13364 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
13365 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
13366 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
13367 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
13368 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
13370 Virtual server variables:
13373 @item nndoc-article-type
13374 @vindex nndoc-article-type
13375 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
13376 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
13377 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
13378 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail} or @code{guess}.
13380 @item nndoc-post-type
13381 @vindex nndoc-post-type
13382 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
13383 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
13388 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
13392 @node Document Server Internals
13393 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
13395 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
13396 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
13397 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
13398 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
13400 First, here's an example document type definition:
13404 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
13405 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
13408 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
13409 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
13410 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
13411 types can be defined with very few settings:
13414 @item first-article
13415 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
13416 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
13419 @item article-begin
13420 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
13421 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
13423 @item head-begin-function
13424 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
13427 @item nndoc-head-begin
13428 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
13431 @item nndoc-head-end
13432 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
13433 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
13435 @item body-begin-function
13436 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
13440 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
13443 @item body-end-function
13444 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
13448 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
13451 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
13452 regexp will be totally ignored.
13456 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
13457 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
13458 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
13459 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
13460 something that's palatable for Gnus:
13463 @item prepare-body-function
13464 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
13465 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
13466 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
13468 @item article-transform-function
13469 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
13470 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
13471 body of the article.
13473 @item generate-head-function
13474 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
13475 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
13476 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
13477 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
13481 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
13486 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
13487 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
13488 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
13489 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
13490 (head-end . "^ ?$")
13491 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
13492 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
13493 (subtype digest guess))
13496 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
13497 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
13498 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
13499 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
13500 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
13502 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
13503 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
13504 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
13505 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
13506 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
13507 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
13508 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
13509 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
13510 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
13511 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
13519 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
13520 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
13521 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
13523 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
13524 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
13525 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
13528 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
13529 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
13530 that interested in doing things properly.
13532 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
13533 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
13536 First some terminology:
13541 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
13542 get news and/or mail from.
13545 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
13546 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
13549 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
13553 @item message packets
13554 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
13555 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
13556 default, where @var{x} is a number.
13558 @item response packets
13559 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
13560 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
13561 default, where @var{x} is a number.
13571 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
13572 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
13573 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
13574 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
13577 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
13580 You put the packet in your home directory.
13583 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
13584 the native or secondary server.
13587 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
13588 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
13591 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
13595 You transfer this packet to the server.
13598 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
13601 You then repeat until you die.
13605 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
13606 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
13609 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
13610 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
13611 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
13615 @node SOUP Commands
13616 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
13618 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
13622 @kindex G s b (Group)
13623 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
13624 Pack all unread articles in the current group
13625 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
13626 process/prefix convention.
13629 @kindex G s w (Group)
13630 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
13631 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
13634 @kindex G s s (Group)
13635 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
13636 Send all replies from the replies packet
13637 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
13640 @kindex G s p (Group)
13641 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
13642 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
13645 @kindex G s r (Group)
13646 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
13647 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
13650 @kindex O s (Summary)
13651 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
13652 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
13653 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
13654 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
13659 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
13664 @item gnus-soup-directory
13665 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
13666 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
13667 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
13669 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
13670 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
13671 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
13672 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
13674 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
13675 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
13676 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
13677 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
13679 @item gnus-soup-packer
13680 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
13681 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
13682 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
13684 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
13685 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
13686 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
13687 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
13689 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
13690 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
13691 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
13693 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
13694 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
13695 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
13696 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
13702 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
13705 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
13706 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
13707 you can read them at leisure.
13709 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
13713 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
13714 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
13715 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
13716 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
13718 @item nnsoup-directory
13719 @vindex nnsoup-directory
13720 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
13721 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
13723 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
13724 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
13725 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
13726 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
13728 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
13729 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
13730 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
13731 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
13732 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
13734 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
13735 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
13736 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
13737 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
13739 @item nnsoup-active-file
13740 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
13741 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
13742 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
13743 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
13744 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
13746 @item nnsoup-packer
13747 @vindex nnsoup-packer
13748 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
13749 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
13751 @item nnsoup-unpacker
13752 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
13753 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
13754 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
13756 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
13757 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
13758 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
13761 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
13762 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
13763 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
13766 @item nnsoup-always-save
13767 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
13768 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
13774 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
13776 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
13777 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
13778 more for that to happen.
13780 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
13781 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
13782 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
13785 In specific, this is what it does:
13788 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
13789 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
13792 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
13793 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
13794 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
13797 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
13798 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
13799 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
13802 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
13803 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
13804 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
13806 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
13812 @item nngateway-address
13813 @vindex nngateway-address
13814 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
13816 @item nngateway-header-transformation
13817 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
13818 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
13819 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
13820 transformation should be called, and defaults to
13821 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
13822 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
13825 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
13826 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
13827 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
13830 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
13833 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
13836 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
13839 The following pre-defined functions exist:
13841 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
13844 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
13845 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
13846 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
13848 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
13850 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
13851 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
13852 @code{nngateway-address}.
13857 (setq gnus-post-method
13858 '(nngateway "mail2news@@replay.com"
13859 (nngateway-header-transformation
13860 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
13868 So, to use this, simply say something like:
13871 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
13877 @subsection @sc{imap}
13881 @sc{imap} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or ...),
13882 think of it as a modernized @sc{nntp}. Connecting to a @sc{imap}
13883 server is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just
13884 specify the network address of the server.
13886 @sc{imap} has two properties. First, @sc{imap} can do everything that
13887 POP can, it can hence be viewed as POP++. Secondly, @sc{imap} is a
13888 mail storage protocol, similar to @sc{nntp} being a news storage
13889 protocol. (@sc{imap} offers more features than @sc{nntp} because news
13890 is more or less read-only whereas mail is read-write.)
13892 If you want to use @sc{imap} as POP++, use an imap entry in
13893 mail-sources. With this, Gnus will fetch mails from the @sc{imap}
13894 server and store them on the local disk. This is not the usage
13895 described in this section. @xref{Mail Sources}.
13897 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a mail storage protocol, use an nnimap
13898 entry in gnus-secondary-select-methods. With this, Gnus will
13899 manipulate mails stored on the @sc{imap} server. This is the kind of
13900 usage explained in this section.
13902 A server configuration in @code{~/.gnus} with a few @sc{imap} servers
13903 might look something like this:
13906 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
13907 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; no special configuration
13908 ; perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:
13910 (nnimap-address "localhost")
13911 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
13912 ; a UW server running on localhost
13914 (nnimap-server-port 143)
13915 (nnimap-address "localhost")
13916 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
13917 ; anonymous public cyrus server:
13918 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
13919 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
13920 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
13921 (nnimap-stream network))
13922 ; a ssl server on a non-standard port:
13924 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
13925 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
13926 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
13929 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
13934 @item nnimap-address
13935 @vindex nnimap-address
13937 The address of the remote @sc{imap} server. Defaults to the virtual
13938 server name if not specified.
13940 @item nnimap-server-port
13941 @vindex nnimap-server-port
13942 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for SSL.
13944 Note that this should be a integer, example server specification:
13947 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
13948 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
13951 @item nnimap-list-pattern
13952 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
13953 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
13954 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
13955 interested in a few -- some servers export your home directory via
13956 @sc{imap}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
13957 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
13959 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
13960 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
13961 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
13964 Example server specification:
13967 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
13968 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
13969 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
13972 @item nnimap-stream
13973 @vindex nnimap-stream
13974 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
13975 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
13976 of SSL. (SSL is being replaced by STARTTLS, which can be automatically
13977 detected, but it's not widely deployed yet).
13979 Example server specification:
13982 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
13983 (nnimap-stream ssl))
13986 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
13990 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5). Require the
13991 @samp{imtest} program.
13993 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with kerberos 4. Require the @samp{imtest} program.
13995 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
13996 SSL). Require the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
13999 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL. Require OpenSSL (the
14000 program @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}).
14002 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start @sc{imap} connection.
14004 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
14007 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
14008 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD, nnimap support
14009 both @samp{imtest} version 1.5.x and version 1.6.x. The variable
14010 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
14013 @vindex imap-ssl-program
14014 For SSL connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
14015 @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
14016 and nnimap support it too - altough the most recent versions of
14017 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
14018 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
14019 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
14022 @vindex imap-shell-program
14023 @vindex imap-shell-host
14024 For @sc{imap} connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
14025 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
14027 @item nnimap-authenticator
14028 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
14030 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
14031 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
14033 Example server specification:
14036 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14037 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
14040 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
14044 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Require
14045 external program @code{imtest}.
14047 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos authentication. Require external program
14050 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Require
14051 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
14053 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
14055 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
14057 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your emailadress as password.
14060 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
14062 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
14063 Unlike Parmenides the @sc{imap} designers has decided that things that
14064 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @sc{imap} has
14065 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
14066 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
14067 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{G DEL} or
14070 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
14071 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
14072 running in circles yet?
14074 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
14075 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
14078 The possible options are:
14083 The default behavior, delete all articles marked as "Deleted" when
14086 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
14087 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @sc{imap} clients
14088 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
14089 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
14091 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
14096 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
14097 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
14099 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format
14100 is (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See
14101 `nntp-authinfo-file' for exact syntax.
14103 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
14104 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
14105 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
14111 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
14112 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
14113 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
14118 @node Splitting in IMAP
14119 @subsubsection Splitting in @sc{imap}
14120 @cindex splitting imap mail
14122 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
14123 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
14124 @sc{imap} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
14125 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @sc{imap}
14126 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
14130 Here are the variables of interest:
14134 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
14135 @cindex splitting, crosspost
14137 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
14139 If non-nil, do crossposting if several split methods match the mail. If
14140 nil, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule} found will be used.
14142 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
14144 @item nnimap-split-inbox
14145 @cindex splitting, inbox
14147 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
14149 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @sc{imap}
14150 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to nil, which means that splitting is
14154 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
14155 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
14158 No nnmail equivalent.
14160 @item nnimap-split-rule
14161 @cindex Splitting, rules
14162 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
14164 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
14167 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
14168 sublist gives the name of the @sc{imap} mailbox to move articles
14169 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
14170 Neither did I, we need examples.
14173 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14174 '(("INBOX.nnimap" "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
14175 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
14176 ("INBOX.private" "")))
14179 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
14180 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
14181 into INBOX.spam and everything else in INBOX.private.
14183 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
14184 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
14188 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
14191 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
14192 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
14193 containing the headers of the article. It should return a non-nil value
14194 if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
14196 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
14197 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
14198 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
14199 of your inbox. (This might affect performance if you keep lots of
14200 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
14201 them every time you fetch new mail.)
14203 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
14204 end. The first rule to make a match will "win", unless you have
14205 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will "win".
14207 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
14208 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
14209 thinks the article should be split to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14211 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it need too.
14213 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
14214 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
14215 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
14218 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14219 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
14220 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
14221 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
14222 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
14223 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
14226 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
14227 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
14228 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
14229 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
14230 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
14231 group/function elements.
14233 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
14235 @item nnimap-split-predicate
14237 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
14239 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
14240 split, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
14242 This might be useful if you use another @sc{imap} client to read mail in
14243 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
14244 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
14247 @item nnimap-split-fancy
14248 @cindex splitting, fancy
14249 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
14250 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
14252 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14253 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
14254 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
14256 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
14257 nnimap backends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14258 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
14259 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14264 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
14265 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
14268 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
14272 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
14273 @subsubsection Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14274 @cindex editing imap acls
14275 @cindex Access Control Lists
14276 @cindex Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14278 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
14280 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @sc{imap} for
14281 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
14282 @sc{imap} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
14285 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
14286 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
14287 editing window with detailed instructions.
14289 Some possible uses:
14293 Giving "anyone" the "lrs" rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
14294 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
14295 follow the list without subscribing to it.
14297 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
14298 "anyone" posting ("p") capabilities to have "plussing" work (that is,
14299 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @sc{imap} mailbox
14303 @node Expunging mailboxes
14304 @subsubsection Expunging mailboxes
14308 @cindex Manual expunging
14310 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
14312 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-close},
14313 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
14314 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
14316 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
14321 @node Combined Groups
14322 @section Combined Groups
14324 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
14328 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
14329 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
14333 @node Virtual Groups
14334 @subsection Virtual Groups
14336 @cindex virtual groups
14337 @cindex merging groups
14339 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
14342 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
14343 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
14344 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
14346 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
14347 regexp to match component groups.
14349 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
14350 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
14351 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
14352 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
14353 the virtual group.)
14355 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
14356 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
14359 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
14362 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
14363 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
14365 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
14366 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
14367 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
14368 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
14371 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
14374 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
14375 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
14376 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
14378 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
14379 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
14380 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
14381 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
14382 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
14384 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
14385 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
14386 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
14388 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
14389 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
14390 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
14391 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
14392 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
14393 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
14394 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
14395 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
14396 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
14397 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
14398 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
14400 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
14401 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
14402 has to ask the backend of the component group the article comes from
14403 whether it is a news or mail backend. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
14404 there is typically no sure way for the component backend to know this,
14405 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
14406 not-news backend. (Just to be on the safe side.)
14408 @kbd{C-c C-t} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
14409 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
14413 @node Kibozed Groups
14414 @subsection Kibozed Groups
14418 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
14419 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
14420 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
14421 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
14423 @kindex G k (Group)
14424 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
14427 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
14428 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
14429 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
14430 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
14432 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
14433 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
14434 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
14436 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
14437 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
14438 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
14439 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
14440 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
14441 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
14442 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
14443 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
14445 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
14446 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
14447 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
14448 Stranger things have happened.
14450 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
14451 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
14453 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
14454 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
14455 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
14456 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
14457 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
14458 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
14460 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
14461 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
14464 @node Gnus Unplugged
14465 @section Gnus Unplugged
14470 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
14472 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
14473 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
14474 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
14475 read news. Believe it or not.
14477 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
14478 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
14479 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
14480 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
14481 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
14483 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
14484 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
14485 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
14486 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
14487 reading news on a machine.
14489 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
14493 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
14494 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
14498 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
14499 @file{.gnus.el} file:
14506 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
14508 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
14511 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
14512 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
14513 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
14514 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
14515 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
14516 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
14517 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
14518 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
14519 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
14520 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
14525 @subsection Agent Basics
14527 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
14529 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
14530 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
14531 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
14532 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
14534 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
14535 connected to the net continuously.
14537 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
14538 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
14540 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
14545 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
14546 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
14547 already fetched while in this mode.
14550 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
14551 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
14552 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
14553 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
14554 Source Specifiers}).
14557 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
14558 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
14559 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
14560 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
14561 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
14564 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
14565 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
14566 then you read the news offline.
14569 And then you go to step 2.
14572 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
14578 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
14579 backend, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
14580 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
14581 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
14582 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
14583 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
14586 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
14593 @node Agent Categories
14594 @subsection Agent Categories
14596 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
14597 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
14598 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
14599 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
14600 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
14601 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
14602 you're interested in the articles anyway.
14604 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
14605 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
14606 Groups that do not belong in any other category belong to the
14607 @code{default} category. Gnus has its own buffer for creating and
14608 managing categories.
14611 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
14612 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
14613 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
14617 @node Category Syntax
14618 @subsubsection Category Syntax
14620 A category consists of two things.
14624 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
14625 are eligible for downloading; and
14628 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
14629 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
14630 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
14633 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
14634 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
14635 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
14636 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
14638 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
14639 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
14640 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as described below.
14642 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
14643 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
14644 operators sprinkled in between.
14646 Perhaps some examples are in order.
14648 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
14649 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
14655 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
14656 short (for some value of ``short'').
14658 Here's a more complex predicate:
14667 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
14668 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
14671 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
14672 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
14673 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
14675 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
14676 you want to do, you can write your own.
14680 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
14681 lines; default 100.
14684 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
14685 lines; default 200.
14688 True iff the article has a download score less than
14689 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
14692 True iff the article has a download score greater than
14693 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
14696 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
14697 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
14698 checksum and sees whether articles match.
14707 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
14708 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
14709 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
14712 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
14713 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
14714 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
14715 something along the lines of the following:
14718 (defun my-article-old-p ()
14719 "Say whether an article is old."
14720 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
14721 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
14724 with the predicate then defined as:
14727 (not my-article-old-p)
14730 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
14731 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
14732 wherever. (Note: this would have to be at a point *after*
14733 @code{gnus-agent} has been loaded via @code{(gnus-agentize)})
14736 (setq gnus-category-predicate-alist
14737 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
14738 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
14741 and simply specify your predicate as:
14747 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
14748 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
14749 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
14750 just don't give a damn.
14752 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
14753 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
14754 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
14755 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
14756 parameters like so:
14759 (agent-predicate . short)
14762 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
14763 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
14764 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
14766 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
14769 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
14772 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
14773 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
14774 predicate is assumed to be a list.
14777 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
14778 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
14779 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
14780 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
14781 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
14782 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
14784 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
14785 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
14786 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
14787 if it's to be specific to that group.
14789 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
14796 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
14797 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
14803 Category specification
14807 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
14813 Group Parameter specification
14816 (agent-score ("from"
14817 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
14822 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
14828 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
14835 Category specification
14838 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
14844 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
14848 Group Parameter specification
14851 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
14854 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
14859 Use @code{normal} score files
14861 If you don't want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
14862 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
14863 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
14864 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
14866 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
14867 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
14868 files for a group, *filtering out* those sections that do not
14869 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
14873 Category Specification
14880 Group Parameter specification
14883 (agent-score . file)
14888 @node Category Buffer
14889 @subsubsection Category Buffer
14891 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
14892 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
14893 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
14895 The following commands are available in this buffer:
14899 @kindex q (Category)
14900 @findex gnus-category-exit
14901 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
14904 @kindex k (Category)
14905 @findex gnus-category-kill
14906 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
14909 @kindex c (Category)
14910 @findex gnus-category-copy
14911 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
14914 @kindex a (Category)
14915 @findex gnus-category-add
14916 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
14919 @kindex p (Category)
14920 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
14921 Edit the predicate of the current category
14922 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
14925 @kindex g (Category)
14926 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
14927 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
14928 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
14931 @kindex s (Category)
14932 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
14933 Edit the download score rule of the current category
14934 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
14937 @kindex l (Category)
14938 @findex gnus-category-list
14939 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
14943 @node Category Variables
14944 @subsubsection Category Variables
14947 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
14948 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
14949 Hook run in category buffers.
14951 @item gnus-category-line-format
14952 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
14953 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
14954 Variables}). Valid elements are:
14958 The name of the category.
14961 The number of groups in the category.
14964 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
14965 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
14966 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
14968 @item gnus-agent-short-article
14969 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
14970 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
14972 @item gnus-agent-long-article
14973 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
14974 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
14976 @item gnus-agent-low-score
14977 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
14978 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
14981 @item gnus-agent-high-score
14982 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
14983 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
14989 @node Agent Commands
14990 @subsection Agent Commands
14992 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
14993 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged} command works in all modes, and
14994 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
14998 * Group Agent Commands::
14999 * Summary Agent Commands::
15000 * Server Agent Commands::
15003 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
15004 following incantation:
15006 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
15008 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
15013 @node Group Agent Commands
15014 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
15018 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
15019 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
15020 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
15021 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
15024 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
15025 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
15026 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
15029 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
15030 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
15031 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
15032 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
15035 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
15036 @findex gnus-group-send-drafts
15037 Send all sendable messages in the draft group
15038 (@code{gnus-group-send-drafts}). @xref{Drafts}.
15041 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
15042 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
15043 Add the current group to an Agent category
15044 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
15045 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15048 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
15049 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
15050 Remove the current group from its category, if any
15051 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
15052 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15055 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
15056 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
15057 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
15063 @node Summary Agent Commands
15064 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
15068 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
15069 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
15070 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
15073 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
15074 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
15075 Remove the downloading mark from the article
15076 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
15079 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
15080 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
15081 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
15084 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
15085 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
15086 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
15091 @node Server Agent Commands
15092 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
15096 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
15097 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
15098 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
15099 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
15102 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
15103 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
15104 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
15105 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
15111 @subsection Agent Expiry
15113 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
15114 @findex gnus-agent-expire
15115 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
15116 @cindex Agent expiry
15117 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
15120 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
15121 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
15122 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
15123 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
15124 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
15125 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
15127 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
15128 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
15129 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
15130 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
15131 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
15134 @node Agent and IMAP
15135 @subsection Agent and IMAP
15137 The Agent work with any Gnus backend, including nnimap. However,
15138 since there are some conceptual differences between @sc{nntp} and
15139 @sc{imap}, this section (should) provide you with some information to
15140 make Gnus Agent work smoother as a @sc{imap} Disconnected Mode client.
15142 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
15143 are kept on the @sc{imap} server, rather than in @code{.newsrc} as is the
15144 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
15145 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
15147 Gnus keep track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
15148 Agent by default. When you plug back in, by default Gnus will check if
15149 you have any changed any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize these
15150 with the server. This behavior is customizable with
15151 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
15153 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
15154 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
15155 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, the
15156 default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so ask if
15157 you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has any other
15158 value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
15160 If you do not wish to automatically synchronize flags when you
15161 re-connect, this can be done manually with the
15162 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
15163 in the group buffer by default.
15165 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
15166 expect from a disconnected @sc{imap} client, including:
15171 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
15174 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
15178 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by "pushing"
15179 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
15180 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
15181 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
15182 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
15183 removed from the server when you "synchronize". The queued flag
15184 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
15185 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
15188 @node Outgoing Messages
15189 @subsection Outgoing Messages
15191 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
15192 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
15193 after posting, and edit them at will.
15195 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
15196 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
15197 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
15198 messages in the draft group.
15202 @node Agent Variables
15203 @subsection Agent Variables
15206 @item gnus-agent-directory
15207 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
15208 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
15209 @file{~/News/agent/}.
15211 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
15212 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
15213 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
15214 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
15215 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
15218 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
15219 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
15220 Hook run when connecting to the network.
15222 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
15223 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
15224 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
15229 @node Example Setup
15230 @subsection Example Setup
15232 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
15233 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
15234 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
15237 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @sc{nntp}
15238 ;;; from your ISP's server.
15239 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
15241 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
15242 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
15243 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
15245 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
15246 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
15248 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
15252 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
15253 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
15256 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
15257 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
15258 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
15259 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
15260 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
15263 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
15264 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
15265 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
15266 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
15267 back all the killed groups.)
15269 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
15270 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
15271 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
15274 @node Batching Agents
15275 @subsection Batching Agents
15277 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
15278 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
15279 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
15283 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
15287 @node Agent Caveats
15288 @subsection Agent Caveats
15290 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
15291 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
15295 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the
15300 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists
15301 in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
15307 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
15308 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP.
15315 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
15316 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
15317 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
15320 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
15321 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
15322 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
15323 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
15324 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
15326 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
15327 before generating the summary buffer.
15329 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
15330 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
15331 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
15333 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
15334 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
15335 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
15336 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
15339 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
15340 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
15341 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
15342 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
15343 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
15344 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
15345 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
15346 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
15347 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
15348 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
15349 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
15350 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
15351 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
15352 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
15353 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
15354 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
15358 @node Summary Score Commands
15359 @section Summary Score Commands
15360 @cindex score commands
15362 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
15363 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
15364 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
15365 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
15366 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
15368 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
15369 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
15370 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
15371 score file the current one.
15373 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
15378 @kindex V s (Summary)
15379 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
15380 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
15383 @kindex V S (Summary)
15384 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
15385 Display the score of the current article
15386 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
15389 @kindex V t (Summary)
15390 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
15391 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
15392 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
15395 @kindex V R (Summary)
15396 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
15397 Run the current summary through the scoring process
15398 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
15399 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
15400 effect you're having.
15403 @kindex V c (Summary)
15404 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
15405 Make a different score file the current
15406 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
15409 @kindex V e (Summary)
15410 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
15411 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
15412 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
15416 @kindex V f (Summary)
15417 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
15418 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
15419 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
15422 @kindex V F (Summary)
15423 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
15424 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
15425 after editing score files.
15428 @kindex V C (Summary)
15429 @findex gnus-score-customize
15430 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
15431 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
15435 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
15440 @kindex V m (Summary)
15441 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
15442 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
15443 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
15446 @kindex V x (Summary)
15447 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
15448 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
15449 expunge all articles below this score
15450 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
15453 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
15454 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
15457 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
15458 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
15462 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
15463 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
15465 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
15466 keys are available:
15470 Score on the author name.
15473 Score on the subject line.
15476 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
15479 Score on the @code{References} line.
15485 Score on the number of lines.
15488 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
15491 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
15492 the followups to this author.
15506 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
15507 what headers you are scoring on.
15519 Substring matching.
15522 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
15551 Greater than number.
15556 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
15557 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
15558 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
15562 Temporary score entry.
15565 Permanent score entry.
15568 Immediately scoring.
15573 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
15574 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
15575 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
15576 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
15578 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
15579 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
15580 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
15581 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
15582 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
15584 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
15585 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
15586 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
15587 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
15588 current score file.
15590 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
15591 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
15592 pretend they are keymaps or not.
15595 @node Group Score Commands
15596 @section Group Score Commands
15597 @cindex group score commands
15599 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
15604 @kindex W f (Group)
15605 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
15606 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
15607 all the time. This command will flush the cache
15608 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
15612 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
15614 @findex gnus-batch-score
15615 @cindex batch scoring
15617 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
15621 @node Score Variables
15622 @section Score Variables
15623 @cindex score variables
15627 @item gnus-use-scoring
15628 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
15629 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
15630 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
15632 @item gnus-kill-killed
15633 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
15634 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
15635 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
15636 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
15637 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
15638 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
15639 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
15641 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
15642 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
15643 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
15644 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
15645 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
15647 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
15648 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
15649 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
15650 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
15652 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
15653 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
15654 @cindex score cache
15655 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
15656 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
15657 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
15658 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
15659 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
15660 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
15663 @item gnus-save-score
15664 @vindex gnus-save-score
15665 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
15666 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
15667 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
15669 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
15670 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
15671 across group visits.
15673 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
15674 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
15675 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
15676 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
15677 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
15678 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
15679 manually entered data.
15681 @item gnus-summary-default-score
15682 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
15683 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
15685 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
15686 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
15687 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
15688 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
15689 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
15690 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
15692 @item gnus-score-over-mark
15693 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
15694 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
15695 default. Default is @samp{+}.
15697 @item gnus-score-below-mark
15698 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
15699 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
15700 default. Default is @samp{-}.
15702 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
15703 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
15704 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
15705 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
15707 Predefined functions available are:
15710 @item gnus-score-find-single
15711 @findex gnus-score-find-single
15712 Only apply the group's own score file.
15714 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
15715 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
15716 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
15717 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
15718 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
15719 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
15720 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
15721 then a regexp match is done.
15723 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
15724 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
15726 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
15727 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
15728 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
15729 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
15731 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
15732 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
15733 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
15734 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
15735 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
15739 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
15740 functions will be called with the group name as argument, and all the
15741 returned lists of score files will be applied. These functions can also
15742 return lists of score alists directly. In that case, the functions that
15743 return these non-file score alists should probably be placed before the
15744 ``real'' score file functions, to ensure that the last score file
15745 returned is the local score file. Phu.
15747 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
15748 overall score file, you could use the value
15750 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE")) 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
15753 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
15754 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
15755 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
15756 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
15757 are expired. It's 7 by default.
15759 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
15760 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
15761 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
15762 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
15763 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
15764 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
15765 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
15768 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
15769 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
15770 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
15772 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
15773 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
15774 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
15775 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
15776 threading---according to the current value of
15777 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
15778 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
15779 simplified in this manner.
15784 @node Score File Format
15785 @section Score File Format
15786 @cindex score file format
15788 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
15789 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
15790 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
15792 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
15796 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
15798 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
15800 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
15802 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
15807 (mark-and-expunge -10)
15811 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
15812 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
15813 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
15814 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
15818 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
15819 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
15821 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
15822 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
15823 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
15825 Six keys are supported by this alist:
15830 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
15831 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
15832 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
15833 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
15834 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
15835 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
15836 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
15837 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
15838 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
15839 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
15840 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
15841 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
15842 to articles that matches these score entries.
15844 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
15845 score entry has one to four elements.
15849 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
15850 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
15854 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
15855 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
15856 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
15857 is successful. If this element is not present, the
15858 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
15859 instead. This is 1000 by default.
15862 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
15863 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
15864 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
15865 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
15866 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
15869 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
15870 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
15871 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
15872 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
15875 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
15876 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
15877 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
15878 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
15879 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
15880 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
15881 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
15882 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
15883 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
15884 instead, if you feel like.
15887 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
15888 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
15890 These predicates are true if
15893 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
15896 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
15897 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
15904 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
15905 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
15906 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
15907 it's not. I think.)
15909 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some backends (like
15910 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
15911 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
15912 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
15915 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
15916 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
15917 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
15918 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
15919 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
15920 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
15921 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
15925 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
15926 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
15927 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
15928 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
15929 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
15930 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
15931 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
15932 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
15935 @item Head, Body, All
15936 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
15940 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
15941 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
15942 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
15943 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
15944 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
15945 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
15946 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
15950 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
15951 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
15952 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
15953 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
15954 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
15955 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
15956 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
15957 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
15958 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
15959 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
15960 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
15964 @cindex Score File Atoms
15966 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
15967 lower than this number will be marked as read.
15970 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
15971 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
15973 @item mark-and-expunge
15974 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
15975 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
15978 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
15979 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
15980 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
15981 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
15982 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
15985 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
15986 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
15989 @item exclude-files
15990 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
15991 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
15995 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
15996 ignored when handling global score files.
15999 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
16000 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
16001 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
16002 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
16005 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
16006 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
16007 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
16008 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
16010 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
16014 (mark-and-expunge -100)
16017 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
16018 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
16019 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
16020 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
16021 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
16023 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where a few
16024 interesting threads which can't be found automatically by ordinary
16025 scoring rules exist.
16028 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
16029 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
16030 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
16031 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
16032 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
16033 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
16034 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
16035 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
16036 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
16037 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
16038 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
16042 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
16043 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
16044 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
16045 file for a number of groups.
16048 @cindex local variables
16049 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
16050 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
16051 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
16052 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
16053 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
16057 @node Score File Editing
16058 @section Score File Editing
16060 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
16061 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
16062 with a mode for that.
16064 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
16065 additional commands:
16070 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
16071 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
16072 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
16073 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
16076 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
16077 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
16078 Insert the current date in numerical format
16079 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
16080 you were wondering.
16083 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
16084 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
16085 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
16086 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
16087 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
16092 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
16094 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
16095 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
16097 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
16098 e} to begin editing score files.
16101 @node Adaptive Scoring
16102 @section Adaptive Scoring
16103 @cindex adaptive scoring
16105 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
16106 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
16107 stupidity, to be precise.
16109 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
16110 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
16111 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
16112 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
16113 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
16114 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
16115 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
16116 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
16117 variable to @code{(word line)}.
16119 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
16120 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
16121 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
16122 might look something like this:
16125 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
16126 '((gnus-unread-mark)
16127 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
16128 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
16129 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
16130 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
16131 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
16132 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
16133 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
16134 (gnus-ancient-mark)
16135 (gnus-low-score-mark)
16136 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
16139 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
16140 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
16141 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
16142 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
16143 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
16144 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
16147 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
16148 will be applied to each article.
16150 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
16151 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
16152 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
16153 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
16155 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
16156 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
16157 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
16158 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
16160 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
16161 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
16162 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
16163 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
16165 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
16166 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
16167 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
16168 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
16169 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
16170 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
16172 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
16173 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
16174 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
16175 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
16176 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
16177 aspirins afterwards.)
16179 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
16180 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
16181 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
16183 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
16184 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
16185 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
16187 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
16188 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
16189 let you use different rules in different groups.
16191 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
16192 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
16193 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
16196 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
16197 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
16198 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
16199 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
16200 the length of the match is less than
16201 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
16202 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
16205 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
16206 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
16207 headers. If you adapt on words, the
16208 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
16209 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
16212 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
16213 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
16214 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
16215 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
16216 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
16219 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
16220 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
16221 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
16222 score with 30 points.
16224 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
16225 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
16226 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
16227 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
16228 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
16230 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit
16231 Some may feel that short words shouldn't count when doing adaptive
16232 scoring. If so, you may set @code{gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit} to
16233 an integer. Words shorter than this number will be ignored. This
16234 variable defaults til @code{nil}.
16236 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
16237 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
16238 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
16239 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
16241 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
16242 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
16243 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
16244 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
16246 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
16247 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
16248 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
16249 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
16250 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
16252 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
16253 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
16254 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
16256 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
16257 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
16258 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
16259 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
16262 @node Home Score File
16263 @section Home Score File
16265 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
16266 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
16267 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
16268 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
16270 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
16271 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
16272 could perhaps use the same home score file.
16274 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
16275 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
16280 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
16284 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
16285 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
16289 A list. The elements in this list can be:
16293 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
16294 group name, the @var{file-name} will be used as the home score file.
16297 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
16298 the home score file.
16301 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
16304 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
16309 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
16312 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16313 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
16316 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
16317 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
16319 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
16321 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16322 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
16325 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
16326 Other functions include
16329 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
16330 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
16331 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
16332 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
16336 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
16337 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
16338 their own home score files:
16341 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16342 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
16343 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
16344 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
16345 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
16348 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
16349 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
16350 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
16351 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
16352 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
16354 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
16355 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
16356 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
16357 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
16358 precedence over this variable.
16361 @node Followups To Yourself
16362 @section Followups To Yourself
16364 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
16365 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
16366 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
16367 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
16368 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
16369 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
16373 @item gnus-score-followup-article
16374 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
16375 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
16378 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
16379 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
16380 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
16384 @vindex message-sent-hook
16385 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
16386 @code{message-sent-hook}, like this:
16388 (add-hook 'message-sent-hook 'gnus-score-followup-thread)
16392 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
16393 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
16397 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
16398 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
16401 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
16402 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
16407 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore\\.no>"
16411 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
16412 is system-dependent.
16416 @section Scoring Tips
16417 @cindex scoring tips
16423 @cindex scoring crossposts
16424 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
16425 the @code{Xref} header.
16427 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
16430 @item Multiple crossposts
16431 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
16432 more than, say, 3 groups:
16434 ("xref" ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+" -1000 nil r))
16437 @item Matching on the body
16438 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
16439 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
16440 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
16441 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
16442 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
16443 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
16444 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
16447 @item Marking as read
16448 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
16449 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
16450 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
16454 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
16456 @item Negated character classes
16457 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
16458 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
16459 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
16463 @node Reverse Scoring
16464 @section Reverse Scoring
16465 @cindex reverse scoring
16467 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
16468 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
16469 like this in your score file:
16473 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
16478 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
16479 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
16482 @node Global Score Files
16483 @section Global Score Files
16484 @cindex global score files
16486 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
16487 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
16488 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
16490 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
16491 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
16492 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
16494 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
16495 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
16496 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
16497 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
16498 files are applicable to which group.
16500 Say you want to use the score file
16501 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
16502 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory:
16505 (setq gnus-global-score-files
16506 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
16507 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
16510 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
16511 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
16512 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
16513 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
16514 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
16516 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
16517 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
16519 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
16520 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
16521 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
16522 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
16523 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
16524 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
16526 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
16532 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
16534 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
16536 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
16538 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
16539 lowered out of existence.
16541 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
16542 articles completely.
16545 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
16546 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
16547 old articles for a long time.
16550 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
16551 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
16552 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
16553 holding our breath yet?
16557 @section Kill Files
16560 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
16561 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
16562 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
16564 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
16565 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
16566 files into score files.
16568 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
16569 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
16570 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
16571 that isn't a very good idea.
16573 Normal kill files look like this:
16576 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
16577 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
16581 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
16582 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
16584 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
16585 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
16588 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
16593 @kindex M-k (Summary)
16594 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
16595 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
16598 @kindex M-K (Summary)
16599 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
16600 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
16603 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
16608 @kindex M-k (Group)
16609 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
16610 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
16613 @kindex M-K (Group)
16614 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
16615 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
16618 Kill file variables:
16621 @item gnus-kill-file-name
16622 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
16623 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
16624 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
16625 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
16626 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
16627 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
16629 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
16630 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
16631 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
16632 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
16635 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
16636 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
16637 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
16638 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
16639 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
16640 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
16641 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
16642 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
16643 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
16645 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
16646 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
16647 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
16652 @node Converting Kill Files
16653 @section Converting Kill Files
16655 @cindex converting kill files
16657 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
16658 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
16659 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
16662 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
16663 You can fetch it from
16664 @uref{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
16666 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
16667 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
16668 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
16676 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
16677 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
16678 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
16680 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
16681 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
16682 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
16683 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
16684 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
16685 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
16686 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
16687 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
16691 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
16692 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
16693 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
16694 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
16698 @node Using GroupLens
16699 @subsection Using GroupLens
16701 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
16703 @uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
16704 better bit in town at the moment.
16706 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
16710 @item gnus-use-grouplens
16711 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
16712 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
16713 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
16715 @item grouplens-pseudonym
16716 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
16717 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
16718 with the Better Bit Bureau.
16720 @item grouplens-newsgroups
16721 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
16722 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
16726 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
16727 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
16728 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
16729 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
16730 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
16731 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
16734 @node Rating Articles
16735 @subsection Rating Articles
16737 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
16738 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
16739 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
16740 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
16743 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
16748 @kindex r (GroupLens)
16749 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
16750 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
16753 @kindex k (GroupLens)
16754 @findex grouplens-score-thread
16755 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
16756 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
16757 threads in rec.humor.
16761 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
16762 the score of the article you're reading.
16767 @kindex n (GroupLens)
16768 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
16769 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
16772 @kindex , (GroupLens)
16773 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
16774 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
16778 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
16779 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
16782 @node Displaying Predictions
16783 @subsection Displaying Predictions
16785 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
16786 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
16787 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
16788 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
16789 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
16791 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
16792 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
16793 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
16794 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
16795 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
16796 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
16797 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
16798 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
16799 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
16800 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
16801 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
16802 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
16803 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
16805 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
16806 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
16807 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
16808 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
16810 The following are valid values for that variable.
16813 @item prediction-spot
16814 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
16817 @item confidence-interval
16818 A numeric confidence interval.
16820 @item prediction-bar
16821 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
16823 @item confidence-bar
16824 Numerical confidence.
16826 @item confidence-spot
16827 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
16829 @item prediction-num
16830 Plain-old numeric value.
16832 @item confidence-plus-minus
16833 Prediction +/- confidence.
16838 @node GroupLens Variables
16839 @subsection GroupLens Variables
16843 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
16844 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
16845 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
16846 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%)
16849 @item grouplens-bbb-host
16850 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
16853 @item grouplens-bbb-port
16854 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
16856 @item grouplens-score-offset
16857 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
16858 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
16861 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
16862 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
16863 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
16868 @node Advanced Scoring
16869 @section Advanced Scoring
16871 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
16872 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
16873 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
16874 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
16875 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
16877 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
16881 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
16882 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
16883 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
16887 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
16888 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
16890 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
16891 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
16892 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
16893 non-@code{nil} value.
16895 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
16896 operator, and various match operators.
16903 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
16904 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
16905 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
16910 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
16911 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
16912 then this operator will return @code{false}.
16917 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
16918 logical negation of the value of its argument.
16922 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
16923 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
16924 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
16925 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
16926 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
16927 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
16928 the ancestry you want to go.
16930 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
16931 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
16932 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
16933 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
16934 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
16937 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
16938 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
16940 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
16941 when he's talking about Gnus:
16945 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
16946 ("subject" "Gnus"))
16952 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
16956 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
16963 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
16964 really don't want to read what he's written:
16968 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
16969 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
16973 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
16974 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
16975 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
16982 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
16983 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
16984 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
16985 ("body" "white.*socks"))
16989 The possibilities are endless.
16992 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
16993 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
16995 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
16996 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
16997 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
16998 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
16999 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
17000 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
17001 @samp{subject}) first.
17003 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
17004 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
17015 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
17016 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
17022 ("subject" "Gnus")))
17029 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
17030 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
17035 @section Score Decays
17036 @cindex score decays
17039 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
17040 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
17041 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
17042 use them in any sensible way.
17044 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
17045 @findex gnus-decay-score
17046 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
17047 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
17048 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
17049 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
17050 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
17051 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
17052 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
17053 definition of that function:
17056 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
17058 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
17059 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
17062 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
17064 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
17066 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
17069 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
17070 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
17071 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
17072 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
17076 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
17079 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
17082 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
17086 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
17087 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
17088 the new score, which should be an integer.
17090 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
17091 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
17098 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
17099 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
17100 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
17101 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
17102 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
17103 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
17104 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
17105 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
17106 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
17107 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
17108 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
17109 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
17110 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
17111 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
17112 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
17113 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
17114 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
17115 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
17119 @node Process/Prefix
17120 @section Process/Prefix
17121 @cindex process/prefix convention
17123 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
17124 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
17126 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
17127 command to be performed on.
17131 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
17132 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
17133 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
17134 with the current one.
17136 @vindex transient-mark-mode
17137 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
17138 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
17140 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
17141 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
17144 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
17145 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
17147 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
17150 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
17151 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
17152 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
17153 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
17155 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
17156 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
17157 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
17158 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
17159 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
17160 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
17161 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
17162 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
17164 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
17165 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
17166 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
17167 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
17168 expirable, you could say `M P b M-& E'.
17172 @section Interactive
17173 @cindex interaction
17177 @item gnus-novice-user
17178 @vindex gnus-novice-user
17179 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
17180 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
17181 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
17182 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
17185 @item gnus-expert-user
17186 @vindex gnus-expert-user
17187 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
17188 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
17189 matter how strange.
17191 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
17192 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
17193 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
17194 is @code{t} by default.
17196 @item gnus-interactive-exit
17197 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
17198 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
17203 @node Symbolic Prefixes
17204 @section Symbolic Prefixes
17205 @cindex symbolic prefixes
17207 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
17208 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
17209 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
17210 rule of 900 to the current article.
17212 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
17213 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
17214 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
17215 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
17216 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
17217 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
17218 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
17220 @kindex M-i (Summary)
17221 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
17222 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
17223 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
17224 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
17225 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a M-C-u} means ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u}
17226 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b M-C-u} means
17227 ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
17228 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
17230 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
17231 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
17232 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
17234 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
17238 @node Formatting Variables
17239 @section Formatting Variables
17240 @cindex formatting variables
17242 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
17243 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
17244 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
17245 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
17246 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
17249 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
17250 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
17251 lots of percentages everywhere.
17254 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
17255 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
17256 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
17257 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
17258 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
17261 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
17262 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
17263 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
17264 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
17265 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
17266 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
17267 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
17268 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
17270 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
17271 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
17273 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
17274 @findex gnus-update-format
17275 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
17276 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
17277 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
17278 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
17282 @node Formatting Basics
17283 @subsection Formatting Basics
17285 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
17286 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
17287 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
17289 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
17290 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
17291 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
17292 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
17293 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
17296 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
17297 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
17298 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
17299 less than 4 characters wide.
17302 @node Mode Line Formatting
17303 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
17305 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
17306 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
17307 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
17308 with the following two differences:
17313 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
17316 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
17317 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
17318 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
17319 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
17320 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
17321 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
17322 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
17327 @node Advanced Formatting
17328 @subsection Advanced Formatting
17330 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
17331 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
17332 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
17333 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
17335 These are the valid modifiers:
17340 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
17344 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
17349 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
17352 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
17357 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
17360 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
17363 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
17366 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
17370 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
17371 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
17372 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
17373 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
17374 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
17375 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
17376 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
17378 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
17379 last operation, padding.
17381 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
17382 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
17383 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
17384 @xref{Compilation}.
17387 @node User-Defined Specs
17388 @subsection User-Defined Specs
17390 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
17391 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
17392 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
17393 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
17394 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
17395 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
17396 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
17397 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
17398 should protect against that.
17400 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
17401 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
17402 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
17403 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
17407 @node Formatting Fonts
17408 @subsection Formatting Fonts
17410 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
17411 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
17412 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
17413 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
17416 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
17417 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
17418 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
17419 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
17420 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
17421 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
17423 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
17424 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you
17425 say @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
17426 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or symbols
17427 naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
17428 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
17429 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
17430 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
17432 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
17435 ;; Create three face types.
17436 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
17437 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
17439 ;; We want the article count to be in
17440 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
17441 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
17442 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
17444 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
17445 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
17447 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
17448 (setq gnus-group-line-format
17449 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
17452 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
17453 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
17455 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
17456 mode-line variables.
17459 @node Windows Configuration
17460 @section Windows Configuration
17461 @cindex windows configuration
17463 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
17465 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
17466 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
17467 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
17468 @code{t} by default.
17470 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
17471 glitches. Use at your own peril.
17473 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
17474 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
17475 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
17478 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
17479 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
17480 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
17484 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
17485 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
17486 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
17487 possible names is listed below.
17489 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
17490 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
17493 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
17497 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
17498 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
17499 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
17500 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
17501 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
17502 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
17503 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
17504 size spec per split.
17506 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
17507 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
17508 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
17509 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
17510 present) gets focus.
17512 Here's a more complicated example:
17515 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
17516 (summary 0.25 point)
17517 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
17521 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
17522 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
17523 occupy, not a percentage.
17525 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
17526 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
17527 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
17528 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
17529 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
17532 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
17535 (article (horizontal 1.0
17540 (summary 0.25 point)
17545 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
17546 @code{horizontal} thingie?
17548 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
17549 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
17550 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
17551 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
17552 the screen is to be given to this strip.
17554 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
17555 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
17556 lines from the splits.
17558 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
17562 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
17563 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
17564 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
17565 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
17566 buffer = "(" buffer-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
17567 size = number | frame-params
17568 buffer-name = group | article | summary ...
17571 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
17572 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
17573 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
17574 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
17576 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
17577 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
17578 @cindex window height
17579 @cindex window width
17580 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
17581 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
17582 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
17583 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
17584 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
17585 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
17587 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
17588 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
17589 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
17590 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
17592 @findex gnus-configure-frame
17593 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
17594 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
17595 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
17596 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
17597 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
17598 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
17599 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
17600 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
17601 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
17602 configuration list.
17605 (gnus-configure-frame
17609 (article 0.3 point))
17617 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
17618 @code{frame} split:
17621 (gnus-configure-frame
17624 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
17626 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
17627 (user-position . t)
17628 (left . -1) (top . 1))
17633 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
17634 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
17635 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
17636 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
17637 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
17638 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
17639 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
17640 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
17642 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
17643 be found in its default value.
17645 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
17646 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
17647 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
17651 (message (horizontal 1.0
17652 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
17654 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
17659 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
17660 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
17661 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
17664 (message (frame 1.0
17665 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
17666 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
17667 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
17668 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
17669 (name . "Message"))
17670 (message 1.0 point))))
17673 @findex gnus-add-configuration
17674 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
17675 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
17676 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
17677 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
17680 (gnus-add-configuration
17681 '(article (vertical 1.0
17683 (summary .25 point)
17687 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
17688 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
17689 Gnus has been loaded.
17691 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
17692 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
17693 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
17694 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
17695 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
17697 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
17698 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
17699 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
17702 @subsection Example Window Configurations
17706 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
17707 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
17722 (gnus-add-configuration
17725 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
17727 (summary 0.16 point)
17730 (gnus-add-configuration
17733 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
17734 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
17740 @node Faces and Fonts
17741 @section Faces and Fonts
17746 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
17747 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
17748 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
17753 @section Compilation
17754 @cindex compilation
17755 @cindex byte-compilation
17757 @findex gnus-compile
17759 Remember all those line format specification variables?
17760 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
17761 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
17762 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
17763 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
17764 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
17767 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
17768 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
17769 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
17770 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
17771 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
17772 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
17773 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
17777 @section Mode Lines
17780 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
17781 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
17782 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
17783 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
17784 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
17785 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
17786 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
17789 @cindex display-time
17791 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
17792 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
17793 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
17794 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
17795 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
17796 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
17797 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
17798 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
17801 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
17803 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
17804 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
17806 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
17807 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
17808 (length display-time-string)))))
17811 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
17812 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
17813 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
17814 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
17815 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
17818 @node Highlighting and Menus
17819 @section Highlighting and Menus
17821 @cindex highlighting
17824 @vindex gnus-visual
17825 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
17826 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
17827 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
17830 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
17831 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
17834 @item group-highlight
17835 Do highlights in the group buffer.
17836 @item summary-highlight
17837 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
17838 @item article-highlight
17839 Do highlights in the article buffer.
17841 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
17843 Create menus in the group buffer.
17845 Create menus in the summary buffers.
17847 Create menus in the article buffer.
17849 Create menus in the browse buffer.
17851 Create menus in the server buffer.
17853 Create menus in the score buffers.
17855 Create menus in all buffers.
17858 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
17859 buffers, you could say something like:
17862 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
17865 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
17868 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
17871 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
17872 in all Gnus buffers.
17874 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
17877 @item gnus-mouse-face
17878 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
17879 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
17880 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
17884 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
17888 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
17889 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
17890 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
17892 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
17893 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
17894 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
17896 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
17897 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
17898 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
17900 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
17901 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
17902 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
17904 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
17905 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
17906 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
17908 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
17909 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
17910 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
17921 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
17922 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
17923 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
17924 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
17925 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
17929 @vindex gnus-carpal
17930 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
17931 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
17932 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
17937 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
17938 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
17939 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
17941 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
17942 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
17943 Face used on buttons.
17945 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
17946 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
17947 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
17949 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
17950 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
17951 Buttons in the group buffer.
17953 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
17954 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
17955 Buttons in the summary buffer.
17957 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
17958 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
17959 Buttons in the server buffer.
17961 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
17962 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
17963 Buttons in the browse buffer.
17966 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
17967 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
17968 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
17976 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
17977 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
17978 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
17979 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
17980 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
17982 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
17983 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
17984 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
17986 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
17987 been idle for thirty minutes:
17990 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
17993 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
17997 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
18000 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
18001 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
18002 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
18004 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
18005 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
18006 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
18007 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
18009 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
18010 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
18011 @var{idle} minutes.
18013 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
18014 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
18017 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
18018 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
18019 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
18021 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
18022 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
18023 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
18024 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
18026 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
18027 your @file{.gnus} file:
18029 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
18031 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
18034 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
18035 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
18036 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
18037 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
18038 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
18039 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
18040 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
18041 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
18042 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
18043 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
18044 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
18046 @findex gnus-demon-init
18047 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
18048 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
18049 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
18050 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
18051 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
18053 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
18054 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
18055 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
18064 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
18065 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
18067 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
18068 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
18069 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
18070 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
18073 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
18074 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
18075 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
18076 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
18078 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
18079 this will make spam disappear.
18081 There are some variables to customize, of course:
18084 @item gnus-use-nocem
18085 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
18086 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
18089 @item gnus-nocem-groups
18090 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
18091 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
18092 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
18093 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
18095 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
18096 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
18097 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
18098 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
18099 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
18100 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
18102 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
18103 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
18105 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
18106 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
18107 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
18108 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
18109 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
18110 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
18111 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
18112 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
18113 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
18114 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
18116 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
18117 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
18120 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
18123 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
18124 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
18127 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
18130 The specs are applied left-to-right.
18133 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
18134 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
18136 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
18137 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
18138 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
18139 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
18141 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
18142 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
18145 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
18147 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
18155 This might be dangerous, though.
18157 @item gnus-nocem-directory
18158 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
18159 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
18160 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
18162 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
18163 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
18164 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
18165 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
18166 might then see old spam.
18168 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
18169 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
18170 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
18171 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
18172 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
18175 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
18176 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
18177 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
18178 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
18182 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
18183 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
18184 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
18185 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
18192 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
18193 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
18194 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
18196 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
18197 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
18198 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
18199 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
18200 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
18201 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
18202 @code{undo} function.
18204 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
18205 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
18206 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
18207 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
18208 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
18209 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
18210 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
18211 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
18212 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
18213 never be totally undoable.
18215 @findex gnus-undo-mode
18216 @vindex gnus-use-undo
18218 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
18219 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
18220 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo}
18221 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
18226 @section Moderation
18229 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
18230 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
18231 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
18234 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
18238 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
18241 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
18243 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
18248 You split your incoming mail by matching on
18249 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
18250 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
18253 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
18254 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
18257 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
18258 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
18262 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
18265 (setq gnus-moderated-list
18266 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
18270 @node XEmacs Enhancements
18271 @section XEmacs Enhancements
18274 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
18278 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
18279 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
18280 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
18281 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
18294 So@dots{} You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
18295 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
18296 over your shoulder as you read news.
18299 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
18300 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
18301 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
18302 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
18303 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
18308 @subsubsection Picon Basics
18310 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
18319 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
18320 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
18321 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
18322 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
18323 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
18324 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
18325 @code{GIF} formats.
18328 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18329 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
18330 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
18331 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
18332 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
18334 @vindex gnus-picons-database
18335 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
18336 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
18337 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
18338 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
18339 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
18342 @node Picon Requirements
18343 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
18345 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
18346 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
18349 Additionally, you must have @code{x} support compiled into XEmacs. To
18350 display color picons which are much nicer than the black & white one,
18351 you also need one of @code{xpm} or @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
18353 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
18354 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
18355 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
18356 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
18357 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
18361 @subsubsection Easy Picons
18363 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
18364 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
18367 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
18368 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
18371 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
18372 containing the Picons databases.
18374 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
18377 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18378 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
18383 @subsubsection Hard Picons
18391 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
18392 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
18393 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
18394 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
18395 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
18400 @item gnus-picons-database
18401 @vindex gnus-picons-database
18402 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
18403 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
18404 subdirectories. This is only useful if
18405 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
18406 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
18408 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18409 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18410 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
18411 engine is @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
18412 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
18413 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
18414 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
18416 @item gnus-picons-display-where
18417 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
18418 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
18419 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
18420 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
18421 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
18422 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
18423 routines---@pxref{Windows Configuration}.
18425 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
18426 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
18427 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
18432 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
18433 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
18435 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
18436 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
18439 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
18441 @item gnus-article-display-picons
18442 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
18443 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
18444 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
18446 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
18447 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
18448 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
18454 @node Picon Useless Configuration
18455 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
18463 The following variables offer further control over how things are
18464 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
18465 don't need to worry about.
18469 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
18470 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
18471 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
18472 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
18474 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
18475 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
18476 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
18477 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
18479 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
18480 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
18481 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
18482 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
18483 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
18485 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
18486 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
18487 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
18488 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
18489 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
18490 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
18491 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
18493 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
18494 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
18495 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
18496 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
18498 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
18499 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
18500 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
18501 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
18502 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
18503 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
18504 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
18506 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
18507 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
18508 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
18509 Defaults to @code{nil}.
18511 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
18512 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
18513 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
18514 Defaults to @code{t}.
18516 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
18517 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
18518 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
18519 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
18521 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
18522 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
18523 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
18525 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
18526 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
18527 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
18528 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
18530 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
18531 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the default.
18533 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
18534 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
18535 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
18536 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
18537 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
18538 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
18539 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
18540 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
18551 @subsection Smileys
18556 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/BigFace.ps,height=20cm}}
18561 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
18562 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
18564 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
18565 @file{.gnus.el} file:
18568 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
18571 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
18572 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
18573 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
18574 text and maps that to file names.
18576 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
18577 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
18578 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
18579 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
18580 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
18581 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
18583 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
18584 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
18586 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
18587 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
18588 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
18590 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
18591 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
18595 @item smiley-data-directory
18596 @vindex smiley-data-directory
18597 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
18599 @item smiley-flesh-color
18600 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
18601 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
18603 @item smiley-features-color
18604 @vindex smiley-features-color
18605 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
18607 @item smiley-tongue-color
18608 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
18609 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
18611 @item smiley-circle-color
18612 @vindex smiley-circle-color
18613 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
18615 @item smiley-mouse-face
18616 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
18617 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
18623 @subsection Toolbar
18633 @item gnus-use-toolbar
18634 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
18635 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
18636 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
18637 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
18639 @item gnus-group-toolbar
18640 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
18641 The toolbar in the group buffer.
18643 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
18644 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
18645 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
18647 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
18648 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
18649 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
18655 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
18658 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
18659 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
18660 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
18661 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
18662 unusual directory structure.
18664 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
18665 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
18666 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
18667 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
18669 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
18670 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
18671 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
18672 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
18673 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
18674 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
18676 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
18677 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
18678 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
18692 @node Fuzzy Matching
18693 @section Fuzzy Matching
18694 @cindex fuzzy matching
18696 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
18697 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
18699 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
18700 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
18701 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
18703 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
18704 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
18705 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
18706 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
18707 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
18710 @node Thwarting Email Spam
18711 @section Thwarting Email Spam
18715 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
18717 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
18718 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
18719 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
18720 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
18721 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
18722 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
18723 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
18724 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
18727 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
18728 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
18729 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
18730 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
18731 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
18732 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
18736 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
18737 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
18739 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
18740 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
18741 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
18742 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
18743 sysadmin whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
18744 part of the mail address.)
18747 (setq message-default-news-headers
18748 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
18751 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
18752 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
18757 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
18758 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
18759 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
18765 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
18766 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
18767 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
18768 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
18770 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
18771 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
18772 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
18773 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
18774 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
18775 your fancy split rule in this way:
18780 (to "larsi" "misc")
18784 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
18785 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
18786 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
18787 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
18788 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
18790 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
18791 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
18792 at @* @uref{http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html}.
18793 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
18794 cosmic balance somewhat.
18796 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
18797 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
18798 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
18799 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
18802 @node Various Various
18803 @section Various Various
18809 @item gnus-home-directory
18810 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
18811 defaults to @file{~/}.
18813 @item gnus-directory
18814 @vindex gnus-directory
18815 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
18816 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
18817 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
18819 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
18820 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
18821 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
18822 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
18824 @item gnus-default-directory
18825 @vindex gnus-default-directory
18826 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
18827 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
18828 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
18829 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
18830 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
18831 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
18834 @vindex gnus-verbose
18835 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
18836 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
18837 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
18838 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
18839 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
18841 @item gnus-verbose-backends
18842 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
18843 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
18844 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
18846 @item nnheader-max-head-length
18847 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
18848 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
18849 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
18850 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
18851 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
18852 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
18853 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
18854 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
18855 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
18857 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
18858 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
18859 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
18860 read when doing the operation described above.
18862 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
18863 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
18865 @cindex invalid characters in file names
18866 @cindex characters in file names
18867 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
18868 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
18869 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
18872 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
18876 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
18877 Windows (phooey) systems.
18879 @item gnus-hidden-properties
18880 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
18881 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
18882 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
18883 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
18885 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
18886 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
18887 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
18888 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
18889 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
18891 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
18892 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
18893 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
18895 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
18896 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
18898 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
18899 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
18900 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
18901 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
18904 @sc{imap} users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
18913 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
18914 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
18916 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
18918 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
18924 Not because of victories @*
18927 but for the common sunshine,@*
18929 the largess of the spring.
18933 but for the day's work done@*
18934 as well as I was able;@*
18935 not for a seat upon the dais@*
18936 but at the common table.@*
18941 @chapter Appendices
18944 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
18945 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
18946 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
18947 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
18948 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
18949 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
18950 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
18951 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
18959 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
18960 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
18962 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
18963 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
18964 @uref{http://quimby.gnus.org/}. This is also the primary
18965 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
18966 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
18968 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
18969 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
18970 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
18971 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
18972 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
18973 appropriate name, don't you think?)
18975 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
18976 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
18977 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
18978 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
18981 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
18982 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
18983 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
18984 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
18985 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
18986 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
18987 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
18988 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
18989 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
18993 @node Gnus Versions
18994 @subsection Gnus Versions
18995 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
18997 @cindex September Gnus
18998 @cindex Quassia Gnus
19000 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
19001 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
19002 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
19004 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
19005 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
19007 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
19008 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
19010 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
19011 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
19013 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
19014 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
19017 On the 26th of October 2000, Oort Gnus was begun.
19019 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
19020 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'',
19021 ``Pterodactyl Gnus'', ``Oort Gnus'' -- don't panic. Don't let it know
19022 that you're frightened. Back away. Slowly. Whatever you do, don't
19023 run. Walk away, calmly, until you're out of its reach. Find a proper
19024 released version of Gnus and snuggle up to that instead.
19027 @node Other Gnus Versions
19028 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
19031 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
19032 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
19033 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
19034 @sc{mime} capabilities.
19036 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
19037 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
19038 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
19039 @sc{mime} and multilingualization things, especially important for
19046 What's the point of Gnus?
19048 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
19049 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
19050 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
19051 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
19052 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
19053 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
19054 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
19055 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
19056 keep track of millions of people who post?
19058 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
19059 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
19060 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
19061 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
19062 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
19063 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
19064 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
19065 every one of you to explore and invent.
19067 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
19068 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
19071 @node Compatibility
19072 @subsection Compatibility
19074 @cindex compatibility
19075 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
19076 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
19077 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
19082 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
19086 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
19089 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
19092 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
19093 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
19094 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
19095 important variables have their values copied into their global
19096 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
19097 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
19099 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
19100 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
19101 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
19102 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
19103 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
19107 @cindex highlighting
19108 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
19109 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
19110 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
19111 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
19112 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
19113 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
19116 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
19117 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
19118 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
19119 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
19121 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
19122 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
19123 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
19124 to stop doing it the old way.
19126 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
19128 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
19130 @cindex reporting bugs
19132 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
19133 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
19134 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
19136 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
19137 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
19138 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
19139 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
19144 @subsection Conformity
19146 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
19147 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
19154 There are no known breaches of this standard.
19158 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
19160 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
19161 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
19162 We do have some breaches to this one.
19168 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
19169 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
19170 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
19171 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
19172 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
19177 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
19178 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
19179 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
19180 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
19184 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
19185 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
19190 @subsection Emacsen
19196 Gnus should work on :
19204 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
19208 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
19209 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
19212 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
19213 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
19214 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
19218 @node Gnus Development
19219 @subsection Gnus Development
19221 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
19222 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
19223 propose changes and new features, post patches and new backends. This
19224 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
19225 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
19226 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
19227 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
19228 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
19230 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
19231 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
19232 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
19233 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
19234 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
19237 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
19238 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
19239 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
19240 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
19241 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
19243 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
19244 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
19245 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
19246 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
19247 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
19248 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
19249 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
19250 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
19251 usually keep up with these rapid changes, while people on the newsgroup
19252 can't be assumed to do so.
19257 @subsection Contributors
19258 @cindex contributors
19260 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
19261 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
19262 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
19263 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
19264 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
19265 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
19266 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
19267 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
19268 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
19269 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
19271 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
19277 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
19280 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
19281 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @sc{mime} and
19282 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
19283 functionality and stuff.
19286 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
19287 well as numerous other things).
19290 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
19293 Justin Sheehy--the FAQ maintainer.
19296 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
19299 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
19300 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
19303 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
19306 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
19307 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
19310 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
19313 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
19316 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
19319 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
19322 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
19323 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
19326 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
19329 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
19332 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
19335 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
19339 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
19342 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
19345 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
19348 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
19349 well as autoconf support.
19353 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
19354 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
19356 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
19365 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
19369 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
19379 Alexei V. Barantsev,
19394 Massimo Campostrini,
19399 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
19400 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
19404 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
19407 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
19413 Michael Welsh Duggan,
19418 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
19422 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
19430 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
19432 Michelangelo Grigni,
19436 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
19438 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
19440 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
19447 François Felix Ingrand,
19448 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c ?
19449 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
19451 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
19462 Peter Skov Knudsen,
19463 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
19465 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
19466 Thor Kristoffersen,
19469 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
19487 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
19488 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
19495 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
19500 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
19504 John McClary Prevost,
19510 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
19515 Christian von Roques,
19518 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
19525 Philippe Schnoebelen,
19527 Randal L. Schwartz,
19541 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
19546 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
19562 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
19567 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
19568 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
19569 (550kB and counting).
19571 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
19574 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
19575 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
19579 @subsection New Features
19580 @cindex new features
19583 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
19584 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
19585 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
19586 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
19587 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
19590 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
19591 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
19592 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
19595 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
19597 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
19602 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
19603 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
19606 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
19607 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
19610 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
19613 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
19614 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
19615 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
19618 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
19619 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
19620 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
19621 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
19624 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
19625 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
19628 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
19629 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
19630 (@pxref{The Active File}).
19633 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
19634 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
19637 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
19638 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
19639 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
19642 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
19643 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
19644 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
19647 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
19648 the @file{.emacs} file.
19651 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
19652 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
19655 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
19656 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
19659 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
19660 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
19663 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
19664 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
19667 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
19668 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
19671 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
19674 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
19675 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
19678 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
19679 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
19682 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
19683 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
19686 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
19689 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
19690 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
19693 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
19697 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
19701 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
19702 configuration (@pxref{Windows Configuration}).
19705 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
19711 @node September Gnus
19712 @subsubsection September Gnus
19716 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/september.ps,height=20cm}}
19720 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
19725 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
19726 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
19730 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
19731 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
19735 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
19739 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
19740 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
19743 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
19747 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
19750 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
19753 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
19756 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
19760 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
19761 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
19764 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
19768 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
19772 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
19776 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
19780 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
19783 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
19784 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
19787 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
19791 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
19792 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
19795 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
19798 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
19799 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
19800 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
19803 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
19807 The Gnus cache is much faster.
19810 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
19814 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
19815 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
19818 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
19819 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
19822 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
19823 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
19826 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
19827 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
19828 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
19831 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
19832 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
19835 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
19838 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
19841 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
19844 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
19847 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
19848 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
19851 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Windows
19855 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
19858 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}}
19863 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
19866 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
19870 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
19873 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
19877 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
19880 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
19883 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
19884 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
19887 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
19888 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
19892 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
19893 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
19896 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
19900 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
19901 buffer to allow easier treatment.
19904 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
19907 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
19911 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
19915 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
19916 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
19919 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
19923 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
19924 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
19927 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
19928 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
19931 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
19935 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
19938 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
19941 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
19947 @subsubsection Red Gnus
19949 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
19953 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/red.ps,height=20cm}}
19960 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
19963 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
19964 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
19967 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
19968 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
19972 Article washing status can be displayed in the
19973 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
19976 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
19979 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
19980 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
19983 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
19987 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
19988 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
19992 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
19993 Server Internals}).
19996 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
20000 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
20003 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
20004 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
20007 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
20008 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
20009 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
20012 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
20013 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
20016 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
20017 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
20020 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
20024 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
20025 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
20028 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
20029 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
20032 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
20036 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
20039 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
20043 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
20044 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
20047 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
20048 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
20051 A new command for reading collections of documents
20052 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
20053 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
20056 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
20060 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the @sc{nntp}
20061 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
20064 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
20065 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
20066 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
20069 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
20070 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
20074 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
20078 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
20082 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}}
20087 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
20091 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
20095 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
20096 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
20099 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
20105 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
20107 New features in Gnus 5.6:
20112 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
20113 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
20114 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
20117 The @code{nndraft} backend has returned, but works differently than
20118 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
20119 group, which is created automatically.
20122 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
20126 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
20129 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
20130 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
20133 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
20137 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
20140 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
20141 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
20144 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
20147 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
20148 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
20151 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
20152 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
20155 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
20156 control over simplification.
20159 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
20162 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
20166 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
20169 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
20172 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
20173 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
20174 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
20177 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
20178 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
20181 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
20185 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
20186 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
20189 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
20190 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
20193 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
20197 A history of where mails have been split is available.
20200 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
20203 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
20204 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
20207 A new function for citing in Message has been
20208 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
20211 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
20214 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
20218 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
20219 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
20222 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
20223 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
20226 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} backend.
20229 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
20233 @node Pterodactyl Gnus
20234 @subsubsection Pterodactyl Gnus
20236 New features in Gnus 5.8:
20240 @item The mail-fetching functions have changed. See the manual for the
20241 many details. In particular, all procmail fetching variables are gone.
20243 If you used procmail like in
20246 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
20247 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
20248 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/mail/incoming/")
20249 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "\\.in")
20252 this now has changed to
20256 '((directory :path "~/mail/incoming/"
20260 More information is available in the info doc at Select Methods ->
20261 Getting Mail -> Mail Sources
20263 @item Gnus is now a MIME-capable reader. This affects many parts of
20264 Gnus, and adds a slew of new commands. See the manual for details.
20266 @item Gnus has also been multilingualized. This also affects too
20267 many parts of Gnus to summarize here, and adds many new variables.
20269 @item @code{gnus-auto-select-first} can now be a function to be
20270 called to position point.
20272 @item The user can now decide which extra headers should be included in
20273 summary buffers and NOV files.
20275 @item @code{gnus-article-display-hook} has been removed. Instead, a number
20276 of variables starting with @code{gnus-treat-} have been added.
20278 @item The Gnus posting styles have been redone again and now works in a
20279 subtly different manner.
20281 @item New web-based backends have been added: @code{nnslashdot},
20282 @code{nnwarchive} and @code{nnultimate}. nnweb has been revamped,
20283 again, to keep up with ever-changing layouts.
20285 @item Gnus can now read IMAP mail via @code{nnimap}.
20293 @section The Manual
20297 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
20298 either @code{texi2dvi}
20300 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
20301 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
20303 to get what you hold in your hands now.
20305 The following conventions have been used:
20310 This is a @samp{string}
20313 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
20316 This is a @file{file}
20319 This is a @code{symbol}
20323 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
20327 (setq flargnoze "yes")
20330 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
20333 (setq flumphel 'yes)
20336 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
20337 ever get them confused.
20341 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
20342 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
20343 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
20344 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
20345 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
20346 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
20347 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
20353 @node On Writing Manuals
20354 @section On Writing Manuals
20356 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
20357 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
20358 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
20359 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
20360 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
20361 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
20364 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
20365 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
20366 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
20369 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
20370 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
20375 @section Terminology
20377 @cindex terminology
20382 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
20383 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
20384 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
20385 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
20386 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
20390 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
20391 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
20392 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
20393 not posting, and replying is not following up.
20397 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
20401 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
20406 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
20407 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
20408 is all done by the backends.
20412 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
20413 default, way of getting news.
20417 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
20418 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary backends for getting
20423 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
20424 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
20428 A message that has been posted as news.
20431 @cindex mail message
20432 A message that has been mailed.
20436 A mail message or news article
20440 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
20445 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
20450 A line from the head of an article.
20454 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
20455 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
20459 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
20460 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
20461 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
20462 normal @sc{head} format.
20466 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
20467 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
20468 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
20469 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
20470 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
20471 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
20473 @item killed groups
20474 @cindex killed groups
20475 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
20476 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
20478 @item zombie groups
20479 @cindex zombie groups
20480 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
20483 @cindex active file
20484 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
20485 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
20486 is rather large, as you might surmise.
20489 @cindex bogus groups
20490 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
20491 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
20492 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
20495 @cindex activating groups
20496 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
20497 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
20498 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
20502 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
20504 @item select method
20505 @cindex select method
20506 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
20509 @item virtual server
20510 @cindex virtual server
20511 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
20512 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
20513 whole is a virtual server.
20517 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
20518 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
20521 @item ephemeral groups
20522 @cindex ephemeral groups
20523 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
20524 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
20525 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
20528 @cindex solid groups
20529 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
20530 group buffer are solid groups.
20532 @item sparse articles
20533 @cindex sparse articles
20534 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
20535 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
20539 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
20540 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
20544 @cindex thread root
20545 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
20546 articles in the thread.
20550 An article that has responses.
20554 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
20558 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
20559 specified by RFC 1153.
20565 @node Customization
20566 @section Customization
20567 @cindex general customization
20569 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
20570 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
20571 for some quite common situations.
20574 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
20575 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
20576 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
20577 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
20581 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
20582 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
20584 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
20585 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
20586 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
20590 @item gnus-read-active-file
20591 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
20592 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
20593 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
20594 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
20595 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
20597 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
20598 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
20599 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
20600 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
20604 @node Slow Terminal Connection
20605 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
20607 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
20608 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
20609 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
20613 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
20614 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
20615 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
20616 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
20617 horizontal and vertical recentering.
20619 @item gnus-visible-headers
20620 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
20621 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
20622 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
20623 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
20625 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
20627 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
20628 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
20629 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
20632 @item gnus-use-full-window
20633 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
20634 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
20635 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
20636 want to read them anyway.
20638 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
20639 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
20642 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
20643 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
20644 lines, which might save some time.
20648 @node Little Disk Space
20649 @subsection Little Disk Space
20652 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
20653 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
20657 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
20658 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
20659 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
20660 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
20663 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
20664 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
20665 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
20666 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
20669 @item gnus-save-killed-list
20670 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
20671 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
20672 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
20673 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
20679 @subsection Slow Machine
20680 @cindex slow machine
20682 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
20683 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
20685 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
20686 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
20688 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
20689 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
20690 summary buffer faster.
20694 @node Troubleshooting
20695 @section Troubleshooting
20696 @cindex troubleshooting
20698 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
20706 Make sure your computer is switched on.
20709 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
20710 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
20714 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
20715 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
20716 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
20717 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
20720 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
20724 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
20725 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
20726 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
20727 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
20728 something like that.
20731 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
20734 @cindex reporting bugs
20736 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
20738 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
20739 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
20740 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
20741 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
20743 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
20744 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
20745 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
20746 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
20749 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
20750 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
20751 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
20752 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
20753 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
20754 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
20756 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
20757 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
20758 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
20761 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
20762 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
20764 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
20765 @cindex ding mailing list
20766 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
20767 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
20771 @node Gnus Reference Guide
20772 @section Gnus Reference Guide
20774 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
20775 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
20776 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
20777 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
20780 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
20781 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
20782 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
20783 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
20784 and general methods of operation.
20787 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
20788 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
20789 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
20790 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
20791 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
20792 * Group Info:: The group info format.
20793 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
20794 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
20795 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
20799 @node Gnus Utility Functions
20800 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
20801 @cindex Gnus utility functions
20802 @cindex utility functions
20804 @cindex internal variables
20806 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
20807 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
20808 Below is a list of the most common ones.
20812 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
20813 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
20814 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
20816 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
20817 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
20818 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
20820 @item gnus-group-real-name
20821 @findex gnus-group-real-name
20822 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
20825 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
20826 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
20827 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
20828 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
20830 @item gnus-get-info
20831 @findex gnus-get-info
20832 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
20834 @item gnus-group-unread
20835 @findex gnus-group-unread
20836 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
20840 @findex gnus-active
20841 The active entry for @var{group}.
20843 @item gnus-set-active
20844 @findex gnus-set-active
20845 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
20847 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
20848 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
20849 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
20852 @item gnus-continuum-version
20853 @findex gnus-continuum-version
20854 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
20855 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
20858 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
20859 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
20860 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
20862 @item gnus-news-group-p
20863 @findex gnus-news-group-p
20864 Says whether @var{group} came from a news backend.
20866 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
20867 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
20868 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
20870 @item gnus-server-to-method
20871 @findex gnus-server-to-method
20872 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
20874 @item gnus-server-equal
20875 @findex gnus-server-equal
20876 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
20878 @item gnus-group-native-p
20879 @findex gnus-group-native-p
20880 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
20882 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
20883 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
20884 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
20886 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
20887 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
20888 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
20890 @item group-group-find-parameter
20891 @findex group-group-find-parameter
20892 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
20893 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
20895 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
20896 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
20897 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
20899 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
20900 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
20901 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
20903 @item gnus-check-backend-function
20904 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
20905 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the backend
20906 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
20909 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
20913 @item gnus-read-method
20914 @findex gnus-read-method
20915 Prompts the user for a select method.
20920 @node Backend Interface
20921 @subsection Backend Interface
20923 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
20924 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
20925 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
20926 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
20927 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
20928 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
20930 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
20931 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
20932 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
20933 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
20934 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
20935 been opened, the function should fail.
20937 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
20938 name. Take this example:
20942 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
20943 (nntp-port-number 4324))
20946 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
20947 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
20949 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
20950 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
20951 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
20953 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
20954 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
20955 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
20957 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
20958 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
20959 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
20960 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
20961 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
20962 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
20965 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
20966 some might be said not to be. The latter are backends that generally
20967 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
20968 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
20971 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
20974 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
20977 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
20978 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
20979 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
20980 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
20981 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
20982 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
20986 @node Required Backend Functions
20987 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
20991 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
20993 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
20994 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
20995 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
20996 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
20998 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
20999 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
21000 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
21001 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
21003 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
21004 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
21005 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
21006 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
21007 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
21008 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
21009 number, do maximum fetches.
21011 Here's an example HEAD:
21014 221 1056 Article retrieved.
21015 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
21016 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
21017 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
21018 Subject: Re: Something very droll
21019 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
21020 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
21022 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
21023 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
21024 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
21028 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
21029 these in the data buffer.
21031 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
21035 head = error / valid-head
21036 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
21037 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
21038 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
21039 header = <text> eol
21042 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
21043 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
21047 nov-buffer = *nov-line
21048 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
21049 field = <text except TAB>
21052 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
21056 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
21058 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
21059 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
21061 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
21062 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
21063 server. In fact, it should do so.
21065 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
21066 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
21069 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
21071 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
21072 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
21075 There should be no data returned.
21078 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
21080 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
21081 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
21082 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
21083 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
21085 There should be no data returned.
21088 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
21090 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
21091 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
21092 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
21093 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
21095 There should be no data returned.
21098 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
21100 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
21102 There should be no data returned.
21105 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
21107 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
21108 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
21109 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
21110 it would be nice if that were possible.
21112 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
21113 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
21114 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
21115 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
21116 into its article buffer.
21118 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
21119 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
21120 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
21121 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
21122 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
21123 on successful article retrieval.
21126 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
21128 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
21129 making @var{group} the current group.
21131 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
21134 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
21137 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
21140 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
21141 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
21142 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
21143 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
21144 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
21145 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
21146 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
21147 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
21150 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
21151 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
21152 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
21156 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
21158 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
21159 a no-op on most backends.
21161 There should be no data returned.
21164 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
21166 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
21169 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
21172 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
21173 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
21176 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
21177 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
21180 active-file = *active-line
21181 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
21183 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
21186 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
21187 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
21188 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
21191 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
21193 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
21194 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
21195 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
21196 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
21197 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
21198 clear if the posting could not be completed.
21200 There should be no result data from this function.
21205 @node Optional Backend Functions
21206 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
21210 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
21212 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
21213 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
21214 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
21216 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
21217 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
21218 former is in the same format as the data from
21219 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
21220 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
21223 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
21227 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
21229 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
21230 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
21231 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
21232 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
21233 should return the (altered) group info.
21235 There should be no result data from this function.
21238 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
21240 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
21241 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
21242 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
21243 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
21244 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
21245 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
21246 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
21247 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
21249 There should be no result data from this function.
21252 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
21254 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
21255 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
21256 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some backends (such as @sc{imap}) however carry
21257 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
21258 propagate the mark information to the server.
21260 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
21263 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
21266 RANGE is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. ACTION is
21267 @code{set}, @code{add} or @code{del}, respectively used for removing all
21268 existing marks and setting them as specified, adding (preserving the
21269 marks not mentioned) mark and removing (preserving the marks not
21270 mentioned) marks. MARK is a list of marks; where each mark is a symbol.
21271 Currently used marks are @code{read}, @code{tick}, @code{reply},
21272 @code{expire}, @code{killed}, @code{dormant}, @code{save},
21273 @code{download} and @code{unsend}, but your backend should, if possible,
21274 not limit itself to these.
21276 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
21277 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
21278 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
21279 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
21281 An example action list:
21284 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
21285 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
21286 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
21289 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
21290 mark on (currently not used for anything).
21292 There should be no result data from this function.
21294 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
21296 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
21297 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
21298 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
21299 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
21300 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
21302 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
21303 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
21304 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
21307 There should be no result data from this function.
21310 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
21312 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
21313 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
21314 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
21315 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
21316 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
21317 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
21318 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
21320 There should be no result data from this function.
21323 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
21325 The result data from this function should be a description of
21329 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
21331 description = <text>
21334 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
21336 The result data from this function should be the description of all
21337 groups available on the server.
21340 description-buffer = *description-line
21344 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
21346 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
21347 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
21348 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
21351 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
21353 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
21355 There should be no return data.
21358 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
21360 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
21361 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
21362 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
21363 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
21364 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
21367 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
21370 There should be no result data returned.
21373 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
21376 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
21377 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
21379 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
21380 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
21381 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
21382 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
21383 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
21384 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
21386 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
21387 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
21390 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
21391 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
21393 There should be no data returned.
21396 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
21398 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
21399 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
21400 this function in short order.
21402 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
21403 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
21405 There should be no data returned.
21408 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
21410 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
21411 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
21413 There should be no data returned.
21416 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
21418 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
21419 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
21420 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
21422 There should be no data returned.
21425 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
21427 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
21428 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
21430 There should be no data returned.
21435 @node Error Messaging
21436 @subsubsection Error Messaging
21438 @findex nnheader-report
21439 @findex nnheader-get-report
21440 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
21441 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
21442 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
21443 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
21444 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
21445 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
21448 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
21450 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
21453 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
21454 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
21455 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
21456 takes one argument---the server symbol.
21458 Internally, these functions access @var{backend}@code{-status-string},
21459 so the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
21460 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
21463 @node Writing New Backends
21464 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
21466 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
21467 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
21468 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
21469 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
21470 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
21473 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
21474 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
21475 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
21477 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
21478 package called @code{nnoo}.
21480 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
21481 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
21487 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
21488 parameters. For instance:
21491 (nnoo-declare nndir
21495 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
21496 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
21499 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
21500 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
21501 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
21503 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
21504 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
21505 a function in those backends.
21508 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
21509 "Where nndir will look for groups."
21510 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
21513 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
21514 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
21515 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
21517 @item nnoo-define-basics
21518 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
21522 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
21526 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
21527 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
21528 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
21530 @item nnoo-map-functions
21531 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
21532 functions from the parent backends.
21535 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
21536 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
21537 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
21540 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
21541 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
21542 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
21543 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
21546 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
21547 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
21548 haven't already been defined.
21554 nnmh-request-newgroups)
21558 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
21559 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
21560 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
21565 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
21568 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
21569 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
21573 (require 'nnheader)
21577 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
21579 (nnoo-declare nndir
21582 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
21583 "Where nndir will look for groups."
21584 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
21586 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
21587 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
21590 (defvoo nndir-current-group "" nil nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
21591 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
21592 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
21594 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
21595 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
21597 ;;; Interface functions.
21599 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
21601 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
21602 (setq nndir-directory
21603 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
21605 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
21606 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
21607 (push `(nndir-current-group
21608 ,(file-name-nondirectory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
21610 (push `(nndir-top-directory
21611 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
21613 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
21615 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
21616 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
21617 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
21618 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
21619 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
21623 nnmh-status-message
21625 nnmh-request-newgroups))
21631 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
21632 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
21634 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
21635 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
21636 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
21637 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
21639 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
21640 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
21645 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
21648 The abilities can be:
21652 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
21654 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
21656 This backend supports both mail and news.
21658 This is neither a post nor mail backend---it's something completely
21661 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
21662 articles and groups.
21664 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
21665 true for almost all backends.
21666 @item prompt-address
21667 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
21668 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
21669 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
21673 @node Mail-like Backends
21674 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
21676 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
21677 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
21678 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
21679 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
21682 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
21683 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
21684 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
21687 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
21688 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
21691 This function takes four parameters.
21695 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
21698 @item exit-function
21699 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
21701 @item temp-directory
21702 Where the temporary files should be stored.
21705 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
21706 performed for one group only.
21709 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
21710 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
21711 find the article number assigned to this article.
21713 The function also uses the following variables:
21714 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
21715 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
21716 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
21717 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
21721 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
21722 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
21726 @node Score File Syntax
21727 @subsection Score File Syntax
21729 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
21730 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
21731 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
21733 Here's a typical score file:
21737 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
21744 BNF definition of a score file:
21747 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
21748 element = rule / atom
21749 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
21750 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
21751 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
21752 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
21754 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
21755 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
21756 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
21757 date-header = "date"
21758 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
21759 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
21760 score = "nil" / <integer>
21761 date = "nil" / <natural number>
21762 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
21763 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
21764 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
21765 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
21766 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
21767 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
21768 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
21769 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
21770 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
21771 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
21772 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
21773 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
21774 exclude-files / read-only / touched
21775 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
21776 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
21777 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
21778 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
21779 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
21780 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
21781 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
21782 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
21783 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
21784 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
21785 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
21786 eval = "eval" space <form>
21787 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
21790 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
21793 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
21794 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
21795 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
21796 one looong line, then that's ok.
21798 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
21799 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
21803 @subsection Headers
21805 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
21806 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
21807 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
21808 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
21810 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
21811 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
21812 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
21813 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
21814 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
21815 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
21816 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
21818 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
21819 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
21820 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
21821 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
21822 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
21824 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
21825 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
21831 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
21832 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
21834 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
21835 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
21836 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
21837 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
21839 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
21843 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
21846 is transformed into
21849 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
21852 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
21853 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
21856 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
21859 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
21860 is slightly tricky:
21863 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
21869 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
21872 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
21878 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
21885 and is equal to the previous range.
21887 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
21888 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
21889 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
21893 range = simple-range / normal-range
21894 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
21895 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
21896 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
21897 number *[ " " contents ]
21900 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
21901 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
21902 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
21903 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
21904 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
21909 @subsection Group Info
21911 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
21912 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
21913 describes the group.
21915 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
21916 second is a more complex one:
21919 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
21921 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
21922 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
21924 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
21927 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
21928 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
21929 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
21930 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
21931 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
21932 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
21933 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
21934 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
21935 this section is about.
21937 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
21938 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
21939 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
21941 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
21944 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
21945 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
21946 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
21947 group = quote <string> quote
21948 ralevel = rank / level
21949 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
21950 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
21951 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
21953 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
21954 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
21955 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
21956 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
21959 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
21960 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
21963 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
21964 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
21967 @item gnus-info-group
21968 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
21969 @findex gnus-info-group
21970 @findex gnus-info-set-group
21971 Get/set the group name.
21973 @item gnus-info-rank
21974 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
21975 @findex gnus-info-rank
21976 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
21977 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
21979 @item gnus-info-level
21980 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
21981 @findex gnus-info-level
21982 @findex gnus-info-set-level
21983 Get/set the group level.
21985 @item gnus-info-score
21986 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
21987 @findex gnus-info-score
21988 @findex gnus-info-set-score
21989 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
21991 @item gnus-info-read
21992 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
21993 @findex gnus-info-read
21994 @findex gnus-info-set-read
21995 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
21997 @item gnus-info-marks
21998 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
21999 @findex gnus-info-marks
22000 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
22001 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
22003 @item gnus-info-method
22004 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
22005 @findex gnus-info-method
22006 @findex gnus-info-set-method
22007 Get/set the group select method.
22009 @item gnus-info-params
22010 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
22011 @findex gnus-info-params
22012 @findex gnus-info-set-params
22013 Get/set the group parameters.
22016 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
22017 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
22019 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
22020 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
22021 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
22022 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
22025 @node Extended Interactive
22026 @subsection Extended Interactive
22027 @cindex interactive
22028 @findex gnus-interactive
22030 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
22031 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
22032 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
22035 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
22036 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
22041 The best thing to do would have been to implement
22042 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
22043 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
22044 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
22045 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
22046 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
22047 @code{interactive}.
22049 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
22054 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
22055 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
22059 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
22060 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
22061 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
22064 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
22068 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
22072 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
22078 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
22079 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
22083 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
22084 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
22085 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
22087 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
22088 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
22089 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
22090 Gnus, that's very useful.
22092 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
22093 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
22094 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
22095 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
22096 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
22097 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
22098 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
22099 following function:
22102 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
22106 (,function ,@@args))
22110 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
22111 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
22112 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
22115 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
22116 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
22117 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
22119 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
22120 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
22121 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
22124 @node Various File Formats
22125 @subsection Various File Formats
22128 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
22129 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
22133 @node Active File Format
22134 @subsubsection Active File Format
22136 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
22137 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
22140 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
22143 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
22144 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
22145 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
22146 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
22147 no.general 1000 900 y
22150 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
22153 active = *group-line
22154 group-line = group space high-number space low-number space flag <NEWLINE>
22155 group = <non-white-space string>
22157 high-number = <non-negative integer>
22158 low-number = <positive integer>
22159 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
22162 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
22163 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
22166 @node Newsgroups File Format
22167 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
22169 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
22170 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
22171 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
22174 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
22175 Here's the definition:
22179 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
22180 group = <non-white-space string>
22182 description = <string>
22187 @node Emacs for Heathens
22188 @section Emacs for Heathens
22190 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
22191 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
22192 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
22193 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
22194 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
22195 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
22196 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
22200 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
22201 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
22206 @subsection Keystrokes
22210 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
22213 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
22216 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
22217 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
22218 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
22219 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
22220 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
22221 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
22223 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
22224 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
22225 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
22226 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
22227 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
22228 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
22229 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
22231 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
22232 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
22233 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
22234 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
22235 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
22236 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
22237 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
22239 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
22240 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
22241 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
22242 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
22243 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
22249 @subsection Emacs Lisp
22251 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
22252 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
22253 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
22254 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
22256 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
22257 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
22258 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
22259 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
22260 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
22261 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
22262 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
22265 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
22266 write the following:
22269 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
22272 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
22273 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
22274 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
22277 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
22278 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
22279 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
22280 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
22281 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
22283 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
22284 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
22285 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
22289 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
22293 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
22296 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
22297 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
22300 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
22303 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
22304 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
22307 @include gnus-faq.texi
22328 % LocalWords: Backend BNF mucho Backends backends detailmenu cindex kindex kbd
22329 % LocalWords: findex Gnusae vindex dfn dfn samp nntp setq nnspool nntpserver
22330 % LocalWords: nnmbox backend newusers Blllrph NEWGROUPS dingnusdingnusdingnus
22331 % LocalWords: pre fab rec comp nnslashdot regex ga ga sci nnml nnbabyl nnmh
22332 % LocalWords: nnfolder emph looong eld newsreaders defun init elc pxref