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4 @settitle Gnus 5.6.31 Manual
9 @c * Gnus: (gnus). The news reader Gnus.
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262 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
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271 Copyright \copyright{} 1995,96,97 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
273 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
274 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
275 are preserved on all copies.
277 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
278 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
279 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
280 permission notice identical to this one.
282 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
283 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
292 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
294 Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
296 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
297 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
298 are preserved on all copies.
301 Permission is granted to process this file through Tex and print the
302 results, provided the printed document carries copying permission
303 notice identical to this one except for the removal of this paragraph
304 (this paragraph not being relevant to the printed manual).
307 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
308 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also that the
309 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
310 permission notice identical to this one.
312 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
313 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
319 @title Gnus 5.6.31 Manual
321 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
324 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
325 Copyright @copyright{} 1995,96,97 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
327 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
328 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
329 are preserved on all copies.
331 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
332 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
333 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
334 permission notice identical to this one.
336 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
337 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
346 @top The Gnus Newsreader
350 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
351 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
352 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
355 This manual corresponds to Gnus 5.6.31.
366 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
367 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
369 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
370 being accused of plagiarism:
372 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
373 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
374 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you can
375 even read news with it!
377 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
378 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
379 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
380 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
381 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
388 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
389 * The Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
390 * The Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
391 * The Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
392 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
393 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
394 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
395 * Various:: General purpose settings.
396 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
397 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
398 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
399 * Key Index:: Key Index.
403 @chapter Starting Gnus
408 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
409 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
412 @findex gnus-other-frame
413 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
414 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
415 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
417 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
418 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
419 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
421 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
422 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
425 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
426 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
427 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
428 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
429 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
430 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
431 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
432 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
433 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
434 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
435 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
439 @node Finding the News
440 @section Finding the News
443 @vindex gnus-select-method
445 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
446 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
447 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
448 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
451 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
452 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
455 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
458 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
461 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
464 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
465 certainly be much faster.
467 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
469 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
470 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
471 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
472 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
473 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
474 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
476 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
477 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
478 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
479 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
481 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
482 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
483 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
484 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
485 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
486 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting.
488 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
490 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
491 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
492 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
493 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
494 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
495 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
497 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
499 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
500 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
501 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
502 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
503 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
504 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
507 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
508 would typically set this variable to
511 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
516 @section The First Time
517 @cindex first time usage
519 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
520 be subscribed by default.
522 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
523 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
524 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
525 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
528 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
529 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
530 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
532 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
533 help you with most common problems.
535 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
536 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
540 @node The Server is Down
541 @section The Server is Down
542 @cindex server errors
544 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
545 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
546 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
548 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
549 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
550 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
551 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
552 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
553 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
554 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
556 @findex gnus-no-server
557 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
559 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
560 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
561 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
562 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
563 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
564 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
569 @section Slave Gnusae
572 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
573 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
574 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
575 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
577 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
580 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
581 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
582 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
583 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
584 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
585 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
586 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
588 Anyways, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
589 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
590 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
591 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
592 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
593 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
594 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
595 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
597 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
598 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
601 @node Fetching a Group
602 @section Fetching a Group
603 @cindex fetching a group
605 @findex gnus-fetch-group
606 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
607 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
608 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
609 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
610 It takes the group name as a parameter.
618 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
619 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
620 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
621 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
622 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
623 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
624 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
625 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the backends for new groups even
626 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
629 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
630 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
631 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
635 @node Checking New Groups
636 @subsection Checking New Groups
638 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
639 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
640 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
641 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
642 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
643 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
644 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
645 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
646 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
647 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
649 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
650 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
651 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
652 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
653 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
654 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
655 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
656 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
657 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
658 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
659 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
661 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
662 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
663 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
664 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
665 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
666 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
669 @node Subscription Methods
670 @subsection Subscription Methods
672 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
673 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
674 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
676 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
677 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
679 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
683 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
684 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
685 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
686 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
687 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
689 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
690 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
691 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
692 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
694 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
695 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
696 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
698 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
699 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
700 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
701 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
702 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
703 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into it's
704 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
705 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
706 up. Or something like that.
708 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
709 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
710 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
711 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
712 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
714 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
715 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
720 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
721 A closely related variable is
722 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
723 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
724 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
725 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
728 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
729 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
730 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
731 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
734 @node Filtering New Groups
735 @subsection Filtering New Groups
737 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
738 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
739 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
742 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
745 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
746 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
747 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
748 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
749 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
750 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
751 subscribing these groups.
752 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
753 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
755 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
756 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
757 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
758 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
759 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
760 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
761 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
762 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
764 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
765 Yet another variable that meddles here is
766 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
767 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
768 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
769 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
770 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
771 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
772 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
773 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
775 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
776 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
779 @node Changing Servers
780 @section Changing Servers
781 @cindex changing servers
783 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
784 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
785 very flaky and you want to use another.
787 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
788 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
792 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
793 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
794 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
795 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
798 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
799 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
800 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
801 functions more than absolutely necessary.
803 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
804 @findex gnus-change-server
805 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
806 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
807 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
808 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
809 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
811 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
812 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
813 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
814 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
815 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
817 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
818 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
819 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
820 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
821 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
822 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
826 @section Startup Files
827 @cindex startup files
832 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
833 information is traditionally stored in this file.
835 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
836 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
837 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
838 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
839 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
840 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
841 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
843 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
844 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
845 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
846 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
847 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
848 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
850 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
851 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
852 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
853 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
854 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
855 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right?
857 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
858 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
859 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
860 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
861 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
862 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
863 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
864 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
865 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
866 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
867 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
868 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
870 @vindex gnus-startup-file
871 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
872 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
873 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
875 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
876 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
877 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
878 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
879 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
880 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
881 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
882 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
883 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
884 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
887 (defun turn-off-backup ()
888 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
890 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
891 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
894 @vindex gnus-init-file
895 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
896 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
897 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
898 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
899 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
900 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
901 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
902 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
903 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
912 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
913 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
914 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
915 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
916 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
919 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
920 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
923 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
924 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
925 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
927 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
928 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
929 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
930 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
931 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
932 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
934 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
935 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
936 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
939 @node The Active File
940 @section The Active File
942 @cindex ignored groups
944 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
945 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
946 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
948 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
949 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
950 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
951 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
952 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
953 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
954 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
957 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
958 @c if you set it to anything else.
960 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
962 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
963 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
964 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
966 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
967 you actually subscribe to.
969 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
970 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
971 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
972 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
974 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
975 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
976 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
977 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
978 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
979 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
981 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
982 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
983 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
984 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
985 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
986 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
988 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
989 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
991 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
992 secondary select methods.
995 @node Startup Variables
996 @section Startup Variables
1000 @item gnus-load-hook
1001 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1002 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1003 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1004 times you start Gnus.
1006 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1007 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1008 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1010 @item gnus-startup-hook
1011 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1012 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1014 @item gnus-started-hook
1015 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1016 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1019 @item gnus-started-hook
1020 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1021 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1022 generating the group buffer.
1024 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1025 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1026 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1027 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1028 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1029 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1030 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1031 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1033 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1034 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1035 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1036 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1037 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1038 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1040 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1041 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1042 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1044 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1045 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1046 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1048 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1049 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1050 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1051 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1056 @node The Group Buffer
1057 @chapter The Group Buffer
1058 @cindex group buffer
1060 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1061 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1062 long as Gnus is active.
1066 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1067 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group.ps,height=9cm}}
1068 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1069 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1070 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1071 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1072 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1073 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1079 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1080 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1081 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1082 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1083 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1084 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1085 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1086 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1087 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1088 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1089 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1090 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1091 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1092 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1093 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1094 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1095 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1099 @node Group Buffer Format
1100 @section Group Buffer Format
1103 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1104 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1105 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1109 @node Group Line Specification
1110 @subsection Group Line Specification
1111 @cindex group buffer format
1113 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1114 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1116 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1119 25: news.announce.newusers
1120 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1125 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1126 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1127 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1128 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1130 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1131 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1132 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1133 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1134 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1135 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1137 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1139 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1140 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1141 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1142 never examined by Gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1145 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1146 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1147 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1149 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1154 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1157 Whether the group is subscribed.
1160 Level of subscribedness.
1163 Number of unread articles.
1166 Number of dormant articles.
1169 Number of ticked articles.
1172 Number of read articles.
1175 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1176 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1179 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1182 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1191 Newsgroup description.
1194 @samp{m} if moderated.
1197 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1206 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1210 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1213 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1214 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1215 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1216 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1217 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.emacs.gnus}.
1220 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1222 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1226 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1230 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1231 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1232 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1233 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1234 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1235 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1240 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1241 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1242 group, or a bogus native group.
1245 @node Group Modeline Specification
1246 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1247 @cindex group modeline
1249 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1250 The mode line can be changed by setting
1251 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1252 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1256 The native news server.
1258 The native select method.
1262 @node Group Highlighting
1263 @subsection Group Highlighting
1264 @cindex highlighting
1265 @cindex group highlighting
1267 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1268 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1269 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1270 that look like @var{(form . face)}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1271 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1273 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1277 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-1 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))))
1278 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-2 '((t (:foreground "SeaGreen" :bold t))))
1279 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-3 '((t (:foreground "SpringGreen" :bold t))))
1280 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-4 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))))
1281 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-5 '((t (:foreground "SkyBlue" :bold t))))
1283 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1284 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1285 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1286 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1287 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1288 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1291 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1293 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1300 The number of unread articles in the group.
1304 Whether the group is a mail group.
1306 The level of the group.
1308 The score of the group.
1310 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1312 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1313 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1315 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1316 topic being inserted.
1319 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1320 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1321 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1323 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1324 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1325 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1326 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1327 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1330 @node Group Maneuvering
1331 @section Group Maneuvering
1332 @cindex group movement
1334 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1335 expected, hopefully.
1341 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1342 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1343 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1349 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1350 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1351 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1355 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1356 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1360 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1361 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1365 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1366 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1367 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1371 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1372 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1373 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1376 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1382 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1383 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1384 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1389 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1390 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1391 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1395 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1396 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1397 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1400 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1401 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1402 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1403 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1407 @node Selecting a Group
1408 @section Selecting a Group
1409 @cindex group selection
1414 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1415 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1416 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1417 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1418 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1419 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1420 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1421 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1422 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1423 negative, Gnus fetches the @var{abs(N)} oldest articles.
1427 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1428 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1429 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1430 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1431 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1435 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1436 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1437 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1438 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1439 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1440 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1441 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1442 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
1443 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
1444 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
1447 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1448 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1449 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1450 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1451 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1454 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
1455 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
1456 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
1457 doing any processing of its contents
1458 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
1459 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
1460 manner will have no permanent effects.
1464 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
1465 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
1466 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
1467 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
1468 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
1469 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
1470 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
1471 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
1474 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
1475 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
1476 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
1477 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
1482 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
1483 full summary buffer.
1486 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
1489 Select the highest scored article in the group when entering the
1493 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
1494 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
1495 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
1499 @node Subscription Commands
1500 @section Subscription Commands
1501 @cindex subscription
1509 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
1510 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
1511 Toggle subscription to the current group
1512 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
1518 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
1519 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
1520 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
1521 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
1527 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
1528 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
1529 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
1535 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
1536 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
1539 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
1540 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
1541 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
1542 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
1543 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
1549 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
1550 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
1554 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
1555 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
1558 @kindex S C-k (Group)
1559 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
1560 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
1561 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
1562 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
1563 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
1564 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
1565 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
1566 @file{.newsrc} file.
1570 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1580 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
1581 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
1582 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
1583 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
1584 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
1585 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
1590 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
1591 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
1592 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
1596 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1597 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
1598 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1600 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1601 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1602 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1603 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
1604 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
1605 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
1612 @section Group Levels
1616 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
1617 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
1618 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
1619 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
1620 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1622 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
1628 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
1629 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
1630 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
1631 prompted for a level.
1634 @vindex gnus-level-killed
1635 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
1636 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
1637 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
1638 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
1639 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
1640 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
1641 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
1642 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
1643 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
1644 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
1645 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
1646 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
1647 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
1648 reasons of efficiency.
1650 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
1651 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
1653 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
1654 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
1655 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
1657 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
1658 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
1659 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
1660 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
1661 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
1662 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
1663 relevant valid ranges.
1665 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
1666 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
1667 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
1668 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
1669 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
1670 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
1673 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
1674 All groups with a level less than or equal to
1675 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
1678 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
1679 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
1680 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
1681 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
1684 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
1685 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
1686 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
1687 use this level as the ``work'' level.
1689 @vindex gnus-activate-level
1690 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
1691 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
1692 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
1693 to 5. The default is 6.
1697 @section Group Score
1702 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
1703 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
1704 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
1707 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can assign a score to each
1708 group. You can then sort the group buffer based on this score.
1709 Alternatively, you can sort on score and then level. (Taken together,
1710 the level and the score is called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group
1711 that is on level 4 and has a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group
1712 on level 5 that has a score of 300. (The level is the most significant
1713 part and the score is the least significant part.))
1715 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
1716 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
1717 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
1718 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
1719 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
1720 action after each summary exit, you can add
1721 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
1722 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
1723 slow things down somewhat.
1726 @node Marking Groups
1727 @section Marking Groups
1728 @cindex marking groups
1730 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
1731 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
1732 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
1733 bidding on those groups.
1735 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
1736 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
1737 with the process mark and then execute the command.
1745 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
1746 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
1752 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
1753 Remove the mark from the current group
1754 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
1758 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
1759 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
1763 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
1764 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
1768 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
1769 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
1773 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
1774 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
1775 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
1778 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
1780 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
1781 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
1782 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
1783 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
1784 the command to be executed.
1787 @node Foreign Groups
1788 @section Foreign Groups
1789 @cindex foreign groups
1791 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
1792 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
1793 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
1794 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
1801 @findex gnus-group-make-group
1802 @cindex making groups
1803 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
1804 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
1805 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
1809 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
1810 @cindex renaming groups
1811 Rename the current group to something else
1812 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
1813 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
1819 @findex gnus-group-customize
1820 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
1824 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
1825 @cindex renaming groups
1826 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
1827 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
1831 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
1832 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
1833 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
1837 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
1838 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
1839 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
1843 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
1845 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
1846 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
1851 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
1852 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
1856 @cindex (ding) archive
1857 @cindex archive group
1858 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
1859 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
1860 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
1861 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
1862 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
1863 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
1864 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
1868 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
1870 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
1871 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
1872 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
1873 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
1877 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
1879 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
1880 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
1881 @xref{Anything Groups}.
1885 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
1886 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
1888 Make a group based on some file or other
1889 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1890 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
1891 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
1892 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
1893 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, and @code{forward}. If you run
1894 this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file type.
1895 @xref{Document Groups}.
1899 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
1904 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
1905 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1906 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
1907 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
1908 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
1909 @xref{Web Searches}.
1911 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
1912 to a particular group by using a match string like
1913 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
1916 @kindex G DEL (Group)
1917 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
1918 This function will delete the current group
1919 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
1920 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
1921 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
1922 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
1923 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
1927 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
1928 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
1929 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
1933 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
1934 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
1935 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
1938 @xref{Select Methods} for more information on the various select
1941 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
1942 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
1943 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
1944 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
1945 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
1946 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
1950 @node Group Parameters
1951 @section Group Parameters
1952 @cindex group parameters
1954 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
1955 Here's an example group parameter list:
1958 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
1962 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
1963 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
1964 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
1965 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
1967 The following group parameters can be used:
1972 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
1975 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
1978 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
1979 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
1980 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
1981 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
1982 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
1984 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
1985 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
1986 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
1987 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
1988 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
1989 list address instead.
1993 Address used when doing a @kbd{a} in that group.
1996 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
1999 It is totally ignored
2000 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2001 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2003 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2004 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2005 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2006 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2007 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2009 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2010 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2011 sending the message.
2015 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2016 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2017 of whether it has any unread articles.
2019 @item broken-reply-to
2020 @cindex broken-reply-to
2021 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2022 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2023 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2024 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2025 broken behavior. So there!
2029 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2030 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2034 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2035 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2036 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2041 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2042 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2043 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2044 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2045 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2046 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2047 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2051 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2052 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2053 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2056 @cindex total-expire
2057 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2058 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2059 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2060 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2065 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2066 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2067 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2068 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2069 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2070 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2073 @cindex score file group parameter
2074 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2075 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2076 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2079 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2080 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2081 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2082 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2085 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2086 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2087 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2088 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2091 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2092 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2096 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2099 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2104 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2105 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2106 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2109 @item @var{(variable form)}
2110 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2111 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2112 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2113 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2114 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2115 @code{eval}ed there.
2117 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2118 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2119 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2120 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2121 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2125 Use the @kbd{G p} command to edit group parameters of a group. You
2126 might also be interested in reading about topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
2130 @node Listing Groups
2131 @section Listing Groups
2132 @cindex group listing
2134 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2142 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2143 List all groups that have unread articles
2144 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2145 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2146 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2147 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2154 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2155 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2156 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2157 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2158 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2159 unsubscribed groups).
2163 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2164 List all unread groups on a specific level
2165 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2166 with no unread articles.
2170 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2171 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2172 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2173 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2178 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2179 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2183 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2184 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2185 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2189 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2190 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2194 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2195 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2196 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2197 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2198 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2199 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2200 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2201 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2205 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2206 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2207 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2211 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2212 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2213 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2217 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2218 @cindex visible group parameter
2219 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2220 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2221 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2222 get the same effect.
2224 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2225 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2226 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2227 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2228 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2231 @node Sorting Groups
2232 @section Sorting Groups
2233 @cindex sorting groups
2235 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2236 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2237 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2238 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2239 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2240 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2245 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2246 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2247 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2249 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2250 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2251 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2253 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2254 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2255 Sort by group level.
2257 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2258 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2259 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
2261 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2262 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2263 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2264 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
2266 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2267 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2268 Sort by number of unread articles.
2270 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
2271 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
2272 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
2277 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
2278 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
2282 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
2283 some sorting criteria:
2287 @kindex G S a (Group)
2288 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2289 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
2290 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2293 @kindex G S u (Group)
2294 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
2295 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
2296 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2299 @kindex G S l (Group)
2300 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
2301 Sort the group buffer by group level
2302 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
2305 @kindex G S v (Group)
2306 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
2307 Sort the group buffer by group score
2308 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2311 @kindex G S r (Group)
2312 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
2313 Sort the group buffer by group rank
2314 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2317 @kindex G S m (Group)
2318 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
2319 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
2320 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
2324 When given a prefix, all these commands will sort in reverse order.
2326 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
2330 @kindex G P a (Group)
2331 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
2332 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer alphabetically by
2333 group name (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
2336 @kindex G P u (Group)
2337 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
2338 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by the number of
2339 unread articles (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
2342 @kindex G P l (Group)
2343 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
2344 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group level
2345 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
2348 @kindex G P v (Group)
2349 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
2350 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group score
2351 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2354 @kindex G P r (Group)
2355 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
2356 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group rank
2357 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2360 @kindex G P m (Group)
2361 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
2362 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer alphabetically by
2363 backend name (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
2369 @node Group Maintenance
2370 @section Group Maintenance
2371 @cindex bogus groups
2376 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
2377 Find bogus groups and delete them
2378 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
2382 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
2383 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
2384 If given a prefix, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
2388 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
2389 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
2390 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
2391 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}).
2394 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
2395 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
2396 Run all articles in all groups through the expiry process
2397 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
2402 @node Browse Foreign Server
2403 @section Browse Foreign Server
2404 @cindex foreign servers
2405 @cindex browsing servers
2410 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
2411 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
2412 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
2413 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
2416 @findex gnus-browse-mode
2417 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
2418 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
2419 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
2421 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
2426 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2427 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2431 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2432 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2435 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
2436 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
2437 Enter the current group and display the first article
2438 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
2441 @kindex RET (Browse)
2442 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
2443 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
2447 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
2448 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
2449 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2455 @findex gnus-browse-exit
2456 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
2460 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
2461 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
2462 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
2467 @section Exiting Gnus
2468 @cindex exiting Gnus
2470 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
2475 @findex gnus-group-suspend
2476 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
2477 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
2478 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
2482 @findex gnus-group-exit
2483 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
2484 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
2488 @findex gnus-group-quit
2489 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
2490 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
2493 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
2494 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
2495 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
2496 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
2497 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
2502 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
2503 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
2504 trying to customize meta-variables.
2509 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
2510 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
2511 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
2517 @section Group Topics
2520 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
2521 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
2522 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
2523 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
2524 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
2525 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
2529 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
2530 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group-topic.ps,height=9cm}}
2541 2: alt.religion.emacs
2544 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2546 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2547 13: comp.sources.unix
2550 @findex gnus-topic-mode
2552 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
2553 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
2554 is a toggling command.)
2556 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
2557 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
2558 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
2559 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
2562 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
2563 the hook for the group mode:
2566 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
2570 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
2571 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
2572 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
2573 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
2574 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
2578 @node Topic Variables
2579 @subsection Topic Variables
2580 @cindex topic variables
2582 Now, if you select a topic, it will fold/unfold that topic, which is
2583 really neat, I think.
2585 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
2586 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
2587 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
2600 Number of groups in the topic.
2602 Number of unread articles in the topic.
2604 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
2607 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
2608 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
2609 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
2612 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
2613 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
2615 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
2616 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
2617 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
2620 @node Topic Commands
2621 @subsection Topic Commands
2622 @cindex topic commands
2624 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
2625 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
2626 definitions slightly.
2632 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
2633 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
2634 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
2638 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
2639 Move the current group to some other topic
2640 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2641 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2645 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
2646 Copy the current group to some other topic
2647 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2648 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2652 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
2653 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
2654 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
2655 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
2656 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
2657 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
2658 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
2661 This command uses the process/prefix convention
2662 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2666 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
2667 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2668 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
2672 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
2673 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2674 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
2678 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
2679 Toggle hiding empty topics
2680 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
2684 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
2685 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
2686 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
2689 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
2690 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
2691 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
2692 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
2696 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
2698 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
2699 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
2700 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
2701 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
2702 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
2703 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
2707 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
2709 @findex gnus-topic-indent
2710 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2711 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
2712 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
2715 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
2716 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
2717 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2718 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
2722 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
2723 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
2724 topic will be removed along with the topic.
2728 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
2729 Yank the previously killed group or topic
2730 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
2735 @findex gnus-topic-rename
2736 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
2739 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
2740 @findex gnus-topic-delete
2741 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
2745 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
2746 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
2747 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
2751 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
2752 @cindex group parameters
2753 @cindex topic parameters
2755 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
2756 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
2762 @subsection Topic Sorting
2763 @cindex topic sorting
2765 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
2771 @kindex T S a (Topic)
2772 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2773 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
2774 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2777 @kindex T S u (Topic)
2778 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
2779 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
2780 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2783 @kindex T S l (Topic)
2784 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
2785 Sort the current topic by group level
2786 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
2789 @kindex T S v (Topic)
2790 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
2791 Sort the current topic by group score
2792 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2795 @kindex T S r (Topic)
2796 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
2797 Sort the current topic by group rank
2798 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2801 @kindex T S m (Topic)
2802 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
2803 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
2804 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
2808 @xref{Sorting Groups} for more information about group sorting.
2811 @node Topic Topology
2812 @subsection Topic Topology
2813 @cindex topic topology
2816 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
2822 2: alt.religion.emacs
2825 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2827 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2828 13: comp.sources.unix
2831 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
2832 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
2833 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
2838 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
2839 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
2843 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
2844 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
2845 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
2846 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
2847 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
2848 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
2850 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
2851 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
2852 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
2855 @node Topic Parameters
2856 @subsection Topic Parameters
2857 @cindex topic parameters
2859 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
2860 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
2861 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
2863 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
2864 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
2865 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
2866 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
2872 2: alt.religion.emacs
2876 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2878 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2879 13: comp.sources.unix
2883 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
2884 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
2885 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
2886 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
2887 @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
2888 . "religion.SCORE")}.
2890 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
2891 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
2892 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
2893 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
2894 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
2896 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
2897 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
2898 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
2899 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
2900 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
2901 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
2902 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
2903 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
2906 @node Misc Group Stuff
2907 @section Misc Group Stuff
2910 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
2911 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
2912 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
2913 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
2920 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
2921 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
2922 @xref{The Server Buffer}.
2926 @findex gnus-group-post-news
2927 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a
2928 prefix, the current group name will be used as the default.
2932 @findex gnus-group-mail
2933 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
2937 Variables for the group buffer:
2941 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
2942 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
2943 is called after the group buffer has been
2946 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
2947 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
2948 is called after the group buffer is
2949 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
2952 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
2953 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
2954 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
2955 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
2957 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2958 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2959 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
2960 whether they are empty or not.
2965 @node Scanning New Messages
2966 @subsection Scanning New Messages
2967 @cindex new messages
2968 @cindex scanning new news
2974 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
2975 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
2976 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
2977 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
2978 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
2979 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
2984 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
2985 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
2986 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
2987 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
2988 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
2989 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
2990 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
2992 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
2993 @cindex activating groups
2995 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
2996 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
3001 @findex gnus-group-restart
3002 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
3003 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
3004 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
3008 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3009 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3011 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3012 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3016 @node Group Information
3017 @subsection Group Information
3018 @cindex group information
3019 @cindex information on groups
3026 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
3027 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
3030 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
3031 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
3032 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
3033 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
3034 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
3035 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
3036 for fetching the file.
3038 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
3039 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
3043 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
3045 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
3046 @cindex describing groups
3047 @cindex group description
3048 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
3049 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
3050 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
3054 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
3055 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
3056 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
3063 @findex gnus-version
3064 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
3068 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
3069 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
3072 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
3075 @findex gnus-info-find-node
3076 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
3080 @node Group Timestamp
3081 @subsection Group Timestamp
3083 @cindex group timestamps
3085 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
3086 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
3087 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
3090 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
3093 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
3095 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
3096 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
3099 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3100 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
3103 This will result in lines looking like:
3106 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
3107 0: custom 19961002T012713
3110 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
3111 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
3115 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3116 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
3121 @subsection File Commands
3122 @cindex file commands
3128 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
3129 @vindex gnus-init-file
3130 @cindex reading init file
3131 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
3132 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
3136 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
3137 @cindex saving .newsrc
3138 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
3139 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
3140 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
3143 @c @kindex Z (Group)
3144 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
3145 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3150 @node The Summary Buffer
3151 @chapter The Summary Buffer
3152 @cindex summary buffer
3154 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3155 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3157 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3158 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3160 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3163 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3164 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3165 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3166 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3167 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3168 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
3169 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3170 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3171 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3172 * Sorting:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3173 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
3174 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
3175 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
3176 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
3177 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
3178 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
3179 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
3180 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
3181 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
3182 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
3183 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3184 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3185 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3186 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3187 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
3188 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3189 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3193 @node Summary Buffer Format
3194 @section Summary Buffer Format
3195 @cindex summary buffer format
3199 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
3200 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary.ps,width=7.5cm}}
3201 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-article.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
3207 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
3208 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
3209 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
3212 @findex mail-extract-address-components
3213 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
3214 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
3215 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
3216 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
3217 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
3218 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
3219 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
3220 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
3221 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
3222 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead.
3224 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
3225 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
3226 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
3227 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
3230 @node Summary Buffer Lines
3231 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
3233 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3234 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
3235 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
3236 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
3237 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3239 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
3241 The following format specification characters are understood:
3249 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
3250 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
3251 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
3253 Full @code{From} header.
3255 The name (from the @code{From} header).
3257 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
3258 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
3259 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
3260 may be more thorough.
3262 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
3265 Number of lines in the article.
3267 Number of characters in the article.
3269 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3271 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
3272 pushes everything after it off the screen).
3274 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
3275 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3277 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
3278 for adopted articles.
3280 One space for each thread level.
3282 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
3287 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
3288 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
3292 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
3294 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
3295 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
3296 default level. If the difference between
3297 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
3298 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
3306 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
3308 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
3314 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
3315 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
3317 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
3318 article has any children.
3324 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
3325 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
3326 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
3327 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
3328 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
3329 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
3332 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
3333 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
3334 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
3335 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
3336 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
3337 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
3339 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
3340 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
3342 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
3345 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
3346 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
3348 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
3349 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
3350 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
3351 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
3353 Here are the elements you can play with:
3359 Unprefixed group name.
3361 Current article number.
3363 Current article score.
3367 Number of unread articles in this group.
3369 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
3372 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
3373 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
3374 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
3375 and no unselected ones.
3377 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
3378 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
3380 Subject of the current article.
3382 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
3384 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
3386 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3388 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3390 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
3392 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
3396 @node Summary Highlighting
3397 @subsection Summary Highlighting
3401 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3402 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3403 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
3404 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
3405 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3407 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
3408 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
3409 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
3410 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3412 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
3413 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
3414 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
3415 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
3417 @item gnus-summary-highlight
3418 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
3419 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
3420 list where the elements are of the format @var{(FORM . FACE)}. If you
3421 would, for instance, like ticked articles to be italic and high-scored
3422 articles to be bold, you could set this variable to something like
3424 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
3425 ((> score default) . bold))
3427 As you may have guessed, if @var{FORM} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
3428 @var{FACE} will be applied to the line.
3432 @node Summary Maneuvering
3433 @section Summary Maneuvering
3434 @cindex summary movement
3436 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
3437 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
3439 None of these commands select articles.
3444 @kindex M-n (Summary)
3445 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
3446 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
3447 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
3448 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
3452 @kindex M-p (Summary)
3453 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
3454 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
3455 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
3456 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
3461 @kindex G j (Summary)
3462 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
3463 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
3464 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
3467 @kindex G g (Summary)
3468 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
3469 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
3470 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
3473 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
3474 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
3475 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
3476 to the group buffer.
3478 Variables related to summary movement:
3482 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
3483 @item gnus-auto-select-next
3484 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
3485 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
3486 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
3487 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
3488 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
3489 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
3490 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
3491 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
3492 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
3493 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
3494 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
3495 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
3497 @item gnus-auto-select-same
3498 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
3499 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
3500 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
3501 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
3502 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
3503 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
3505 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
3507 @item gnus-summary-check-current
3508 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
3509 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
3510 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
3511 Instead, they will choose the current article.
3513 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
3514 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
3515 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
3516 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
3517 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
3518 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
3519 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
3520 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
3526 @node Choosing Articles
3527 @section Choosing Articles
3528 @cindex selecting articles
3531 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
3532 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
3536 @node Choosing Commands
3537 @subsection Choosing Commands
3539 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
3540 and they all select and display an article.
3544 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3545 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3546 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
3547 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3552 @kindex G n (Summary)
3553 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
3554 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
3555 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
3560 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
3561 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
3562 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
3567 @kindex G N (Summary)
3568 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
3569 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
3574 @kindex G P (Summary)
3575 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
3576 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
3579 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
3580 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
3581 Go to the next article with the same subject
3582 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
3585 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
3586 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
3587 Go to the previous article with the same subject
3588 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
3592 @kindex G f (Summary)
3594 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
3595 Go to the first unread article
3596 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
3600 @kindex G b (Summary)
3602 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
3603 Go to the article with the highest score
3604 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
3609 @kindex G l (Summary)
3610 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
3611 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
3614 @kindex G o (Summary)
3615 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
3617 @cindex article history
3618 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
3619 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
3620 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
3621 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
3622 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
3623 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
3627 @node Choosing Variables
3628 @subsection Choosing Variables
3630 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
3633 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3634 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3635 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
3636 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
3637 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
3638 the server and display it in the article buffer.
3640 @item gnus-select-article-hook
3641 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
3642 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
3643 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
3645 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
3646 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
3647 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
3648 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
3649 @findex gnus-unread-mark
3650 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
3651 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
3652 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
3653 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
3654 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
3655 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
3656 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
3657 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
3658 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
3663 @node Paging the Article
3664 @section Scrolling the Article
3665 @cindex article scrolling
3670 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3671 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3672 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
3673 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
3674 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3677 @kindex DEL (Summary)
3678 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
3679 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
3682 @kindex RET (Summary)
3683 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
3684 Scroll the current article one line forward
3685 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
3689 @kindex A g (Summary)
3691 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
3692 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
3693 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
3694 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
3695 the way it came from the server.
3700 @kindex A < (Summary)
3701 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
3702 Scroll to the beginning of the article
3703 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
3708 @kindex A > (Summary)
3709 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
3710 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
3714 @kindex A s (Summary)
3716 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
3717 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
3718 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
3722 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
3723 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
3728 @node Reply Followup and Post
3729 @section Reply, Followup and Post
3732 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
3733 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
3737 @node Summary Mail Commands
3738 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
3740 @cindex composing mail
3742 Commands for composing a mail message:
3748 @kindex S r (Summary)
3750 @findex gnus-summary-reply
3751 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
3752 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
3753 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
3754 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
3759 @kindex S R (Summary)
3760 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
3761 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
3762 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
3763 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
3764 command uses the process/prefix convention.
3767 @kindex S w (Summary)
3768 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
3769 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
3770 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
3771 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
3772 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
3775 @kindex S W (Summary)
3776 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
3777 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
3778 message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This command uses
3779 the process/prefix convention.
3782 @kindex S o m (Summary)
3783 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
3784 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
3785 Forward the current article to some other person
3786 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3787 headers of the forwarded article.
3792 @kindex S m (Summary)
3793 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
3794 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
3795 Send a mail to some other person
3796 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
3799 @kindex S D b (Summary)
3800 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
3801 @cindex bouncing mail
3802 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
3803 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
3804 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
3805 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
3806 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
3807 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
3808 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
3809 very well fail, though.
3812 @kindex S D r (Summary)
3813 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
3814 Not to be confused with the previous command,
3815 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
3816 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
3817 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
3818 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
3819 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
3820 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
3821 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
3823 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
3824 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
3825 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
3826 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
3827 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
3829 This command understands the process/prefix convention
3830 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3833 @kindex S O m (Summary)
3834 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
3835 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
3836 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
3837 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3840 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
3841 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
3842 @cindex crossposting
3843 @cindex excessive crossposting
3844 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
3845 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
3847 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
3848 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
3849 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
3850 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
3851 command understands the process/prefix convention
3852 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
3856 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
3859 @node Summary Post Commands
3860 @subsection Summary Post Commands
3862 @cindex composing news
3864 Commands for posting a news article:
3870 @kindex S p (Summary)
3871 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
3872 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
3873 Post an article to the current group
3874 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
3879 @kindex S f (Summary)
3880 @findex gnus-summary-followup
3881 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
3882 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
3886 @kindex S F (Summary)
3888 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
3889 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
3890 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
3891 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
3892 process/prefix convention.
3895 @kindex S n (Summary)
3896 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
3897 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
3898 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
3901 @kindex S N (Summary)
3902 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
3903 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
3904 message through mail and include the original message
3905 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
3906 the process/prefix convention.
3909 @kindex S o p (Summary)
3910 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
3911 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
3912 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3913 headers of the forwarded article.
3916 @kindex S O p (Summary)
3917 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
3919 @cindex making digests
3920 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
3921 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
3922 process/prefix convention.
3925 @kindex S u (Summary)
3926 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
3927 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
3928 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
3929 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
3932 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
3935 @node Canceling and Superseding
3936 @section Canceling Articles
3937 @cindex canceling articles
3938 @cindex superseding articles
3940 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
3941 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
3943 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
3945 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
3947 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
3948 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
3949 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
3950 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
3951 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
3952 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3954 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
3955 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
3958 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
3959 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
3960 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
3962 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
3963 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
3964 your original article.
3966 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
3968 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
3969 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
3970 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
3973 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
3974 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
3975 have posted almost the same article twice.
3977 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
3978 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
3979 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
3980 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
3981 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
3982 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
3983 header by substituting one of those words for the word
3984 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
3985 you would do normally. The previous article will be
3986 canceled/superseded.
3988 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
3991 @node Marking Articles
3992 @section Marking Articles
3993 @cindex article marking
3994 @cindex article ticking
3997 There are several marks you can set on an article.
3999 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
4000 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
4001 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
4003 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
4006 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
4007 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
4008 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
4012 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
4016 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
4017 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
4021 @node Unread Articles
4022 @subsection Unread Articles
4024 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
4029 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
4030 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
4032 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
4033 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
4034 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
4035 tick it. However, articles can be expired, so if you want to keep an
4036 article forever, you'll have to make it persistent (@pxref{Persistent
4040 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
4041 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
4043 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
4044 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
4045 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
4048 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
4049 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
4051 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
4056 @subsection Read Articles
4057 @cindex expirable mark
4059 All the following marks mark articles as read.
4064 @vindex gnus-del-mark
4065 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
4066 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
4069 @vindex gnus-read-mark
4070 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
4073 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
4074 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
4075 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
4078 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
4079 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
4082 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
4083 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
4086 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
4087 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
4090 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
4091 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
4094 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
4095 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
4098 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
4099 @sc{SOUP}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
4102 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
4103 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
4107 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
4108 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
4109 (@code{gnus-duplicated-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
4113 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
4114 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
4116 One more special mark, though:
4120 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
4121 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
4123 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
4124 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
4125 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
4126 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
4132 @subsection Other Marks
4133 @cindex process mark
4136 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
4142 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
4143 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
4144 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
4145 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
4146 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}
4149 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
4150 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
4151 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
4152 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
4155 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
4156 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
4157 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}
4160 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
4161 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
4162 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
4163 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
4166 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
4167 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
4168 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
4169 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
4170 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
4173 @vindex gnus-process-mark
4174 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
4175 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
4176 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
4177 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
4178 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
4182 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
4183 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
4184 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
4186 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
4187 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
4188 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
4192 @subsection Setting Marks
4193 @cindex setting marks
4195 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
4200 @kindex M c (Summary)
4201 @kindex M-u (Summary)
4202 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
4203 @cindex mark as unread
4204 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
4205 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
4211 @kindex M t (Summary)
4212 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
4213 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
4214 @xref{Article Caching}
4219 @kindex M ? (Summary)
4220 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
4221 Mark the current article as dormant
4222 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}
4226 @kindex M d (Summary)
4228 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
4229 Mark the current article as read
4230 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
4234 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
4235 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
4236 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
4241 @kindex M k (Summary)
4242 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
4243 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
4244 and then select the next unread article
4245 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
4249 @kindex M K (Summary)
4250 @kindex C-k (Summary)
4251 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
4252 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
4253 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
4256 @kindex M C (Summary)
4257 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
4258 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
4259 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
4262 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
4263 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
4264 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
4265 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
4268 @kindex M H (Summary)
4269 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
4270 Catchup the current group to point
4271 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
4274 @kindex C-w (Summary)
4275 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
4276 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
4277 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
4280 @kindex M V k (Summary)
4281 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
4282 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
4283 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
4287 @kindex M e (Summary)
4289 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
4290 Mark the current article as expirable
4291 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
4294 @kindex M b (Summary)
4295 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
4296 Set a bookmark in the current article
4297 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
4300 @kindex M B (Summary)
4301 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
4302 Remove the bookmark from the current article
4303 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
4306 @kindex M V c (Summary)
4307 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
4308 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
4309 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4312 @kindex M V u (Summary)
4313 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
4314 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
4315 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
4318 @kindex M V m (Summary)
4319 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
4320 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
4321 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
4322 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4325 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
4326 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
4327 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
4328 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
4329 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
4330 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
4331 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
4332 The default is @code{t}.
4335 @node Setting Process Marks
4336 @subsection Setting Process Marks
4337 @cindex setting process marks
4344 @kindex M P p (Summary)
4345 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
4346 Mark the current article with the process mark
4347 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
4348 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
4352 @kindex M P u (Summary)
4353 @kindex M-# (Summary)
4354 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
4355 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
4358 @kindex M P U (Summary)
4359 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
4360 Remove the process mark from all articles
4361 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
4364 @kindex M P i (Summary)
4365 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
4366 Invert the list of process marked articles
4367 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
4370 @kindex M P R (Summary)
4371 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
4372 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
4373 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
4376 @kindex M P r (Summary)
4377 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
4378 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
4381 @kindex M P t (Summary)
4382 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4383 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4384 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4387 @kindex M P T (Summary)
4388 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4389 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4390 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4393 @kindex M P v (Summary)
4394 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
4395 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
4396 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
4399 @kindex M P s (Summary)
4400 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
4401 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4404 @kindex M P S (Summary)
4405 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
4406 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
4407 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
4410 @kindex M P a (Summary)
4411 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
4412 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4415 @kindex M P b (Summary)
4416 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
4417 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
4418 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
4421 @kindex M P k (Summary)
4422 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
4423 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
4424 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
4427 @kindex M P y (Summary)
4428 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
4429 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
4430 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
4433 @kindex M P w (Summary)
4434 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
4435 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
4436 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
4445 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
4446 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
4447 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
4450 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
4451 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
4452 additional articles.
4458 @kindex / / (Summary)
4459 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
4460 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
4461 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
4464 @kindex / a (Summary)
4465 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
4466 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
4467 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
4471 @kindex / u (Summary)
4473 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
4474 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
4475 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
4476 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
4477 dormant articles will also be excluded.
4480 @kindex / m (Summary)
4481 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
4482 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
4483 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
4486 @kindex / t (Summary)
4487 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
4488 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
4489 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}). If given a prefix, limit to
4490 articles younger than that number of days.
4493 @kindex / n (Summary)
4494 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
4495 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
4496 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
4497 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4500 @kindex / w (Summary)
4501 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
4502 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
4503 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
4507 @kindex / v (Summary)
4508 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
4509 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
4510 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
4514 @kindex M S (Summary)
4515 @kindex / E (Summary)
4516 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
4517 Include all expunged articles in the limit
4518 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
4521 @kindex / D (Summary)
4522 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
4523 Include all dormant articles in the limit
4524 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
4527 @kindex / * (Summary)
4528 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
4529 Include all cached articles in the limit
4530 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
4533 @kindex / d (Summary)
4534 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
4535 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
4536 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
4539 @kindex / T (Summary)
4540 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
4541 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
4544 @kindex / c (Summary)
4545 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
4546 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
4547 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
4550 @kindex / C (Summary)
4551 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
4552 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
4553 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
4554 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
4562 @cindex article threading
4564 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
4565 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
4566 hierarchical fashion.
4568 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
4569 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
4570 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
4571 or simply missing. Weird news propagation excarcerbates the problem,
4572 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
4573 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
4574 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
4576 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
4580 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
4583 A tree-like article structure.
4586 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
4589 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
4590 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
4591 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
4592 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
4593 called loose threads.
4595 @item thread gathering
4596 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
4598 @item sparse threads
4599 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
4600 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
4606 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
4607 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
4611 @node Customizing Threading
4612 @subsection Customizing Threading
4613 @cindex customizing threading
4616 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
4617 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
4618 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
4619 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
4624 @subsubsection Loose Threads
4627 @cindex loose threads
4630 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
4631 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
4632 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
4633 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
4634 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
4635 read or killed the root in a previous session.
4637 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
4638 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
4639 There are four possible values:
4643 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
4644 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-adopt.ps,width=7.5cm}}
4645 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-empty.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4646 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-none.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4647 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-dummy.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4652 @cindex adopting articles
4657 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
4658 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
4659 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
4660 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
4663 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
4664 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
4665 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
4666 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
4667 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
4668 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
4669 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
4672 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
4673 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
4674 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
4678 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
4679 display them after one another.
4682 Don't gather loose threads.
4685 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4686 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4687 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
4688 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
4689 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
4690 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
4691 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
4692 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
4693 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
4694 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
4695 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
4697 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
4698 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
4699 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
4702 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4703 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4704 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
4705 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
4706 simplification is used.
4708 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4709 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4710 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
4711 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
4713 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
4715 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4721 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
4722 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
4723 "answer" "reference" "announce"
4724 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
4729 (mapconcat 'identity
4730 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
4732 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
4735 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
4738 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
4739 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
4740 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
4741 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
4742 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
4743 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
4745 Useful functions to put in this list include:
4748 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
4749 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
4750 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
4752 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
4753 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
4756 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
4757 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
4758 Remove excessive whitespace.
4761 You may also write your own functions, of course.
4764 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4765 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4766 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
4767 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
4768 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
4769 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
4770 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
4771 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
4773 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4774 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4775 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
4776 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
4777 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
4778 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
4779 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
4780 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
4781 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
4785 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4786 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4787 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
4788 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
4790 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4791 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4792 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
4795 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
4799 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4800 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
4806 @node Filling In Threads
4807 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
4810 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
4811 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
4812 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
4813 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
4814 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
4815 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
4816 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
4817 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
4818 fetching old headers only works if the backend you are using carries
4819 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
4820 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
4821 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
4823 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
4824 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
4825 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
4827 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
4828 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
4829 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
4830 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
4831 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
4832 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
4833 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
4834 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
4835 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
4836 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
4837 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
4838 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
4839 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
4840 @code{nil} by default.
4845 @node More Threading
4846 @subsubsection More Threading
4849 @item gnus-show-threads
4850 @vindex gnus-show-threads
4851 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
4852 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
4853 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
4854 slower and more awkward.
4856 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
4857 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
4858 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
4861 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
4862 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
4863 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
4864 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
4865 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
4866 threads are expunged.
4868 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
4869 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
4870 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
4873 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
4874 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
4875 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
4876 this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subject change is ignored. If it
4877 is @code{nil}, which is the default, a change in the subject will result
4880 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
4881 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
4882 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
4888 @node Low-Level Threading
4889 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
4893 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
4894 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
4895 Hook run before parsing any headers. The default value is
4896 @code{(gnus-decode-rfc1522)}, which means that QPized headers will be
4897 slightly decoded in a hackish way. This is likely to change in the
4898 future when Gnus becomes @sc{MIME}ified.
4900 @item gnus-alter-header-function
4901 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
4902 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
4903 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
4904 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
4905 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
4906 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
4907 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
4908 meaningful. Here's one example:
4911 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
4913 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
4914 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
4916 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
4918 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
4925 @node Thread Commands
4926 @subsection Thread Commands
4927 @cindex thread commands
4933 @kindex T k (Summary)
4934 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
4935 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
4936 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
4937 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
4938 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
4943 @kindex T l (Summary)
4944 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
4945 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
4946 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
4947 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
4950 @kindex T i (Summary)
4951 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
4952 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
4953 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
4956 @kindex T # (Summary)
4957 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4958 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
4959 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4962 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
4963 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4964 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
4965 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4968 @kindex T T (Summary)
4969 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
4970 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
4973 @kindex T s (Summary)
4974 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
4975 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
4976 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
4979 @kindex T h (Summary)
4980 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
4981 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
4984 @kindex T S (Summary)
4985 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
4986 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
4989 @kindex T H (Summary)
4990 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
4991 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
4994 @kindex T t (Summary)
4995 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
4996 Re-thread the current article's thread
4997 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
4998 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
5001 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
5002 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
5003 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
5004 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
5008 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
5009 understand the numeric prefix.
5014 @kindex T n (Summary)
5015 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
5016 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
5019 @kindex T p (Summary)
5020 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
5021 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
5024 @kindex T d (Summary)
5025 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
5026 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
5029 @kindex T u (Summary)
5030 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
5031 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
5034 @kindex T o (Summary)
5035 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
5036 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
5039 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
5040 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
5041 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
5042 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
5043 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
5044 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
5045 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
5046 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
5047 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
5048 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
5049 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
5050 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
5057 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
5058 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
5059 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
5060 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5061 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
5062 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5063 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
5064 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
5065 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which is a list of functions.
5066 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
5067 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
5068 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
5069 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
5070 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
5072 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
5073 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
5074 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread. If you use
5075 more than one function, the primary sort key should be the last function
5076 in the list. You should probably always include
5077 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
5078 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
5079 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
5080 ascending article order.
5082 If you would like to sort by score, then by subject, and finally by
5083 number, you could do something like:
5086 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5087 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5088 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5089 gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score))
5092 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
5093 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
5094 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
5095 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
5096 which the articles arrived.
5098 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
5102 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5104 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
5105 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
5108 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
5109 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
5110 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
5111 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
5114 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
5115 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
5116 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
5117 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
5118 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
5119 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
5120 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
5121 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
5122 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
5123 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
5124 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
5125 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
5126 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
5128 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
5132 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
5133 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
5134 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
5139 @node Asynchronous Fetching
5140 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
5141 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
5142 @cindex article pre-fetch
5145 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
5146 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
5147 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
5148 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
5149 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
5151 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
5152 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
5154 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
5155 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
5156 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
5157 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
5158 connection is blocked.
5160 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
5161 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
5162 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
5163 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
5165 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
5166 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
5167 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
5168 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
5171 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
5174 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
5175 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
5176 happen automatically.
5178 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
5179 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
5180 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
5181 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
5182 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
5183 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
5184 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
5186 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
5187 @findex gnus-async-read-p
5188 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
5189 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
5190 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
5191 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
5192 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
5193 data structure as the only parameter.
5195 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
5198 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
5199 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
5200 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
5201 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
5204 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
5207 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
5208 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
5209 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
5211 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
5212 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
5213 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
5214 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
5218 Remove articles when they are read.
5221 Remove articles when exiting the group.
5224 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
5226 @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
5227 If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
5228 from the next group.
5231 @node Article Caching
5232 @section Article Caching
5233 @cindex article caching
5236 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
5237 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
5238 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
5239 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
5240 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
5242 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
5244 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5245 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
5246 @vindex gnus-use-cache
5247 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
5248 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
5249 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
5250 cache is flat or hierarchal is controlled by the
5251 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
5253 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
5254 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
5255 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
5256 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
5257 as dormant, and don't worry.
5259 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
5261 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
5262 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
5263 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
5264 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
5265 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
5266 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
5267 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
5268 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
5269 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
5270 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
5272 @findex gnus-jog-cache
5273 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
5274 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
5275 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
5276 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
5277 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
5278 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
5279 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
5280 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
5281 not then be downloaded by this command.
5283 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
5284 It is likely that you do not want caching on some groups. For instance,
5285 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
5286 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
5287 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space. To limit the caching,
5288 you could set the @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to
5289 @samp{^nnml}, for instance. This variable is @code{nil} by
5292 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
5293 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
5294 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
5295 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
5296 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
5297 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
5298 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
5299 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
5300 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
5304 @node Persistent Articles
5305 @section Persistent Articles
5306 @cindex persistent articles
5308 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
5309 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
5310 useful in my opinion.
5312 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
5313 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
5314 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
5315 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
5316 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
5317 the expiry going on at the news server.
5319 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
5320 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
5321 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
5327 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
5328 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
5331 @kindex M-* (Summary)
5332 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
5333 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
5334 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
5338 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
5340 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
5341 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
5342 interested in persistent articles:
5345 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
5349 @node Article Backlog
5350 @section Article Backlog
5352 @cindex article backlog
5354 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
5355 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
5356 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
5357 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
5358 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
5359 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
5360 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
5361 increase memory usage some.
5363 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
5364 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
5365 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
5366 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
5367 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
5368 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
5369 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
5371 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
5374 @node Saving Articles
5375 @section Saving Articles
5376 @cindex saving articles
5378 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
5379 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
5380 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
5381 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
5382 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
5384 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
5385 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
5386 unwanted headers before saving the article.
5388 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
5389 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
5390 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
5391 deleted before saving.
5397 @kindex O o (Summary)
5399 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
5400 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
5401 Save the current article using the default article saver
5402 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
5405 @kindex O m (Summary)
5406 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
5407 Save the current article in mail format
5408 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
5411 @kindex O r (Summary)
5412 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
5413 Save the current article in rmail format
5414 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
5417 @kindex O f (Summary)
5418 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
5419 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
5420 Save the current article in plain file format
5421 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
5424 @kindex O F (Summary)
5425 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
5426 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
5427 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
5430 @kindex O b (Summary)
5431 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
5432 Save the current article body in plain file format
5433 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
5436 @kindex O h (Summary)
5437 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
5438 Save the current article in mh folder format
5439 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
5442 @kindex O v (Summary)
5443 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
5444 Save the current article in a VM folder
5445 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
5448 @kindex O p (Summary)
5449 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
5450 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
5451 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
5454 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
5455 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
5456 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
5457 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
5458 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
5459 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
5460 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
5461 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
5462 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
5463 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
5464 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
5465 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
5469 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
5470 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
5471 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the four ready-made
5472 functions below, or you can create your own.
5476 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5477 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5478 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
5479 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5480 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
5481 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5482 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5484 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5485 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5486 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
5487 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
5488 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5489 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5491 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
5492 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
5493 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
5494 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5495 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
5496 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5497 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5499 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5500 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5501 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
5502 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5503 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5505 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5506 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5507 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
5508 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
5509 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
5512 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
5513 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
5514 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
5515 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
5516 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
5518 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5519 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5520 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
5521 reader to use this setting.
5524 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
5525 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
5526 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
5527 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
5530 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
5531 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
5532 available functions that generate names:
5536 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
5537 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
5538 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5540 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
5541 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5542 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5544 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
5545 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
5546 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5548 @item gnus-plain-save-name
5549 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5550 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5553 @vindex gnus-split-methods
5554 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
5555 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
5556 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
5557 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
5561 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
5562 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
5563 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
5564 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
5567 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
5568 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
5569 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
5570 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
5571 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
5572 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
5573 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
5574 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
5575 called returns a string or a list of strings.
5577 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
5578 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
5579 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
5580 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
5582 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
5583 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
5584 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
5587 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
5588 lots of mail groups called things like
5589 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
5590 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
5591 following will do just that:
5594 (defun my-save-name (group)
5595 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
5596 (substring group (match-end 0))))
5598 (setq gnus-split-methods
5599 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
5604 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5605 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
5606 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
5607 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
5608 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
5609 all the files in the top level directory
5610 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
5611 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
5612 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
5613 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
5615 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
5616 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
5617 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
5618 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
5619 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
5622 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
5626 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
5627 (setq gnus-default-article-saver 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
5630 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
5631 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
5632 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
5633 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
5636 @node Decoding Articles
5637 @section Decoding Articles
5638 @cindex decoding articles
5640 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
5641 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
5644 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
5645 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
5646 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
5647 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
5648 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
5649 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
5653 @cindex article series
5654 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
5655 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
5656 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
5657 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
5658 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
5660 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
5661 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
5662 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
5664 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
5665 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
5666 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
5668 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
5669 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
5670 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
5673 @node Uuencoded Articles
5674 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
5676 @cindex uuencoded articles
5681 @kindex X u (Summary)
5682 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
5683 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
5684 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
5687 @kindex X U (Summary)
5688 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
5689 Uudecodes and saves the current series
5690 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5693 @kindex X v u (Summary)
5694 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
5695 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
5698 @kindex X v U (Summary)
5699 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
5700 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
5701 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
5705 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
5706 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
5707 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
5708 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
5709 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5711 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
5712 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
5713 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
5714 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
5717 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
5718 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
5719 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
5720 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
5721 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
5722 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
5726 @node Shell Archives
5727 @subsection Shell Archives
5729 @cindex shell archives
5730 @cindex shared articles
5732 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
5733 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
5734 some commands to deal with these:
5739 @kindex X s (Summary)
5740 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
5741 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
5744 @kindex X S (Summary)
5745 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
5746 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
5749 @kindex X v s (Summary)
5750 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
5751 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
5754 @kindex X v S (Summary)
5755 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
5756 Unshars, views and saves the current series
5757 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
5761 @node PostScript Files
5762 @subsection PostScript Files
5768 @kindex X p (Summary)
5769 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
5770 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
5773 @kindex X P (Summary)
5774 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
5775 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
5776 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
5779 @kindex X v p (Summary)
5780 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
5781 View the current PostScript series
5782 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
5785 @kindex X v P (Summary)
5786 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
5787 View and save the current PostScript series
5788 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
5793 @subsection Other Files
5797 @kindex X o (Summary)
5798 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
5799 Save the current series
5800 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
5803 @kindex X b (Summary)
5804 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
5805 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
5806 doesn't really work yet.
5810 @node Decoding Variables
5811 @subsection Decoding Variables
5813 Adjective, not verb.
5816 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
5817 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
5818 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
5822 @node Rule Variables
5823 @subsubsection Rule Variables
5824 @cindex rule variables
5826 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
5827 variables are of the form
5830 (list '(regexp1 command2)
5837 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5838 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5840 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
5841 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
5844 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5845 (list '(\"\\\\.au$\" \"sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio\")))
5848 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
5849 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
5850 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
5851 user and default view rules.
5853 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
5854 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
5855 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
5860 @node Other Decode Variables
5861 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
5864 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
5866 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
5867 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
5868 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
5869 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
5870 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
5874 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
5875 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
5878 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
5879 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
5880 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
5883 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
5884 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
5885 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
5886 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
5887 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
5890 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
5891 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
5892 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
5894 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
5895 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
5896 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
5897 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
5898 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
5901 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
5902 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
5903 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
5905 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
5906 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
5907 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
5908 looking for files to display.
5910 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
5911 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
5912 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
5915 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
5916 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
5917 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
5920 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
5921 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
5922 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
5925 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
5926 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
5927 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
5930 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
5931 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
5932 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
5933 decoded articles as unread.
5935 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
5936 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
5937 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
5938 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
5940 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
5941 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
5942 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
5944 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
5945 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
5947 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
5948 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
5949 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
5950 @code{metamail} for viewing.
5952 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
5953 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
5954 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
5955 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
5956 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
5957 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC1153---no easy way
5958 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
5959 simply dropped them.
5964 @node Uuencoding and Posting
5965 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
5969 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
5970 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
5971 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
5972 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
5973 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
5974 for you when you post the article.
5976 @item gnus-uu-post-length
5977 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
5978 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
5979 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
5981 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
5982 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
5983 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
5984 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
5985 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
5986 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
5987 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
5989 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
5990 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
5991 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
5992 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
5993 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
5994 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
5995 Default is @code{t}.
6001 @subsection Viewing Files
6002 @cindex viewing files
6003 @cindex pseudo-articles
6005 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
6006 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
6007 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
6008 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
6009 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
6010 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
6011 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
6013 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
6014 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
6015 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
6016 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
6018 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
6019 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
6020 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
6022 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
6023 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
6024 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
6025 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
6026 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
6028 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
6029 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
6030 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
6031 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
6032 a list of parameters to that command.
6034 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
6035 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
6036 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
6038 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
6039 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
6040 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
6043 @node Article Treatment
6044 @section Article Treatment
6046 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
6047 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
6048 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
6049 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
6050 these articles easier.
6053 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
6054 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
6055 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
6056 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
6057 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
6058 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
6059 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
6063 @node Article Highlighting
6064 @subsection Article Highlighting
6067 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
6068 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
6073 @kindex W H a (Summary)
6074 @findex gnus-article-highlight
6075 Highlight the current article (@code{gnus-article-highlight}).
6078 @kindex W H h (Summary)
6079 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
6080 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
6081 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
6082 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
6083 variable, which is a list where each element has the form @var{(regexp
6084 name content)}. @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
6085 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
6086 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
6087 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
6088 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
6091 @kindex W H c (Summary)
6092 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
6093 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
6095 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
6098 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6100 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6101 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
6102 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
6104 @item gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6105 @vindex gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6106 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
6108 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
6109 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
6110 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
6112 @item gnus-cite-face-list
6113 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
6114 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
6115 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
6116 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
6117 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
6119 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
6120 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
6121 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
6123 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
6124 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
6125 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
6127 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
6128 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
6129 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
6130 that it's a citation.
6132 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
6133 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
6134 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
6136 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
6137 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
6138 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
6140 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
6141 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
6142 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
6143 cited text belonging to the attribution.
6149 @kindex W H s (Summary)
6150 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6151 @vindex gnus-signature-face
6152 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
6153 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
6154 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
6155 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
6156 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
6162 @node Article Fontisizing
6163 @subsection Article Fontisizing
6165 @cindex article emphasis
6167 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
6168 @kindex W e (Summary)
6169 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
6170 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*}. Gnus can make this look nicer by
6171 running the article through the @kbd{W e}
6172 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
6174 @vindex gnus-article-emphasis
6175 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
6176 @code{gnus-article-emphasis} variable. This is an alist where the first
6177 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
6178 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
6179 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
6180 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
6181 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
6185 (setq gnus-article-emphasis
6186 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
6187 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
6190 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
6191 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
6192 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
6193 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
6194 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
6195 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
6196 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
6197 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
6198 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
6199 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
6200 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
6201 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
6202 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
6204 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
6205 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
6206 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
6210 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
6214 @node Article Hiding
6215 @subsection Article Hiding
6216 @cindex article hiding
6218 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
6219 too much cruft in most articles.
6224 @kindex W W a (Summary)
6225 @findex gnus-article-hide
6226 Do quote a lot of hiding on the article buffer
6227 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
6228 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
6231 @kindex W W h (Summary)
6232 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
6233 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
6237 @kindex W W b (Summary)
6238 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
6239 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
6240 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
6243 @kindex W W s (Summary)
6244 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
6245 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
6249 @kindex W W p (Summary)
6250 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
6251 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
6252 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
6253 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
6254 signature has been hidden.
6257 @kindex W W P (Summary)
6258 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
6259 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
6260 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
6263 @kindex W W c (Summary)
6264 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
6265 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
6266 customizing the hiding:
6270 @item gnus-cited-text-button-line-format
6271 @vindex gnus-cited-text-button-line-format
6272 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
6273 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
6274 by this format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
6279 Start point of the hidden text.
6281 End point of the hidden text.
6283 Length of the hidden text.
6286 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
6287 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
6288 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave shown.
6293 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
6294 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
6296 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
6297 following two variables:
6300 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6301 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6302 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
6303 50), hide the cited text.
6305 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6306 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6307 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
6312 @kindex W W C (Summary)
6313 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
6314 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
6315 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
6316 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
6317 in @code{gnus-article-display-hook} (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
6321 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
6322 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
6323 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
6325 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
6326 citation customization.
6329 @node Article Washing
6330 @subsection Article Washing
6332 @cindex article washing
6334 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
6335 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
6337 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
6338 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
6344 @kindex W l (Summary)
6345 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
6346 Remove page breaks from the current article
6347 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article} for page
6351 @kindex W r (Summary)
6352 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
6353 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
6354 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
6355 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
6356 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
6357 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
6359 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
6360 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
6361 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
6362 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
6365 @kindex W t (Summary)
6366 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
6367 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
6368 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
6371 @kindex W v (Summary)
6372 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
6373 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
6374 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
6377 @kindex W m (Summary)
6378 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-mime
6379 Toggle whether to run the article through @sc{mime} before displaying
6380 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-mime}).
6383 @kindex W o (Summary)
6384 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
6385 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
6388 @kindex W d (Summary)
6389 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
6390 Treat M******** sm*rtq**t*s (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}).
6393 @kindex W w (Summary)
6394 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
6395 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}). If you use this
6396 function in @code{gnus-article-display-hook}, it should be run fairly
6397 late and certainly after any highlighting.
6399 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
6403 @kindex W c (Summary)
6404 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
6405 Remove CR (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines)
6406 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
6409 @kindex W q (Summary)
6410 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
6411 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
6412 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
6413 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
6414 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
6418 @kindex W f (Summary)
6420 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
6421 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
6422 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
6423 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
6429 Look for and display any X-Face headers
6430 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
6431 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
6432 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
6433 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
6434 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
6435 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
6436 The default action under Emacs is to fork off an @code{xv} to view the
6437 face; under XEmacs the default action is to display the face before the
6438 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
6439 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
6440 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
6441 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and friends.) If you
6442 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
6446 @kindex W b (Summary)
6447 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
6448 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
6449 @xref{Article Buttons}
6452 @kindex W B (Summary)
6453 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
6454 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
6455 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
6458 @kindex W E l (Summary)
6459 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
6460 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
6461 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
6464 @kindex W E m (Summary)
6465 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
6466 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
6467 lines with a single empty line.
6468 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
6471 @kindex W E t (Summary)
6472 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
6473 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
6474 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
6477 @kindex W E a (Summary)
6478 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
6479 Do all the three commands above
6480 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
6483 @kindex W E A (Summary)
6484 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
6485 Remove all blank lines
6486 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
6489 @kindex W E s (Summary)
6490 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
6491 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
6492 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
6497 @node Article Buttons
6498 @subsection Article Buttons
6501 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
6502 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
6503 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
6504 button on these references.
6506 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
6507 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
6508 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
6513 @item gnus-button-alist
6514 @vindex gnus-button-alist
6515 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
6518 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6524 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
6525 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
6526 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
6529 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
6530 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
6531 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
6534 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
6535 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
6536 avoid false matches.
6539 This function will be called when you click on this button.
6542 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
6543 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
6547 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
6550 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
6553 @item gnus-header-button-alist
6554 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
6555 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
6556 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
6557 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
6560 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6563 @var{HEADER} is a regular expression.
6565 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
6566 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
6567 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
6568 default values of the variables above.
6570 @item gnus-article-button-face
6571 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
6572 Face used on buttons.
6574 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
6575 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
6576 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
6582 @subsection Article Date
6584 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
6585 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
6586 when the article was sent.
6591 @kindex W T u (Summary)
6592 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
6593 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
6594 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
6597 @kindex W T i (Summary)
6598 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
6600 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
6601 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
6604 @kindex W T l (Summary)
6605 @findex gnus-article-date-local
6606 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
6609 @kindex W T s (Summary)
6610 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
6611 @findex gnus-article-date-user
6612 @findex format-time-string
6613 Display the date using a user-defined format
6614 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
6615 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
6616 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
6617 for a list of possible format specs.
6620 @kindex W T e (Summary)
6621 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
6622 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
6623 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
6624 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
6625 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). If you want to have this line
6626 updated continually, you can put
6629 (gnus-start-date-timer)
6632 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
6633 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
6637 @kindex W T o (Summary)
6638 @findex gnus-article-date-original
6639 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
6640 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
6641 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
6642 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
6643 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
6648 @node Article Signature
6649 @subsection Article Signature
6651 @cindex article signature
6653 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6654 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
6655 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
6656 that says what is to be considered a signature is
6657 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
6658 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
6659 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
6660 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
6661 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
6664 (setq gnus-signature-separator
6665 '("^-- $" ; The standard
6666 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
6667 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
6668 ; line of dashes. Shame!
6669 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
6670 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
6671 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
6674 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
6677 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
6678 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
6683 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
6686 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
6689 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
6690 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
6692 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
6693 in question is not a signature.
6696 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
6697 listed above. Here's an example:
6700 (setq gnus-signature-limit
6701 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
6704 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
6705 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
6706 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
6707 signature after all.
6710 @node Article Commands
6711 @section Article Commands
6718 @kindex A P (Summary)
6719 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
6720 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
6721 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
6722 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
6723 run just before printing the buffer.
6728 @node Summary Sorting
6729 @section Summary Sorting
6730 @cindex summary sorting
6732 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
6733 can't really see why you'd want that.
6738 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
6739 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
6740 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
6743 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
6744 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
6745 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
6748 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
6749 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
6750 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
6753 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
6754 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
6755 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
6758 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
6759 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
6760 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
6763 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
6764 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
6765 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
6768 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
6769 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
6770 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
6771 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
6772 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
6776 @node Finding the Parent
6777 @section Finding the Parent
6778 @cindex parent articles
6779 @cindex referring articles
6784 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
6785 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
6786 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
6787 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
6788 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
6789 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
6790 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
6791 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
6792 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
6794 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
6795 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
6796 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
6797 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
6798 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
6802 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
6803 @kindex A R (Summary)
6804 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
6805 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
6808 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
6809 @kindex A T (Summary)
6810 Display the full thread where the current article appears
6811 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
6812 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
6813 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
6814 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
6815 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
6816 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
6818 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
6819 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
6820 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
6821 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
6822 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
6823 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
6826 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
6827 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
6829 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
6830 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
6831 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
6832 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
6833 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
6834 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
6835 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
6838 The current select method will be used when fetching by
6839 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
6840 by giving this command a prefix.
6842 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
6843 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
6844 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
6845 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
6846 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
6847 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
6850 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
6851 not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
6852 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
6853 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
6854 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
6855 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
6858 @node Alternative Approaches
6859 @section Alternative Approaches
6861 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
6862 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
6865 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
6866 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
6871 @subsection Pick and Read
6872 @cindex pick and read
6874 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
6875 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
6876 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
6877 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
6879 @findex gnus-pick-mode
6880 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
6881 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
6882 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
6883 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
6884 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
6886 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
6891 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
6892 Pick the article or thread on the current line
6893 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
6894 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
6895 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
6896 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
6897 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
6898 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
6901 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
6902 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
6903 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
6904 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
6908 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
6909 Unpick the thread or article
6910 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
6911 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
6912 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
6913 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
6914 the thread or article at that line.
6918 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
6919 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
6920 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
6921 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
6922 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
6923 will still be visible when you are reading.
6927 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
6928 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
6929 which is mapped to the same function
6930 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
6932 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
6935 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
6938 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
6939 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
6941 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
6942 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
6943 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
6945 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
6946 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
6947 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
6948 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
6949 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
6950 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
6951 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
6955 @subsection Binary Groups
6956 @cindex binary groups
6958 @findex gnus-binary-mode
6959 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
6960 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
6961 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
6962 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
6963 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
6964 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
6967 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
6968 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
6969 command, when you have turned on this mode
6970 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
6972 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
6973 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
6977 @section Tree Display
6980 @vindex gnus-use-trees
6981 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
6982 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
6983 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
6986 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
6989 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
6990 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
6991 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
6993 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
6994 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
6995 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
6996 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
6997 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
6999 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
7000 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
7001 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
7002 default is @code{modeline}.
7004 @item gnus-tree-line-format
7005 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
7006 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
7007 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
7008 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
7009 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
7010 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
7016 The name of the poster.
7018 The @code{From} header.
7020 The number of the article.
7022 The opening bracket.
7024 The closing bracket.
7029 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
7031 Variables related to the display are:
7034 @item gnus-tree-brackets
7035 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
7036 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
7037 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @var{((real-open . real-close)
7038 (sparse-open . sparse-close) (dummy-open . dummy-close))}, and the
7039 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
7041 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
7042 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
7043 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
7044 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
7048 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
7049 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
7050 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
7051 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
7052 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
7053 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
7054 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
7055 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
7056 other windows displayed next to it.
7058 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
7059 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
7060 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
7061 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
7062 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
7063 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
7064 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
7068 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
7071 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
7081 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
7085 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
7086 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
7088 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
7090 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
7095 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
7096 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
7097 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
7100 (setq gnus-use-trees t
7101 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
7102 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
7103 (gnus-add-configuration
7107 (summary 0.75 point)
7112 @xref{Windows Configuration}.
7115 @node Mail Group Commands
7116 @section Mail Group Commands
7117 @cindex mail group commands
7119 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
7120 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
7122 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
7123 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7128 @kindex B e (Summary)
7129 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
7130 Expire all expirable articles in the group
7131 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}).
7134 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
7135 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
7136 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
7137 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
7138 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
7139 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
7142 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
7143 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
7144 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
7145 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
7146 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
7147 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
7150 @kindex B m (Summary)
7152 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
7153 Move the article from one mail group to another
7154 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
7157 @kindex B c (Summary)
7159 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
7160 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
7161 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
7162 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}).
7165 @kindex B B (Summary)
7166 @cindex crosspost mail
7167 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
7168 Crosspost the current article to some other group
7169 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
7170 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
7171 be properly updated.
7174 @kindex B i (Summary)
7175 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
7176 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
7177 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
7178 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
7181 @kindex B r (Summary)
7182 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
7183 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
7184 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
7185 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
7186 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
7190 @kindex B w (Summary)
7192 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
7193 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
7194 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
7195 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
7196 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
7197 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
7200 @kindex B q (Summary)
7201 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
7202 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
7203 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
7204 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
7207 @kindex B t (Summary)
7208 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
7209 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
7210 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
7213 @kindex B p (Summary)
7214 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
7215 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
7216 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
7217 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
7218 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
7219 article from your news server (or rather, from
7220 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
7221 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
7222 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
7223 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
7224 just not have arrived yet.
7228 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
7229 @cindex moving articles
7230 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
7231 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
7232 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
7233 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
7234 suggestions you find reasonable.
7237 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
7238 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
7239 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
7240 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
7244 @node Various Summary Stuff
7245 @section Various Summary Stuff
7248 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
7249 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
7250 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
7251 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
7255 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
7256 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
7257 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
7259 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
7260 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
7261 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
7262 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
7263 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
7264 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
7267 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7268 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7269 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
7270 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
7271 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
7273 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7274 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7275 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
7276 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
7277 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
7278 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
7279 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
7280 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
7281 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
7282 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
7287 @node Summary Group Information
7288 @subsection Summary Group Information
7293 @kindex H f (Summary)
7294 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
7295 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
7296 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
7297 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
7298 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
7299 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
7300 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
7301 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
7302 be used for fetching the file.
7305 @kindex H d (Summary)
7306 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
7307 Give a brief description of the current group
7308 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
7309 rereading the description from the server.
7312 @kindex H h (Summary)
7313 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
7314 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
7315 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
7318 @kindex H i (Summary)
7319 @findex gnus-info-find-node
7320 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
7324 @node Searching for Articles
7325 @subsection Searching for Articles
7330 @kindex M-s (Summary)
7331 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
7332 Search through all subsequent articles for a regexp
7333 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
7336 @kindex M-r (Summary)
7337 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
7338 Search through all previous articles for a regexp
7339 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
7343 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
7344 This command will prompt you for a header field, a regular expression to
7345 match on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
7346 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If given a prefix, search
7350 @kindex M-& (Summary)
7351 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
7352 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
7353 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
7356 @node Summary Generation Commands
7357 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
7362 @kindex Y g (Summary)
7363 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
7364 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
7367 @kindex Y c (Summary)
7368 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
7369 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
7370 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
7375 @node Really Various Summary Commands
7376 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
7381 @kindex C-d (Summary)
7382 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
7383 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
7384 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
7385 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
7386 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
7387 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
7388 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
7389 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
7393 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
7394 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
7395 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
7396 several documents into one biiig group
7397 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
7398 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
7399 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
7400 command understands the process/prefix convention
7401 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7404 @kindex C-t (Summary)
7405 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
7406 Toggle truncation of summary lines
7407 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
7408 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
7409 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
7413 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
7414 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
7415 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
7418 @kindex M-C-e (Summary)
7419 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
7420 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
7421 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
7426 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
7427 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
7428 @cindex summary exit
7429 @cindex exiting groups
7431 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
7432 group and return you to the group buffer.
7438 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
7440 @findex gnus-summary-exit
7441 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
7442 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
7443 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
7444 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
7445 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
7446 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
7447 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
7448 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
7449 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
7450 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
7454 @kindex Z E (Summary)
7456 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
7457 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
7458 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
7462 @kindex Z c (Summary)
7464 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
7465 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
7466 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
7467 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
7470 @kindex Z C (Summary)
7471 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
7472 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
7473 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
7476 @kindex Z n (Summary)
7477 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
7478 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
7479 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
7482 @kindex Z R (Summary)
7483 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
7484 Exit this group, and then enter it again
7485 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
7486 all articles, both read and unread.
7490 @kindex Z G (Summary)
7491 @kindex M-g (Summary)
7492 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
7493 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
7494 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
7495 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
7496 articles, both read and unread.
7499 @kindex Z N (Summary)
7500 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
7501 Exit the group and go to the next group
7502 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
7505 @kindex Z P (Summary)
7506 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
7507 Exit the group and go to the previous group
7508 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
7511 @kindex Z s (Summary)
7512 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
7513 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
7514 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
7515 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
7516 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
7519 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
7520 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current
7523 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
7524 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
7525 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
7526 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
7527 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
7528 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
7529 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
7530 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
7531 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
7532 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
7533 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
7534 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
7536 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
7538 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
7539 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
7540 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
7541 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
7542 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
7543 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
7544 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
7545 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
7546 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
7549 @node Crosspost Handling
7550 @section Crosspost Handling
7554 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
7555 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
7556 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
7557 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
7558 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
7559 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
7562 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
7563 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
7564 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
7565 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
7566 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
7568 @cindex cross-posting
7571 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
7572 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
7573 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
7574 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
7575 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
7576 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
7577 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
7578 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
7579 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
7580 the cross reference mechanism.
7582 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
7583 @cindex overview.fmt
7584 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
7585 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
7586 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
7587 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
7588 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
7589 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
7592 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
7593 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
7594 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
7599 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
7602 @node Duplicate Suppression
7603 @section Duplicate Suppression
7605 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
7606 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
7607 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
7608 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
7613 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
7614 is evil and not very common.
7617 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
7618 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
7621 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
7622 different @sc{nntp} servers.
7625 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
7628 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
7629 well, but these four are the most common situations.
7631 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
7632 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
7633 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
7634 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
7635 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
7636 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
7637 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
7640 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
7641 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
7642 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
7643 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
7644 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
7648 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
7649 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
7650 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
7652 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
7653 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
7654 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
7655 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
7656 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
7657 session are suppressed.
7659 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
7660 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
7661 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
7662 suppression list. The default is 10000.
7664 @item gnus-duplicate-file
7665 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
7666 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
7667 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
7670 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
7671 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
7672 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
7673 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
7674 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
7675 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
7676 to you to figure out, I think.
7679 @node The Article Buffer
7680 @chapter The Article Buffer
7681 @cindex article buffer
7683 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
7684 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
7685 tell Gnus otherwise.
7688 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
7689 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
7690 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
7691 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
7692 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
7696 @node Hiding Headers
7697 @section Hiding Headers
7698 @cindex hiding headers
7699 @cindex deleting headers
7701 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
7702 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
7704 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
7705 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
7706 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
7707 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
7708 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
7709 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
7710 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
7711 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
7712 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
7714 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
7718 @item gnus-visible-headers
7719 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
7720 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
7721 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
7722 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
7724 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
7725 the article and the subject, you'd say:
7728 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
7731 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
7734 @item gnus-ignored-headers
7735 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
7736 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
7737 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
7738 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
7739 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
7741 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
7742 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
7745 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
7748 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
7751 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
7752 variable will have no effect.
7756 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
7757 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
7758 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
7759 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
7760 the headers are to be displayed.
7762 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
7763 and then the subject, you might say something like:
7766 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
7769 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
7770 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
7772 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7773 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7774 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
7775 You can hide further boring headers by entering
7776 @code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers} into
7777 @code{gnus-article-display-hook}. What this function does depends on
7778 the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a list, but this
7779 list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is lists various
7780 @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove from sight.
7782 These conditions are:
7785 Remove all empty headers.
7787 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
7788 @code{Newsgroups} header.
7790 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
7793 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
7796 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
7799 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
7801 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
7804 To include the four three elements, you could say something like;
7807 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
7808 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
7811 This is also the default value for this variable.
7815 @section Using @sc{mime}
7818 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
7819 while people stand around yawning.
7821 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
7822 while all newsreaders die of fear.
7824 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
7825 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
7826 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
7828 @vindex gnus-show-mime
7829 @vindex gnus-show-mime-method
7830 @vindex gnus-strict-mime
7831 @findex metamail-buffer
7832 Gnus handles @sc{mime} by pushing the articles through
7833 @code{gnus-show-mime-method}, which is @code{metamail-buffer} by
7834 default. This function calls the external @code{metamail} program to
7835 actually do the work. One common problem with this program is that is
7836 thinks that it can't display 8-bit things in the Emacs buffer. To tell
7837 it the truth, put something like the following in your
7838 @file{.bash_profile} file. (You do use @code{bash}, don't you?)
7841 export MM_CHARSET="iso-8859-1"
7844 For more information on @code{metamail}, see its manual page.
7846 Set @code{gnus-show-mime} to @code{t} if you want to use
7847 @sc{mime} all the time. However, if @code{gnus-strict-mime} is
7848 non-@code{nil}, the @sc{mime} method will only be used if there are
7849 @sc{mime} headers in the article. If you have @code{gnus-show-mime}
7850 set, then you'll see some unfortunate display glitches in the article
7851 buffer. These can't be avoided.
7853 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the summary
7854 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
7855 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
7856 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
7857 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume
7858 button, because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you,
7859 and you try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the
7860 program to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly
7861 decides to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
7863 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
7866 @node Customizing Articles
7867 @section Customizing Articles
7868 @cindex article customization
7870 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7871 The @code{gnus-article-display-hook} is called after the article has
7872 been inserted into the article buffer. It is meant to handle all
7873 treatment of the article before it is displayed.
7875 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7876 By default this hook just contains @code{gnus-article-hide-headers},
7877 @code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}, and
7878 @code{gnus-article-maybe-highlight}, but there are thousands, nay
7879 millions, of functions you can put in this hook. For an overview of
7880 functions @pxref{Article Highlighting}, @pxref{Article Hiding},
7881 @pxref{Article Washing}, @pxref{Article Buttons} and @pxref{Article
7882 Date}. Note that the order of functions in this hook might affect
7883 things, so you may have to fiddle a bit to get the desired results.
7885 You can, of course, write your own functions. The functions are called
7886 from the article buffer, and you can do anything you like, pretty much.
7887 There is no information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can
7888 change everything. However, you shouldn't delete any headers. Instead
7889 make them invisible if you want to make them go away.
7892 @node Article Keymap
7893 @section Article Keymap
7895 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
7896 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
7897 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
7898 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
7901 A few additional keystrokes are available:
7906 @kindex SPACE (Article)
7907 @findex gnus-article-next-page
7908 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
7911 @kindex DEL (Article)
7912 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
7913 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
7916 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
7917 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
7918 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
7919 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
7920 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
7923 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
7924 @findex gnus-article-mail
7925 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
7926 given a prefix, include the mail.
7930 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
7931 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
7932 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
7936 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
7937 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
7938 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
7941 @kindex TAB (Article)
7942 @findex gnus-article-next-button
7943 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
7944 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
7947 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
7948 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
7949 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
7955 @section Misc Article
7959 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
7960 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
7961 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
7962 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
7965 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
7966 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
7967 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
7968 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
7969 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
7970 the contents of the article buffer.
7972 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7973 @item gnus-article-display-hook
7974 This hook is called as the last thing when displaying an article, and is
7975 intended for modifying the contents of the buffer, doing highlights,
7976 hiding headers, and the like.
7978 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
7979 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
7980 Hook called in article mode buffers.
7982 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
7983 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
7984 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
7985 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
7987 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
7988 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
7989 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
7990 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
7991 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with one
7996 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
7997 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
8001 @vindex gnus-break-pages
8003 @item gnus-break-pages
8004 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
8005 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
8006 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
8007 paging will not be done.
8009 @item gnus-page-delimiter
8010 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
8011 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
8016 @node Composing Messages
8017 @chapter Composing Messages
8018 @cindex composing messages
8021 @cindex sending mail
8026 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
8027 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
8028 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the article
8029 by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The Message
8030 Manual}. If you are in a foreign news group, and you wish to post the
8031 article using the foreign server, you can give a prefix to @kbd{C-c C-c}
8032 to make Gnus try to post using the foreign server.
8035 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
8036 * Post:: Posting and following up.
8037 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
8038 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
8039 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
8040 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
8041 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
8042 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
8045 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
8046 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
8052 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
8055 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
8056 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
8057 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
8058 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
8060 @item gnus-add-to-list
8061 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
8062 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
8063 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
8071 Variables for composing news articles:
8074 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-file
8075 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-file
8076 Gnus will keep a @code{Message-ID} history file of all the mails it has
8077 sent. If it discovers that it has already sent a mail, it will ask the
8078 user whether to re-send the mail. (This is primarily useful when
8079 dealing with @sc{soup} packets and the like where one is apt to send the
8080 same packet multiple times.) This variable says what the name of this
8081 history file is. It is @file{~/News/Sent-Message-IDs} by default. Set
8082 this variable to @code{nil} if you don't want Gnus to keep a history
8085 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-length
8086 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-length
8087 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the history
8088 file. It is 1000 by default.
8093 @node Posting Server
8094 @section Posting Server
8096 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
8097 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
8099 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
8101 @vindex gnus-post-method
8103 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will use the same native
8104 server. However. If your native server doesn't allow posting, just
8105 reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
8106 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
8107 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
8110 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
8113 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
8114 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
8115 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
8116 the ``current'' server for posting.
8118 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
8119 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
8121 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
8122 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
8125 Finally, if you want to always post using the same select method as
8126 you're reading from (which might be convenient if you're reading lots of
8127 groups from different private servers), you can set this variable to
8132 @section Mail and Post
8134 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
8138 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
8139 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
8140 @cindex mailing lists
8142 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
8143 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
8144 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
8145 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
8146 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
8147 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
8148 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
8149 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
8150 still a pain, though.
8154 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
8155 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
8156 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
8159 @findex ispell-message
8161 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
8165 @node Archived Messages
8166 @section Archived Messages
8167 @cindex archived messages
8168 @cindex sent messages
8170 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
8171 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
8172 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
8173 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
8176 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
8177 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
8178 use to store sent messages. The default is:
8182 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
8183 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
8184 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
8185 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
8188 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
8189 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likeable select method
8190 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
8191 directory chosen, you could say something like:
8194 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
8195 '(nnfolder "archive"
8196 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
8197 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
8198 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
8201 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
8203 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
8204 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
8205 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
8207 This variable can be used to do the following:
8211 Messages will be saved in that group.
8212 @item a list of strings
8213 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
8214 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
8215 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
8217 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
8222 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
8224 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
8227 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
8229 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
8232 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
8234 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8235 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
8236 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
8237 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
8242 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8243 '((if (message-news-p)
8248 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
8249 messages in one file per month:
8252 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8253 '((if (message-news-p)
8255 (concat "mail." (format-time-string
8256 "%Y-%m" (current-time))))))
8259 (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
8260 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
8262 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
8263 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
8264 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
8265 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
8266 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
8267 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
8268 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
8269 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
8270 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
8271 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
8273 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
8274 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
8275 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
8276 this will disable archiving.
8279 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
8280 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
8281 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
8282 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
8283 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
8286 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
8287 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
8288 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
8291 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
8292 but the latter is the preferred method.
8296 @node Posting Styles
8297 @section Posting Styles
8298 @cindex posting styles
8301 All them variables, they make my head swim.
8303 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
8304 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
8305 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
8308 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
8309 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
8310 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
8311 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
8312 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
8317 (signature "Peace and happiness")
8318 (organization "What me?"))
8320 (signature "Death to everybody"))
8321 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
8322 (organization "Emacs is it")))
8325 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
8326 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
8327 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
8328 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
8329 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
8330 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
8331 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
8332 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
8334 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
8335 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
8336 If it's a function symbol, that function will be called with no
8337 arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
8338 referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
8339 any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is said
8342 Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
8343 attribute consists of a @var{(name . value)} pair. The attribute name
8344 can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
8345 @code{organization}, @code{address} or @code{name}. The attribute name
8346 can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as a header name,
8347 and the value will be inserted in the headers of the article.
8349 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function (the
8350 return value will be used), a variable (its value will be used) or a
8351 list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value will be used).
8353 So here's a new example:
8356 (setq gnus-posting-styles
8358 (signature-file "~/.signature")
8360 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
8361 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
8363 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
8364 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
8365 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
8366 (posting-from-work-p
8367 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
8368 (address "user@@bar.foo")
8369 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
8371 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
8379 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
8380 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
8381 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
8382 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
8383 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
8385 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
8386 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
8387 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
8388 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
8389 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
8393 @vindex nndraft-directory
8394 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
8395 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
8396 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
8397 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
8398 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
8399 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
8401 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
8402 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
8405 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
8406 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
8407 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
8408 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
8409 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
8410 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
8411 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
8412 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
8413 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
8414 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
8415 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
8416 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
8417 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
8418 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
8420 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
8421 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
8422 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
8424 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
8426 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
8427 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
8428 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
8430 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
8433 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
8434 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
8435 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
8436 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
8437 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
8438 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
8439 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
8442 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
8443 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
8444 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
8447 @node Rejected Articles
8448 @section Rejected Articles
8449 @cindex rejected articles
8451 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
8452 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
8453 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
8454 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
8456 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
8457 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
8458 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
8459 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
8460 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
8462 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
8463 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
8464 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
8467 @node Select Methods
8468 @chapter Select Methods
8469 @cindex foreign groups
8470 @cindex select methods
8472 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
8473 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
8474 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
8475 personal mail group.
8477 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
8478 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
8479 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
8480 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
8481 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
8482 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
8484 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
8485 we do just that (@pxref{The Server Buffer}).
8487 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
8490 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
8491 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
8492 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
8493 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
8494 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
8496 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
8499 * The Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
8500 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
8501 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
8502 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
8503 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
8504 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
8508 @node The Server Buffer
8509 @section The Server Buffer
8511 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
8512 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
8513 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
8514 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
8515 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
8516 backend represents a virtual server.
8518 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
8519 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
8520 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
8521 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
8523 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
8524 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
8525 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
8526 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
8527 Anyways, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
8528 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
8529 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
8531 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
8532 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
8535 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
8536 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
8537 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
8538 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
8539 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
8540 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
8541 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
8544 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
8545 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
8548 @node Server Buffer Format
8549 @subsection Server Buffer Format
8550 @cindex server buffer format
8552 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
8553 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
8554 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
8555 variable, with some simple extensions:
8560 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
8563 The name of this server.
8566 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
8569 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
8572 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
8573 The mode line can also be customized by using the
8574 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
8575 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
8585 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
8588 @node Server Commands
8589 @subsection Server Commands
8590 @cindex server commands
8596 @findex gnus-server-add-server
8597 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
8601 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
8602 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
8605 @kindex SPACE (Server)
8606 @findex gnus-server-read-server
8607 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
8611 @findex gnus-server-exit
8612 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
8616 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
8617 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
8621 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
8622 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
8626 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
8627 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
8631 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
8632 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
8636 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
8637 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
8638 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
8643 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
8644 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
8645 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
8646 a mail backend that has gotten out of synch.
8651 @node Example Methods
8652 @subsection Example Methods
8654 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
8657 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
8660 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
8666 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
8667 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
8670 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
8671 @var{(variable form)} pairs.
8673 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
8674 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
8678 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
8681 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
8682 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
8684 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
8685 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
8686 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
8690 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
8693 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
8696 Here's the method for a public spool:
8700 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
8701 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
8704 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
8705 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
8706 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
8707 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
8708 should probably look something like this:
8712 (nntp-address "the.firewall.machine")
8713 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
8714 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
8715 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
8716 ("telnet" "the.real.nntp.host" "nntp")))
8719 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
8720 compressed connection over the modem line, you could create a virtual
8721 server that would look something like this:
8725 (nntp-address "copper.uio.no")
8726 (nntp-rlogin-program "ssh")
8727 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
8728 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
8729 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
8730 ("telnet" "news.uio.no" "nntp")))
8733 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
8734 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
8735 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
8736 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
8739 @node Creating a Virtual Server
8740 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
8742 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
8743 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
8745 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
8746 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
8747 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
8749 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
8751 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
8752 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
8753 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
8754 will contain the following:
8764 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
8765 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
8766 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
8769 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
8770 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
8771 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
8774 @node Server Variables
8775 @subsection Server Variables
8777 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
8778 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
8779 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
8780 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
8781 won't change the "derived" variables.
8783 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
8784 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
8785 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
8786 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
8787 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
8788 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
8789 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
8790 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
8791 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
8795 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
8796 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
8797 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
8801 @node Servers and Methods
8802 @subsection Servers and Methods
8804 Wherever you would normally use a select method
8805 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
8806 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
8807 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
8811 @node Unavailable Servers
8812 @subsection Unavailable Servers
8814 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
8815 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
8816 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
8817 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
8818 actually the case or not.
8820 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
8821 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
8822 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
8823 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
8824 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
8825 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
8826 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
8827 it will regard that server as ``down''.
8829 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
8830 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
8832 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{The Server Buffer}) and poke it
8833 with the following commands:
8839 @findex gnus-server-open-server
8840 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
8841 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
8845 @findex gnus-server-close-server
8846 Close the connection (if any) to the server
8847 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
8851 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
8852 Mark the current server as unreachable
8853 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
8856 @kindex M-o (Server)
8857 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
8858 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
8859 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
8862 @kindex M-c (Server)
8863 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
8864 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
8865 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
8869 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
8870 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
8871 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
8877 @section Getting News
8878 @cindex reading news
8879 @cindex news backends
8881 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
8882 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
8883 or it can read from a local spool.
8886 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
8887 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
8892 @subsection @sc{nntp}
8895 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
8896 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
8897 server as the, uhm, address.
8899 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
8900 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
8901 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
8902 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
8904 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
8905 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
8906 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
8908 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
8913 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
8914 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
8915 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
8917 @cindex authentification
8918 @cindex nntp authentification
8919 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
8920 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
8921 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
8922 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
8923 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
8924 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
8925 present in this hook.
8927 @item nntp-authinfo-function
8928 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
8929 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
8930 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
8931 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
8932 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
8933 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
8934 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
8935 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
8936 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
8937 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
8938 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
8942 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
8945 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs. The
8946 valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
8947 @samp{default} and @samp{force}. (The latter is not a valid
8948 @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} token, which is the only way the
8949 @file{.authinfo} file format deviates from the @file{.netrc} file
8954 Here's an example file:
8957 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
8958 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
8961 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
8962 have to be first, for instance.
8964 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
8965 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
8966 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
8967 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
8968 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
8969 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
8970 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
8972 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
8973 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
8979 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
8980 previously mentioned.
8982 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
8984 @item nntp-server-action-alist
8985 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
8986 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
8987 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
8988 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
8991 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
8995 You probably don't want to do that, though.
8997 The default value is
9000 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
9001 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
9004 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
9005 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
9007 @item nntp-maximum-request
9008 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
9009 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
9010 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
9011 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
9012 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
9013 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
9014 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
9016 @c @item nntp-connection-timeout
9017 @c @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
9018 @c If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
9019 @c regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
9020 @c responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
9021 @c time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
9022 @c somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
9023 @c that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
9024 @c connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
9025 @c no timeouts are done.
9027 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
9028 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
9029 @c @cindex PPP connections
9030 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
9031 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
9032 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
9033 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
9034 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
9035 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
9036 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
9037 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
9038 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
9039 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
9041 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
9042 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
9043 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
9044 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
9047 @item nntp-server-hook
9048 @vindex nntp-server-hook
9049 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
9052 @findex nntp-open-rlogin
9053 @findex nntp-open-telnet
9054 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
9055 @item nntp-open-connection-function
9056 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
9057 This function is used to connect to the remote system. Four pre-made
9058 functions are supplied:
9061 @item nntp-open-network-stream
9062 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
9065 @item nntp-open-rlogin
9066 Does an @samp{rlogin} on the
9067 remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet} to the @sc{nntp} server
9070 @code{nntp-open-rlogin}-related variables:
9074 @item nntp-rlogin-program
9075 @vindex nntp-rlogin-program
9076 Program used to log in on remote machines. The default is @samp{rsh},
9077 but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
9079 @item nntp-rlogin-parameters
9080 @vindex nntp-rlogin-parameters
9081 This list will be used as the parameter list given to @code{rsh}.
9083 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
9084 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
9085 User name on the remote system.
9089 @item nntp-open-telnet
9090 Does a @samp{telnet} to the remote system and then another @samp{telnet}
9091 to get to the @sc{nntp} server.
9093 @code{nntp-open-telnet}-related variables:
9096 @item nntp-telnet-command
9097 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
9098 Command used to start @code{telnet}.
9100 @item nntp-telnet-switches
9101 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
9102 List of strings to be used as the switches to the @code{telnet} command.
9104 @item nntp-telnet-user-name
9105 @vindex nntp-telnet-user-name
9106 User name for log in on the remote system.
9108 @item nntp-telnet-passwd
9109 @vindex nntp-telnet-passwd
9110 Password to use when logging in.
9112 @item nntp-telnet-parameters
9113 @vindex nntp-telnet-parameters
9114 A list of strings executed as a command after logging in
9117 @item nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
9118 @vindex nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
9119 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the remote machine. The default is
9120 @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
9122 @item nntp-open-telnet-envuser
9123 @vindex nntp-open-telnet-envuser
9124 If non-@code{nil}, the @code{telnet} session (client and server both)
9125 will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for login name.
9126 This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
9130 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
9131 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
9132 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
9133 you must have SSLay installed
9134 (@file{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also need
9135 @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distributeion, for instance). You then
9136 define a server as follows:
9139 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
9141 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
9143 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
9144 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
9145 (nntp-port-number "snews")
9146 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
9151 @item nntp-end-of-line
9152 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
9153 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
9154 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
9155 using @code{rlogin} to talk to the server.
9157 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
9158 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
9159 User name on the remote system when using the @code{rlogin} connect
9163 @vindex nntp-address
9164 The address of the remote system running the @sc{nntp} server.
9166 @item nntp-port-number
9167 @vindex nntp-port-number
9168 Port number to connect to when using the @code{nntp-open-network-stream}
9171 @item nntp-buggy-select
9172 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
9173 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
9175 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
9176 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
9177 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
9178 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
9181 @item nntp-xover-commands
9182 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
9185 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
9186 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
9190 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
9191 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
9192 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
9193 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
9194 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
9195 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
9196 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
9197 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
9198 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
9199 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
9200 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
9202 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
9203 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
9204 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
9206 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
9207 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
9208 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
9209 server closes connection.
9211 @item nntp-record-commands
9212 @vindex nntp-record-commands
9213 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
9214 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestep) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
9215 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
9216 that doesn't seem to work.
9222 @subsection News Spool
9226 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
9227 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
9228 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
9231 Anyways, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
9232 anything else) as the address.
9234 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
9235 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
9236 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
9237 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
9241 @item nnspool-inews-program
9242 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
9243 Program used to post an article.
9245 @item nnspool-inews-switches
9246 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
9247 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
9249 @item nnspool-spool-directory
9250 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
9251 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
9252 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
9254 @item nnspool-nov-directory
9255 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
9256 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
9257 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
9259 @item nnspool-lib-dir
9260 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
9261 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
9263 @item nnspool-active-file
9264 @vindex nnspool-active-file
9265 The path to the active file.
9267 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
9268 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
9269 The path to the group descriptions file.
9271 @item nnspool-history-file
9272 @vindex nnspool-history-file
9273 The path to the news history file.
9275 @item nnspool-active-times-file
9276 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
9277 The path to the active date file.
9279 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
9280 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
9281 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
9284 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
9285 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
9287 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
9288 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
9289 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
9295 @section Getting Mail
9296 @cindex reading mail
9299 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
9303 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
9304 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
9305 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
9306 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
9307 * Mail and Procmail:: Reading mail groups that procmail create.
9308 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
9309 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
9310 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
9311 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
9312 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
9313 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
9317 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
9318 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
9320 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
9321 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
9322 and things will happen automatically.
9324 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
9325 mail" backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
9328 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
9329 '((nnml "private")))
9332 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
9333 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
9334 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
9335 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
9336 like any other group.
9338 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
9341 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9342 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
9343 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
9347 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
9348 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
9349 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
9352 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
9353 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
9354 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
9357 @node Splitting Mail
9358 @subsection Splitting Mail
9359 @cindex splitting mail
9360 @cindex mail splitting
9362 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
9363 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
9364 to be split into groups.
9367 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9368 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
9369 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
9373 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
9374 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
9375 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
9376 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
9377 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
9378 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
9379 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
9382 ("list.\\1" "From:.*\\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
9385 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
9386 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
9387 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
9388 mail belongs in that group.
9390 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
9391 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
9392 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
9393 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
9394 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
9395 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
9397 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
9398 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
9399 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
9400 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
9401 thinks should carry this mail message.
9403 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
9404 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
9405 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
9406 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
9408 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
9409 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
9410 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
9411 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
9412 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
9414 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
9417 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
9418 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
9419 links. If that's the case for you, set
9420 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
9421 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
9423 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
9424 @kindex nnmail-split-history
9425 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
9426 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command.
9428 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
9429 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
9430 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
9431 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
9432 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
9433 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
9434 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
9435 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
9439 @node Mail Backend Variables
9440 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
9442 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
9446 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
9447 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
9448 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
9449 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
9451 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
9452 @item nnmail-spool-file
9456 @vindex nnmail-pop-password
9457 @vindex nnmail-pop-password-required
9458 The backends will look for new mail in this file. If this variable is
9459 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
9460 themselves. If you are using a POP mail server and your name is
9461 @samp{larsi}, you should set this variable to @samp{po:larsi}. If
9462 your name is not @samp{larsi}, you should probably modify that
9463 slightly, but you may have guessed that already, you smart & handsome
9464 devil! You can also set this variable to @code{pop}, and Gnus will try
9465 to figure out the POP mail string by itself. In any case, Gnus will
9466 call @code{movemail} which will contact the POP server named in the
9467 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable. If the POP server needs a
9468 password, you can either set @code{nnmail-pop-password-required} to
9469 @code{t} and be prompted for the password, or set
9470 @code{nnmail-pop-password} to the password itself.
9472 @code{nnmail-spool-file} can also be a list of mailboxes.
9474 Your Emacs has to have been configured with @samp{--with-pop} before
9475 compilation. This is the default, but some installations have it
9478 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
9479 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
9480 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
9481 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
9482 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
9483 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
9485 @vindex nnmail-use-procmail
9486 @vindex nnmail-procmail-suffix
9487 @item nnmail-use-procmail
9488 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will look in
9489 @code{nnmail-procmail-directory} for incoming mail. All the files in
9490 that directory that have names ending in @code{nnmail-procmail-suffix}
9491 will be considered incoming mailboxes, and will be searched for new
9494 @vindex nnmail-crash-box
9495 @item nnmail-crash-box
9496 When a mail backend reads a spool file, mail is first moved to this
9497 file, which is @file{~/.gnus-crash-box} by default. If this file
9498 already exists, it will always be read (and incorporated) before any
9501 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9502 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9503 This is run in a buffer that holds all the new incoming mail, and can be
9504 used for, well, anything, really.
9506 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
9507 @item nnmail-split-hook
9508 @findex article-decode-rfc1522
9509 @findex RFC1522 decoding
9510 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
9511 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
9512 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
9513 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
9514 in the buffer will show up in any files. @code{gnus-article-decode-rfc1522}
9515 is one likely function to add to this hook.
9517 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
9518 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
9519 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
9520 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
9521 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
9522 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
9523 starting to handle the new mail) and
9524 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
9525 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
9526 default file modes the new mail files get:
9529 (add-hook 'gnus-pre-get-new-mail-hook
9530 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
9532 (add-hook 'gnus-post-get-new-mail-hook
9533 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
9536 @item nnmail-tmp-directory
9537 @vindex nnmail-tmp-directory
9538 This variable says where to move incoming mail to -- while processing
9539 it. This is usually done in the same directory that the mail backend
9540 inhabits (e.g., @file{~/Mail/}), but if this variable is non-@code{nil},
9541 it will be used instead.
9543 @item nnmail-movemail-program
9544 @vindex nnmail-movemail-program
9545 This program is executed to move mail from the user's inbox to her home
9546 directory. The default is @samp{movemail}.
9548 This can also be a function. In that case, the function will be called
9549 with two parameters -- the name of the inbox, and the file to be moved
9552 @item nnmail-delete-incoming
9553 @vindex nnmail-delete-incoming
9554 @cindex incoming mail files
9555 @cindex deleting incoming files
9556 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will delete the temporary incoming
9557 file after splitting mail into the proper groups. This is @code{t} by
9560 @c This is @code{nil} by
9561 @c default for reasons of security.
9563 @c Since Red Gnus is an alpha release, it is to be expected to lose mail.
9564 (No Gnus release since (ding) Gnus 0.10 (or something like that) have
9565 lost mail, I think, but that's not the point. (Except certain versions
9566 of Red Gnus.)) By not deleting the Incoming* files, one can be sure not
9567 to lose mail -- if Gnus totally whacks out, one can always recover what
9570 You may delete the @file{Incoming*} files at will.
9572 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
9573 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
9574 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
9575 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
9576 (assuming use of @code{nnml} backend) or files (assuming use of
9577 @code{nnfolder} backend) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
9578 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
9580 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
9581 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
9583 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
9585 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
9586 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
9587 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
9588 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
9589 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
9594 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
9595 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
9596 @cindex mail splitting
9597 @cindex fancy mail splitting
9599 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
9600 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
9601 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
9602 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
9603 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
9604 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
9606 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
9609 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
9610 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
9611 ;; from real errors.
9612 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
9614 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
9615 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
9616 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
9617 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
9618 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
9619 ;; Other mailing lists...
9620 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
9621 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
9623 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
9624 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
9628 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
9629 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
9630 the five possible split syntaxes:
9635 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
9636 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
9640 @var{(FIELD VALUE SPLIT)}: If the split is a list, the first element of
9641 which is a string, then store the message as specified by SPLIT, if
9642 header FIELD (a regexp) contains VALUE (also a regexp).
9645 @var{(| SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
9646 @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each SPLIT until one of them
9647 matches. A SPLIT is said to match if it will cause the mail message to
9648 be stored in one or more groups.
9651 @var{(& SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
9652 @code{&}, then process all SPLITs in the list.
9655 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
9656 this message. Use with extreme caution.
9659 @var{(: function arg1 arg2 ...)}: If the split is a list, and the first
9660 element is @code{:}, then the second element will be called as a
9661 function with @var{args} given as arguments. The function should return
9666 In these splits, @var{FIELD} must match a complete field name.
9667 @var{VALUE} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
9668 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
9669 field names or words. In other words, all @var{VALUE}'s are wrapped in
9670 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
9672 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
9673 @var{FIELD} and @var{VALUE} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
9674 are expanded as specified by the variable
9675 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
9676 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
9679 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
9680 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
9681 when all this splitting is performed.
9683 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
9684 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
9685 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
9688 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
9691 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
9692 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\1}
9693 up to @samp{\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
9694 groupings 1 through 9.
9697 @node Mail and Procmail
9698 @subsection Mail and Procmail
9703 Many people use @code{procmail} (or some other mail filter program or
9704 external delivery agent---@code{slocal}, @code{elm}, etc) to split
9705 incoming mail into groups. If you do that, you should set
9706 @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{procmail} to ensure that the mail
9707 backends never ever try to fetch mail by themselves.
9709 If you have a combined @code{procmail}/POP/mailbox setup, you can do
9710 something like the following:
9712 @vindex nnmail-use-procmail
9714 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
9715 (setq nnmail-spool-file
9716 '("/usr/spool/mail/my-name" "po:my-name"))
9719 This also means that you probably don't want to set
9720 @code{nnmail-split-methods} either, which has some, perhaps, unexpected
9723 When a mail backend is queried for what groups it carries, it replies
9724 with the contents of that variable, along with any groups it has figured
9725 out that it carries by other means. None of the backends, except
9726 @code{nnmh}, actually go out to the disk and check what groups actually
9727 exist. (It's not trivial to distinguish between what the user thinks is
9728 a basis for a newsgroup and what is just a plain old file or directory.)
9730 This means that you have to tell Gnus (and the backends) by hand what
9733 Let's take the @code{nnmh} backend as an example:
9735 The folders are located in @code{nnmh-directory}, say, @file{~/Mail/}.
9736 There are three folders, @file{foo}, @file{bar} and @file{mail.baz}.
9738 Go to the group buffer and type @kbd{G m}. When prompted, answer
9739 @samp{foo} for the name and @samp{nnmh} for the method. Repeat
9740 twice for the two other groups, @samp{bar} and @samp{mail.baz}. Be sure
9741 to include all your mail groups.
9743 That's it. You are now set to read your mail. An active file for this
9744 method will be created automatically.
9746 @vindex nnmail-procmail-suffix
9747 @vindex nnmail-procmail-directory
9748 If you use @code{nnfolder} or any other backend that store more than a
9749 single article in each file, you should never have procmail add mails to
9750 the file that Gnus sees. Instead, procmail should put all incoming mail
9751 in @code{nnmail-procmail-directory}. To arrive at the file name to put
9752 the incoming mail in, append @code{nnmail-procmail-suffix} to the group
9753 name. The mail backends will read the mail from these files.
9755 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
9756 When Gnus reads a file called @file{mail.misc.spool}, this mail will be
9757 put in the @code{mail.misc}, as one would expect. However, if you want
9758 Gnus to split the mail the normal way, you could set
9759 @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming} to @code{t}.
9761 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
9762 If you use @code{procmail} to split things directly into an @code{nnmh}
9763 directory (which you shouldn't do), you should set
9764 @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} to non-@code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
9765 ever expiring the final article (i.e., the article with the highest
9766 article number) in a mail newsgroup. This is quite, quite important.
9768 Here's an example setup: The incoming spools are located in
9769 @file{~/incoming/} and have @samp{""} as suffixes (i.e., the incoming
9770 spool files have the same names as the equivalent groups). The
9771 @code{nnfolder} backend is to be used as the mail interface, and the
9772 @code{nnfolder} directory is @file{~/fMail/}.
9775 (setq nnfolder-directory "~/fMail/")
9776 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
9777 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/incoming/")
9778 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnfolder "")))
9779 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "")
9783 @node Incorporating Old Mail
9784 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
9786 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
9787 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
9788 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
9791 Doing so can be quite easy.
9793 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
9794 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
9795 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
9796 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
9797 your @code{nnml} groups.
9803 Go to the group buffer.
9806 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
9807 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
9810 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
9813 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
9814 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
9817 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
9818 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
9821 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
9822 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
9823 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
9824 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
9825 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
9827 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
9828 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
9829 using the new mail backend.
9833 @subsection Expiring Mail
9834 @cindex article expiry
9836 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
9837 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
9838 different approach to mail reading.
9840 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
9841 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
9842 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
9843 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
9844 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
9845 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
9848 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
9849 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
9850 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
9851 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
9852 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
9853 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
9854 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
9855 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
9857 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
9858 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
9859 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
9860 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
9861 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
9862 column in the summary buffer.
9864 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
9865 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
9866 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
9867 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
9870 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
9872 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
9873 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
9874 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
9877 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
9878 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
9879 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
9880 groups expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
9881 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
9883 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
9884 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
9887 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
9888 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
9891 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
9892 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
9894 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
9895 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
9896 don't really mix very well.
9898 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
9899 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
9900 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
9901 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
9904 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
9905 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
9906 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
9907 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
9910 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
9912 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
9914 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
9916 ((string= group "mail.junk")
9918 ((string= group "important")
9924 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
9925 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
9927 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
9928 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
9929 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
9932 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
9933 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
9935 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
9936 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
9937 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
9938 easier for procmail users.
9940 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
9941 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
9942 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
9943 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
9944 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
9945 caution. Even more dangerous is the
9946 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
9947 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
9948 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
9949 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
9950 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
9951 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
9952 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
9955 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
9959 @subsection Washing Mail
9960 @cindex mail washing
9961 @cindex list server brain damage
9962 @cindex incoming mail treatment
9964 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
9965 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC822 doesn't explicitly
9966 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
9967 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
9968 Yes, but RFC822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
9969 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
9971 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
9972 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
9973 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
9976 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
9977 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
9978 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
9979 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
9982 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9983 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9984 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
9985 grand, sweeping gestures. Functions to be used include:
9988 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
9989 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
9990 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
9991 Emacs running on MS machines.
9995 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
9996 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
9997 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
9998 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
10001 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
10002 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
10003 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
10004 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
10006 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
10007 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
10008 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
10009 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
10010 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
10011 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
10012 also be a list of regexp.
10014 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
10015 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
10018 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
10019 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
10022 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
10023 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
10024 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
10028 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
10029 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
10030 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
10034 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
10035 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
10036 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
10043 @subsection Duplicates
10045 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
10046 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
10047 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
10048 @cindex duplicate mails
10049 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
10050 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
10051 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
10052 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
10053 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
10054 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
10055 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
10056 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
10057 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
10058 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
10059 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
10060 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
10061 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
10063 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
10064 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
10065 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
10066 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
10068 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
10071 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
10072 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
10076 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
10077 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
10078 ("gnus-warning" "duplication of message" "duplicate")
10079 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
10080 (any mail "mail.misc")
10087 (setq nnmail-split-methods
10088 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:")
10093 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
10094 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
10095 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
10096 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
10097 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
10100 @node Not Reading Mail
10101 @subsection Not Reading Mail
10103 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
10104 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
10105 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
10107 If you set @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{nil}, none of the backends
10108 will ever attempt to read incoming mail, which should help.
10110 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10111 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
10112 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
10113 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
10114 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
10115 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
10116 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
10117 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
10118 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
10119 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
10120 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
10122 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
10123 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
10127 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
10128 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
10130 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
10131 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
10132 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
10135 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
10136 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
10137 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
10138 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
10139 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
10143 @node Unix Mail Box
10144 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
10146 @cindex unix mail box
10148 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
10149 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
10150 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
10151 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
10152 which group it belongs in.
10154 Virtual server settings:
10157 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
10158 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
10159 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory.
10161 @item nnmbox-active-file
10162 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
10163 The name of the active file for the mail box.
10165 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
10166 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
10167 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
10173 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
10177 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
10178 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
10179 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
10180 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each mail
10181 article to say which group it belongs in.
10183 Virtual server settings:
10186 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
10187 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
10188 The name of the rmail mbox file.
10190 @item nnbabyl-active-file
10191 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
10192 The name of the active file for the rmail box.
10194 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10195 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10196 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail.
10201 @subsubsection Mail Spool
10203 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
10205 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
10206 format. It should be used with some caution.
10208 @vindex nnml-directory
10209 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
10210 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
10211 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
10212 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
10214 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
10217 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
10218 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
10219 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
10220 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
10221 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
10222 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
10223 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
10224 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
10226 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
10227 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
10228 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
10229 backend when it comes to reading mail.
10231 Virtual server settings:
10234 @item nnml-directory
10235 @vindex nnml-directory
10236 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
10238 @item nnml-active-file
10239 @vindex nnml-active-file
10240 The active file for the @code{nnml} server.
10242 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
10243 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
10244 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
10247 @item nnml-get-new-mail
10248 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
10249 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail.
10251 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
10252 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
10253 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
10255 @item nnml-nov-file-name
10256 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
10257 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
10259 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
10260 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
10261 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
10265 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
10266 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
10267 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
10268 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
10269 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
10270 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
10271 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
10276 @subsubsection MH Spool
10278 @cindex mh-e mail spool
10280 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
10281 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
10282 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
10283 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
10285 Virtual server settings:
10288 @item nnmh-directory
10289 @vindex nnmh-directory
10290 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory.
10292 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
10293 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
10294 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail.
10297 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
10298 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
10299 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
10300 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
10301 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
10302 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
10303 to set this variable to @code{t}.
10308 @subsubsection Mail Folders
10310 @cindex mbox folders
10311 @cindex mail folders
10313 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
10314 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
10315 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
10318 Virtual server settings:
10321 @item nnfolder-directory
10322 @vindex nnfolder-directory
10323 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
10325 @item nnfolder-active-file
10326 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
10327 The name of the active file.
10329 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
10330 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
10331 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File Format}.
10333 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
10334 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
10335 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail.
10338 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
10339 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
10340 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
10341 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
10342 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
10343 @code{nnfolder-directory}.
10346 @node Other Sources
10347 @section Other Sources
10349 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
10350 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
10354 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
10355 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
10356 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
10357 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{SOUP} packets ``offline''.
10358 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
10359 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
10363 @node Directory Groups
10364 @subsection Directory Groups
10366 @cindex directory groups
10368 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
10369 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
10372 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
10373 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
10374 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
10375 backend to read directories. Big deal.
10377 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
10378 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
10379 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
10380 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
10381 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
10383 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
10385 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
10386 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
10387 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
10388 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
10391 @node Anything Groups
10392 @subsection Anything Groups
10395 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
10396 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
10397 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
10400 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
10401 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
10402 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
10403 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're
10404 forgetting. @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it
10405 snoops each file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e.,
10406 the first few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head.
10407 If this is just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source
10408 file), @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It
10409 will use file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
10412 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
10413 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
10414 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
10415 in the article buffer, just as usual.
10417 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
10418 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
10419 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
10420 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
10422 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
10423 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
10424 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
10425 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
10426 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
10427 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
10428 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
10429 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
10434 @item nneething-map-file-directory
10435 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
10436 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
10437 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
10439 @item nneething-exclude-files
10440 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
10441 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
10442 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
10444 @item nneething-map-file
10445 @vindex nneething-map-file
10446 Name of the map files.
10450 @node Document Groups
10451 @subsection Document Groups
10453 @cindex documentation group
10456 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
10457 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
10464 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
10469 The standard Unix mbox file.
10471 @cindex MMDF mail box
10473 The MMDF mail box format.
10476 Several news articles appended into a file.
10479 @cindex rnews batch files
10480 The rnews batch transport format.
10481 @cindex forwarded messages
10484 Forwarded articles.
10487 MIME multipart messages, besides digests.
10491 @cindex MIME digest
10492 @cindex 1153 digest
10493 @cindex RFC 1153 digest
10494 @cindex RFC 341 digest
10495 MIME (RFC 1341) digest format.
10497 @item standard-digest
10498 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
10501 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
10504 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
10505 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
10506 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
10509 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
10510 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
10511 group. And that's it.
10513 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
10514 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
10515 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
10516 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
10517 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
10518 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
10519 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
10520 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
10521 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
10522 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
10524 Virtual server variables:
10527 @item nndoc-article-type
10528 @vindex nndoc-article-type
10529 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
10530 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
10531 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{mime-digest},
10532 @code{standard-digest}, @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs} or
10535 @item nndoc-post-type
10536 @vindex nndoc-post-type
10537 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
10538 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
10543 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
10547 @node Document Server Internals
10548 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
10550 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
10551 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
10552 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
10553 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
10555 First, here's an example document type definition:
10559 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
10560 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
10563 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
10564 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
10565 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
10566 types can be defined with very few settings:
10569 @item first-article
10570 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
10571 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
10574 @item article-begin
10575 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
10576 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
10578 @item head-begin-function
10579 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
10582 @item nndoc-head-begin
10583 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
10586 @item nndoc-head-end
10587 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
10588 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
10590 @item body-begin-function
10591 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
10595 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
10598 @item body-end-function
10599 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
10603 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
10606 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
10607 regexp will be totally ignored.
10611 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
10612 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
10613 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
10614 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
10615 something that's palatable for Gnus:
10618 @item prepare-body-function
10619 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
10620 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
10621 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
10623 @item article-transform-function
10624 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
10625 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
10626 body of the article.
10628 @item generate-head-function
10629 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
10630 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
10631 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
10632 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
10636 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
10641 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
10642 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
10643 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
10644 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
10645 (head-end . "^ ?$")
10646 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
10647 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
10648 (subtype digest guess))
10651 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
10652 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
10653 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
10654 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
10655 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
10657 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
10658 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
10659 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
10660 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
10661 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
10662 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
10663 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
10664 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
10665 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
10666 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
10674 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
10675 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
10676 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
10678 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
10679 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
10680 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
10683 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something a that's a bit
10684 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
10685 that interested in doing things properly.
10687 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
10688 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
10691 First some terminology:
10696 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
10697 get news and/or mail from.
10700 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
10701 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
10704 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
10708 @item message packets
10709 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
10710 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
10711 default, where @var{X} is a number.
10713 @item response packets
10714 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
10715 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
10716 default, where @var{X} is a number.
10726 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
10727 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
10728 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
10729 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
10732 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
10735 You put the packet in your home directory.
10738 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
10739 the native or secondary server.
10742 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
10743 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
10746 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
10750 You transfer this packet to the server.
10753 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
10756 You then repeat until you die.
10760 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
10761 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
10764 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
10765 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
10766 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
10770 @node SOUP Commands
10771 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
10773 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
10777 @kindex G s b (Group)
10778 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
10779 Pack all unread articles in the current group
10780 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
10781 process/prefix convention.
10784 @kindex G s w (Group)
10785 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
10786 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
10789 @kindex G s s (Group)
10790 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
10791 Send all replies from the replies packet
10792 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
10795 @kindex G s p (Group)
10796 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
10797 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
10800 @kindex G s r (Group)
10801 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
10802 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
10805 @kindex O s (Summary)
10806 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
10807 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
10808 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
10809 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
10814 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
10819 @item gnus-soup-directory
10820 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
10821 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
10822 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
10824 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
10825 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
10826 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
10827 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
10829 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
10830 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
10831 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
10832 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
10834 @item gnus-soup-packer
10835 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
10836 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
10837 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
10839 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
10840 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
10841 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
10842 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
10844 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
10845 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
10846 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
10848 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
10849 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
10850 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
10851 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
10857 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
10860 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
10861 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
10862 you can read them at leisure.
10864 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
10868 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
10869 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
10870 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
10871 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
10873 @item nnsoup-directory
10874 @vindex nnsoup-directory
10875 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
10876 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
10878 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
10879 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
10880 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
10881 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
10883 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
10884 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
10885 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
10886 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
10887 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
10889 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
10890 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
10891 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
10892 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
10894 @item nnsoup-active-file
10895 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
10896 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
10897 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
10898 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
10899 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
10901 @item nnsoup-packer
10902 @vindex nnsoup-packer
10903 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
10904 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
10906 @item nnsoup-unpacker
10907 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
10908 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
10909 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
10911 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
10912 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
10913 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
10916 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
10917 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
10918 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
10921 @item nnsoup-always-save
10922 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
10923 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
10929 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
10931 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
10932 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
10933 more for that to happen.
10935 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
10936 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
10937 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
10940 In specific, this is what it does:
10943 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
10944 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
10947 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
10948 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
10949 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
10953 @subsection Web Searches
10957 @cindex InReference
10958 @cindex Usenet searches
10959 @cindex searching the Usenet
10961 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
10962 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
10963 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
10964 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
10965 searches without having to use a browser.
10967 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
10968 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
10969 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
10970 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
10971 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
10973 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
10974 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
10975 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
10976 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
10977 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
10978 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
10979 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
10980 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
10981 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
10982 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
10985 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
10986 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
10987 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
10988 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
10989 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
10990 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
10992 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
10993 to use @code{nnweb}.
10995 Virtual server variables:
11000 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
11001 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
11005 @vindex nnweb-search
11006 The search string to feed to the search engine.
11008 @item nnweb-max-hits
11009 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
11010 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
11013 @item nnweb-type-definition
11014 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
11015 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
11016 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
11021 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
11025 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
11028 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
11031 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
11035 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
11042 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
11043 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
11044 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
11047 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
11048 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
11049 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
11051 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
11057 @item nngateway-address
11058 @vindex nngateway-address
11059 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
11061 @item nngateway-header-transformation
11062 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
11063 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
11064 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
11065 transformation should be called, and defaults to
11066 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
11067 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
11070 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
11071 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
11072 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
11075 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
11078 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
11081 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
11084 The following pre-defined functions exist:
11086 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
11089 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
11090 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
11091 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
11093 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
11095 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
11096 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
11097 @code{nngateway-address}.
11102 (setq gnus-post-method
11103 '(nngateway "mail2news@@replay.com"
11104 (nngateway-header-transformation
11105 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
11113 So, to use this, simply say something like:
11116 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
11120 @node Combined Groups
11121 @section Combined Groups
11123 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
11127 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
11128 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
11132 @node Virtual Groups
11133 @subsection Virtual Groups
11135 @cindex virtual groups
11136 @cindex merging groups
11138 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
11141 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
11142 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
11143 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
11145 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
11146 regexp to match component groups.
11148 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
11149 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
11150 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
11151 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
11152 the virtual group.)
11154 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
11155 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
11158 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
11161 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
11162 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
11164 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
11165 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
11166 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
11167 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
11170 "^nntp\\+some\\.server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+some\\.server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
11173 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
11174 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
11175 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
11177 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
11178 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
11179 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
11180 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
11181 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
11183 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
11184 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
11185 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
11187 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
11188 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
11189 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
11190 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
11191 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
11192 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
11193 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
11194 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
11195 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
11196 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
11197 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
11200 @node Kibozed Groups
11201 @subsection Kibozed Groups
11205 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
11206 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
11207 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
11208 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
11210 @kindex G k (Group)
11211 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
11214 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
11215 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
11216 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
11217 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
11219 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
11220 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
11221 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
11223 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
11224 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
11225 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
11226 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
11227 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
11228 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
11229 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
11230 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
11232 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
11233 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
11234 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
11235 Stranger things have happened.
11237 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
11238 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
11240 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
11241 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
11242 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
11243 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
11244 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
11245 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
11247 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
11248 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
11251 @node Gnus Unplugged
11252 @section Gnus Unplugged
11257 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
11259 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
11260 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
11261 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
11262 read news. Believe it or not.
11264 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
11265 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
11266 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
11267 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
11268 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
11270 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
11271 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
11272 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
11273 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
11274 reading news on a machine.
11276 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
11280 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
11281 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
11285 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
11286 @file{.gnus.el} file:
11293 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
11295 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
11298 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
11299 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
11300 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
11301 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
11302 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
11303 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
11304 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
11305 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
11310 @subsection Agent Basics
11312 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
11314 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
11315 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
11316 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
11317 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
11319 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
11320 connected to the net continuously.
11322 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
11323 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
11325 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
11330 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
11331 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
11332 already fetched while in this mode.
11335 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
11336 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
11337 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged}.
11340 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
11341 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{J
11342 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
11343 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
11346 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
11347 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
11348 then you read the news offline.
11351 And then you go to step 2.
11354 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
11360 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
11361 backend, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
11362 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
11363 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
11364 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
11365 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
11368 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}
11375 @node Agent Categories
11376 @subsection Agent Categories
11378 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
11379 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
11380 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
11381 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
11382 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
11383 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
11384 you're interested in the articles anyway.
11386 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
11387 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
11388 Gnus has its own buffer for creating and managing categories.
11391 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
11392 * The Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
11393 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
11397 @node Category Syntax
11398 @subsubsection Category Syntax
11400 A category consists of two things.
11404 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
11405 are eligible for downloading; and
11408 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
11409 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
11410 score} is wholly unrelated to normal scores.)
11413 A predicate consists of predicates with logical operators sprinkled in
11416 Perhaps some examples are in order.
11418 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
11419 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
11425 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
11426 short (for some value of ``short'').
11428 Here's a more complex predicate:
11437 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
11438 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
11441 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
11442 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
11443 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
11445 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
11446 you want to do, you can write your own.
11450 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
11451 lines; default 100.
11454 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
11455 lines; default 200.
11458 True iff the article has a download score less than
11459 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
11462 True iff the article has a download score greater than
11463 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
11466 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
11467 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
11468 checksum and sees whether articles match.
11477 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
11478 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
11479 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
11482 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
11483 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
11484 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
11485 following headers can be scored on: @code{From}, @code{Subject},
11486 @code{Date}, @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars}, @code{Message-ID},
11487 and @code{References}.
11490 @node The Category Buffer
11491 @subsubsection The Category Buffer
11493 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
11494 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
11495 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
11497 The following commands are available in this buffer:
11501 @kindex q (Category)
11502 @findex gnus-category-exit
11503 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
11506 @kindex k (Category)
11507 @findex gnus-category-kill
11508 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
11511 @kindex c (Category)
11512 @findex gnus-category-copy
11513 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
11516 @kindex a (Category)
11517 @findex gnus-category-add
11518 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
11521 @kindex p (Category)
11522 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
11523 Edit the predicate of the current category
11524 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
11527 @kindex g (Category)
11528 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
11529 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
11530 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
11533 @kindex s (Category)
11534 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
11535 Edit the download score rule of the current category
11536 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
11539 @kindex l (Category)
11540 @findex gnus-category-list
11541 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
11545 @node Category Variables
11546 @subsubsection Category Variables
11549 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
11550 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
11551 Hook run in category buffers.
11553 @item gnus-category-line-format
11554 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
11555 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
11556 Variables}). Valid elements are:
11560 The name of the category.
11563 The number of groups in the category.
11566 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
11567 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
11568 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
11570 @item gnus-agent-short-article
11571 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
11572 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
11574 @item gnus-agent-long-article
11575 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
11576 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
11578 @item gnus-agent-low-score
11579 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
11580 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
11583 @item gnus-agent-high-score
11584 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
11585 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
11591 @node Agent Commands
11592 @subsection Agent Commands
11594 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
11595 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged} command works in all modes, and
11596 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
11600 * Group Agent Commands::
11601 * Summary Agent Commands::
11602 * Server Agent Commands::
11605 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
11606 following incantation:
11608 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
11610 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
11615 @node Group Agent Commands
11616 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
11620 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
11621 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
11622 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
11623 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
11626 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
11627 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
11628 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
11631 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
11632 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
11633 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
11634 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
11637 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
11638 @findex gnus-group-send-drafts
11639 Send all sendable messages in the draft group
11640 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}). @xref{Drafts}
11643 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
11644 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
11645 Add the current group to an Agent category
11646 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}).
11651 @node Summary Agent Commands
11652 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
11656 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
11657 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
11658 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
11661 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
11662 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
11663 Remove the downloading mark from the article
11664 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
11667 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
11668 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
11669 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
11672 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
11673 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
11674 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
11679 @node Server Agent Commands
11680 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
11684 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
11685 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
11686 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
11687 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
11690 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
11691 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
11692 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
11693 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
11699 @subsection Agent Expiry
11701 @vindex gnus-agent-expiry-days
11702 @findex gnus-agent-expiry
11703 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expiry
11704 @cindex Agent expiry
11705 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
11708 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
11709 @code{gnus-agent-expiry} command that will expire all read articles that
11710 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expiry-days} days. It can be run
11711 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
11712 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
11713 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
11715 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
11716 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
11717 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
11718 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
11719 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
11722 @node Outgoing Messages
11723 @subsection Outgoing Messages
11725 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
11726 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
11727 after posting, and edit them at will.
11729 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
11730 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
11731 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
11732 messages in the draft group.
11736 @node Agent Variables
11737 @subsection Agent Variables
11740 @item gnus-agent-directory
11741 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
11742 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
11743 @file{~/News/agent/}.
11745 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
11746 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
11747 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
11748 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
11749 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
11752 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
11753 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
11754 Hook run when connecting to the network.
11756 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
11757 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
11758 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
11763 @node Example Setup
11764 @subsection Example Setup
11766 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
11767 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
11768 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
11771 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over NNTP
11772 ;;; from your ISP's server.
11773 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "nntp.your-isp.com"))
11775 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
11776 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
11777 (setenv "MAILHOST" "pop.your-isp.com")
11778 (setq nnmail-spool-file "po:username")
11780 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
11781 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
11783 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
11787 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
11788 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
11791 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
11792 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
11793 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
11794 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
11795 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
11798 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
11799 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
11800 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
11801 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
11802 back all the killed groups.)
11804 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
11805 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
11806 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
11809 @node Batching Agents
11810 @subsection Batching Agents
11812 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
11813 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
11814 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
11818 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
11827 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
11828 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
11829 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
11832 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
11833 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
11834 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
11835 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
11836 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
11838 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
11839 before generating the summary buffer.
11841 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
11842 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
11843 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
11845 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
11846 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
11847 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
11848 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
11851 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
11852 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
11853 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
11854 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
11855 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
11856 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
11857 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
11858 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
11859 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
11860 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
11861 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
11862 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
11863 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
11864 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
11865 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
11866 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
11870 @node Summary Score Commands
11871 @section Summary Score Commands
11872 @cindex score commands
11874 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
11875 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
11876 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
11877 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
11878 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
11880 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
11881 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
11882 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
11883 score file the current one.
11885 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
11890 @kindex V s (Summary)
11891 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
11892 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
11895 @kindex V S (Summary)
11896 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
11897 Display the score of the current article
11898 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
11901 @kindex V t (Summary)
11902 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
11903 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
11904 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
11907 @kindex V R (Summary)
11908 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
11909 Run the current summary through the scoring process
11910 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
11911 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
11912 effect you're having.
11915 @kindex V c (Summary)
11916 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
11917 Make a different score file the current
11918 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
11921 @kindex V e (Summary)
11922 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
11923 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
11924 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
11928 @kindex V f (Summary)
11929 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
11930 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
11931 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
11934 @kindex V F (Summary)
11935 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
11936 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
11937 after editing score files.
11940 @kindex V C (Summary)
11941 @findex gnus-score-customize
11942 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
11943 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
11947 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
11952 @kindex V m (Summary)
11953 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
11954 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
11955 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
11958 @kindex V x (Summary)
11959 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
11960 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
11961 expunge all articles below this score
11962 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
11965 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
11966 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
11969 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
11970 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
11974 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
11975 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
11977 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
11978 keys are available:
11982 Score on the author name.
11985 Score on the subject line.
11988 Score on the Xref line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
11991 Score on thread---the References line.
11997 Score on the number of lines.
12000 Score on the Message-ID.
12003 Score on followups.
12013 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
12014 what headers you are scoring on.
12026 Substring matching.
12029 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
12058 Greater than number.
12063 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
12064 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
12065 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
12069 Temporary score entry.
12072 Permanent score entry.
12075 Immediately scoring.
12080 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
12081 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
12082 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
12083 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
12085 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
12086 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
12087 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
12088 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
12089 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
12091 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
12092 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
12093 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
12094 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
12095 current score file.
12097 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
12098 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
12099 pretend they are keymaps or not.
12102 @node Group Score Commands
12103 @section Group Score Commands
12104 @cindex group score commands
12106 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
12111 @kindex W f (Group)
12112 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
12113 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
12114 all the time. This command will flush the cache
12115 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
12119 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
12121 @findex gnus-batch-score
12122 @cindex batch scoring
12124 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l gnus -f gnus-batch-score
12128 @node Score Variables
12129 @section Score Variables
12130 @cindex score variables
12134 @item gnus-use-scoring
12135 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
12136 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
12137 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
12139 @item gnus-kill-killed
12140 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
12141 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
12142 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
12143 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
12144 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
12145 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
12146 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
12148 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
12149 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
12150 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
12151 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
12152 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
12154 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
12155 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
12156 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
12157 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
12159 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
12160 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
12161 @cindex score cache
12162 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
12163 score files. However, if this might make you Emacs grow big and
12164 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
12165 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
12166 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
12167 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
12170 @item gnus-save-score
12171 @vindex gnus-save-score
12172 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
12173 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
12174 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
12176 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
12177 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
12178 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
12179 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
12180 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
12181 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
12182 manually entered data.
12184 @item gnus-summary-default-score
12185 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
12186 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
12188 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
12189 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
12190 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
12191 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
12192 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
12193 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
12195 @item gnus-score-over-mark
12196 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
12197 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
12198 default. Default is @samp{+}.
12200 @item gnus-score-below-mark
12201 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
12202 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
12203 default. Default is @samp{-}.
12205 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
12206 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
12207 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
12208 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
12210 Predefined functions available are:
12213 @item gnus-score-find-single
12214 @findex gnus-score-find-single
12215 Only apply the group's own score file.
12217 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
12218 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
12219 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
12220 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
12221 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
12222 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
12223 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
12224 then a regexp match is done.
12226 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
12227 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
12229 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
12230 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
12231 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
12232 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
12234 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
12235 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
12236 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
12237 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
12238 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE}.
12241 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
12242 functions will be called, and all the returned lists of score files will
12243 be applied. These functions can also return lists of score alists
12244 directly. In that case, the functions that return these non-file score
12245 alists should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file
12246 functions, to ensure that the last score file returned is the local
12249 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
12250 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
12251 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
12252 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
12253 are expired. It's 7 by default.
12255 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
12256 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
12257 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
12258 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
12259 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
12260 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
12261 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
12264 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
12265 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
12266 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
12268 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
12269 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
12270 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
12271 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
12272 threading---according to the current value of
12273 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
12274 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
12275 simplified in this manner.
12280 @node Score File Format
12281 @section Score File Format
12282 @cindex score file format
12284 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
12285 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
12286 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
12288 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
12292 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
12294 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
12296 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
12298 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
12303 (mark-and-expunge -10)
12307 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
12308 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
12309 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
12310 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
12314 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
12315 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
12317 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
12318 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
12319 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
12321 Six keys are supported by this alist:
12326 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
12327 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
12328 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
12329 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
12330 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
12331 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
12332 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
12333 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
12334 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
12335 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
12336 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
12337 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
12338 to articles that matches these score entries.
12340 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
12341 score entry has one to four elements.
12345 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
12346 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
12350 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
12351 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
12352 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
12353 is successful. If this element is not present, the
12354 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
12355 instead. This is 1000 by default.
12358 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
12359 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
12360 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
12361 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
12362 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
12365 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
12366 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
12367 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
12368 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
12371 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
12372 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
12373 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
12374 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
12375 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
12376 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
12377 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
12378 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
12379 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
12380 instead, if you feel like.
12383 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
12384 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
12386 These predicates are true if
12389 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
12392 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
12393 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
12400 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
12401 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
12402 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
12403 it's not. I think.)
12405 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some backends (like
12406 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
12407 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
12408 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
12411 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
12412 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
12413 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
12414 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
12415 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
12416 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
12417 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
12421 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
12422 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
12423 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
12424 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
12425 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
12426 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
12427 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
12428 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
12431 @item Head, Body, All
12432 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
12436 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
12437 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
12438 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
12439 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
12440 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
12441 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
12442 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
12446 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
12447 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{X}, then you add a
12448 @samp{thread} match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each
12449 article that has @var{X} in its @code{References} header. (These new
12450 @samp{thread} matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching
12451 articles.) This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an
12452 entire thread, even though some articles in the thread may not have
12453 complete @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
12454 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
12455 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
12459 @cindex Score File Atoms
12461 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
12462 lower than this number will be marked as read.
12465 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
12466 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
12468 @item mark-and-expunge
12469 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
12470 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
12473 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
12474 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
12475 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
12476 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
12477 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
12480 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
12481 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
12484 @item exclude-files
12485 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
12486 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
12490 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
12491 ignored when handling global score files.
12494 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
12495 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
12496 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
12497 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
12500 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
12501 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
12502 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
12503 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
12505 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
12509 (mark-and-expunge -100)
12512 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
12513 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
12514 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
12515 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
12516 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
12518 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where there
12519 exist a few interesting threads which can't be found automatically by
12520 ordinary scoring rules.
12523 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
12524 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
12525 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
12526 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
12527 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
12528 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
12529 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
12530 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
12531 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
12532 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
12533 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
12537 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
12538 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
12539 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
12540 file for a number of groups.
12543 @cindex local variables
12544 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
12545 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
12546 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
12547 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
12548 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
12552 @node Score File Editing
12553 @section Score File Editing
12555 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
12556 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
12557 with a mode for that.
12559 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
12560 additional commands:
12565 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
12566 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
12567 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
12568 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
12571 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
12572 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
12573 Insert the current date in numerical format
12574 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
12575 you were wondering.
12578 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
12579 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
12580 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
12581 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
12582 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
12587 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
12589 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
12590 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
12592 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
12593 e} to begin editing score files.
12596 @node Adaptive Scoring
12597 @section Adaptive Scoring
12598 @cindex adaptive scoring
12600 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
12601 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
12602 stupidity, to be precise.
12604 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
12605 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
12606 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
12607 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
12608 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
12609 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
12610 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
12611 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
12612 variable to @code{(word line)}.
12614 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
12615 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
12616 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
12617 might look something like this:
12620 (defvar gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
12621 '((gnus-unread-mark)
12622 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
12623 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
12624 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
12625 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
12626 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
12627 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
12628 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
12629 (gnus-ancient-mark)
12630 (gnus-low-score-mark)
12631 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
12634 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
12635 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
12636 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
12637 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
12638 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
12639 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
12642 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
12643 will be applied to each article.
12645 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
12646 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
12647 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
12648 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
12650 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
12651 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
12652 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
12653 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
12655 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
12656 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
12657 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
12658 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
12660 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
12661 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
12662 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
12663 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
12664 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
12665 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
12667 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
12668 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
12669 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
12670 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
12671 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
12672 aspirins afterwards.)
12674 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
12675 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
12676 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
12678 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
12679 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
12680 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
12682 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
12683 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
12684 let you use different rules in different groups.
12686 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
12687 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
12688 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
12691 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
12692 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
12693 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
12694 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
12695 the length of the match is less than
12696 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
12697 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
12700 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
12701 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
12702 headers. If you adapt on words, the
12703 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
12704 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
12707 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
12708 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
12709 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
12710 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
12711 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
12714 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
12715 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
12716 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
12717 score with 30 points.
12719 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
12720 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
12721 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
12722 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
12723 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
12725 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
12726 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
12727 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
12728 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
12730 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
12731 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
12732 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
12733 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
12735 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
12736 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
12737 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
12739 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
12740 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
12741 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
12742 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
12745 @node Home Score File
12746 @section Home Score File
12748 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
12749 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
12750 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
12751 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
12753 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
12754 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
12755 could perhaps use the same home score file.
12757 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
12758 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
12763 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
12767 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
12768 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
12772 A list. The elements in this list can be:
12776 @var{(regexp file-name)}. If the @var{regexp} matches the group name,
12777 the @var{file-name} will will be used as the home score file.
12780 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
12781 the home score file.
12784 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
12787 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
12792 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
12795 (setq gnus-home-score-file
12796 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
12799 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
12800 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
12802 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
12804 (setq gnus-home-score-file
12805 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
12808 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
12809 Other functions include
12812 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
12813 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
12814 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
12815 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
12819 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
12820 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
12821 their own home score files:
12824 (setq gnus-home-score-file
12825 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
12826 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
12827 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
12828 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
12831 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
12832 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
12833 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
12834 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
12835 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
12837 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
12838 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
12839 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
12840 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
12841 precedence over this variable.
12844 @node Followups To Yourself
12845 @section Followups To Yourself
12847 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
12848 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
12849 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
12850 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
12851 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
12852 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
12856 @item gnus-score-followup-article
12857 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
12858 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
12861 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
12862 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
12863 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
12867 @vindex message-sent-hook
12868 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
12869 @code{message-sent-hook}.
12871 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
12872 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
12876 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
12877 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
12880 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
12881 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
12886 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore.no>"
12890 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
12891 is system-dependent.
12895 @section Scoring Tips
12896 @cindex scoring tips
12902 @cindex scoring crossposts
12903 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
12904 the @code{Xref} header.
12906 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
12909 @item Multiple crossposts
12910 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
12911 more than, say, 3 groups:
12913 ("xref" ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+" -1000 nil r))
12916 @item Matching on the body
12917 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
12918 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
12919 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
12920 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
12921 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
12922 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
12923 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
12926 @item Marking as read
12927 You will probably want to mark articles that has a score below a certain
12928 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
12929 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
12933 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
12935 @item Negated character classes
12936 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
12937 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
12938 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
12942 @node Reverse Scoring
12943 @section Reverse Scoring
12944 @cindex reverse scoring
12946 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
12947 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
12948 like this in your score file:
12952 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
12957 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
12958 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
12961 @node Global Score Files
12962 @section Global Score Files
12963 @cindex global score files
12965 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
12966 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
12967 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
12969 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
12970 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
12971 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
12973 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
12974 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
12975 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
12976 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
12977 files are applicable to which group.
12979 Say you want to use the score file
12980 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
12981 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory:
12984 (setq gnus-global-score-files
12985 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
12986 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
12989 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
12990 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
12991 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
12992 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
12993 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
12995 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
12996 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
12998 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
12999 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
13000 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
13001 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
13002 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
13003 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
13005 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
13011 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
13013 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
13015 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
13017 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
13018 lowered out of existence.
13020 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
13021 articles completely.
13024 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
13025 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
13026 old articles for a long time.
13029 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
13030 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
13031 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
13032 holding our breath yet?
13036 @section Kill Files
13039 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
13040 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
13041 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
13043 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
13044 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
13045 files into score files.
13047 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
13048 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
13049 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
13050 that isn't a very good idea.
13052 Normal kill files look like this:
13055 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13056 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
13060 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
13061 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
13063 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
13064 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
13067 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
13072 @kindex M-k (Summary)
13073 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
13074 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
13077 @kindex M-K (Summary)
13078 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
13079 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
13082 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
13087 @kindex M-k (Group)
13088 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
13089 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
13092 @kindex M-K (Group)
13093 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
13094 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
13097 Kill file variables:
13100 @item gnus-kill-file-name
13101 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
13102 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
13103 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
13104 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
13105 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
13106 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
13108 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
13109 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
13110 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
13111 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
13114 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
13115 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
13116 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
13117 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
13118 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
13119 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
13120 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
13121 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
13122 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
13124 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
13125 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
13126 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
13131 @node Converting Kill Files
13132 @section Converting Kill Files
13134 @cindex converting kill files
13136 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
13137 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
13138 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
13141 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
13142 You can fetch it from
13143 @file{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-other/gnus-kill-to-score}.
13145 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
13146 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
13147 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
13155 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
13156 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
13157 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
13159 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
13160 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
13161 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
13162 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
13163 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
13164 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
13165 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
13166 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
13170 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
13171 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
13172 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
13173 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
13177 @node Using GroupLens
13178 @subsection Using GroupLens
13180 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
13182 @samp{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
13183 better bit in town at the moment.
13185 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
13189 @item gnus-use-grouplens
13190 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
13191 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
13192 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
13194 @item grouplens-pseudonym
13195 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
13196 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
13197 with the Better Bit Bureau.
13199 @item grouplens-newsgroups
13200 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
13201 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
13205 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
13206 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
13207 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
13208 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
13209 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
13210 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
13213 @node Rating Articles
13214 @subsection Rating Articles
13216 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
13217 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
13218 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
13219 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
13222 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
13227 @kindex r (GroupLens)
13228 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
13229 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
13232 @kindex k (GroupLens)
13233 @findex grouplens-score-thread
13234 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
13235 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
13236 threads in rec.humor.
13240 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
13241 the score of the article you're reading.
13246 @kindex n (GroupLens)
13247 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
13248 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
13251 @kindex , (GroupLens)
13252 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
13253 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
13257 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
13258 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
13261 @node Displaying Predictions
13262 @subsection Displaying Predictions
13264 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
13265 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
13266 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
13267 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
13268 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
13270 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
13271 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
13272 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
13273 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
13274 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
13275 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
13276 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
13277 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
13278 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
13279 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
13280 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
13281 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
13282 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
13284 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
13285 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
13286 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
13287 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
13289 The following are valid values for that variable.
13292 @item prediction-spot
13293 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
13296 @item confidence-interval
13297 A numeric confidence interval.
13299 @item prediction-bar
13300 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
13302 @item confidence-bar
13303 Numerical confidence.
13305 @item confidence-spot
13306 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
13308 @item prediction-num
13309 Plain-old numeric value.
13311 @item confidence-plus-minus
13312 Prediction +/- confidence.
13317 @node GroupLens Variables
13318 @subsection GroupLens Variables
13322 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
13323 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
13324 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
13325 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%)
13328 @item grouplens-bbb-host
13329 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
13332 @item grouplens-bbb-port
13333 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
13335 @item grouplens-score-offset
13336 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
13337 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
13340 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
13341 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
13342 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
13347 @node Advanced Scoring
13348 @section Advanced Scoring
13350 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
13351 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
13352 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
13353 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
13354 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
13356 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
13360 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
13361 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
13362 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
13366 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
13367 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
13369 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
13370 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
13371 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
13372 non-@code{nil} value.
13374 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
13375 operator, and various match operators.
13382 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
13383 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
13384 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
13389 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
13390 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
13391 then this operator will return @code{false}.
13396 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
13397 logical negation of the value of its argument.
13401 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
13402 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
13403 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
13404 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
13405 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
13406 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
13407 the ancestry you want to go.
13409 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
13410 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
13411 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
13412 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
13413 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
13416 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
13417 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
13419 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
13420 when he's talking about Gnus:
13424 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13425 ("subject" "Gnus"))
13431 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
13435 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13442 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
13443 really don't want to read what he's written:
13447 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13448 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
13452 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
13453 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
13454 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
13461 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
13462 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
13463 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
13464 ("body" "white.*socks"))
13468 The possibilities are endless.
13471 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
13472 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
13474 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
13475 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
13476 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
13477 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
13478 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
13479 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
13480 @samp{subject}) first.
13482 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
13483 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
13494 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
13495 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
13501 ("subject" "Gnus")))
13508 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
13509 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
13514 @section Score Decays
13515 @cindex score decays
13518 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
13519 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
13520 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
13521 use them in any sensible way.
13523 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
13524 @findex gnus-decay-score
13525 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
13526 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
13527 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
13528 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
13529 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
13530 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
13531 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
13532 definition of that function:
13535 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
13536 "Decay SCORE according to `gnus-score-decay-constant' and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
13539 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
13541 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
13543 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
13546 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
13547 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
13548 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
13549 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
13553 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
13556 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
13559 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
13563 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
13564 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
13565 the new score, which should be an integer.
13567 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
13568 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
13575 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
13576 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
13577 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
13578 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
13579 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
13580 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
13581 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
13582 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
13583 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
13584 * Buttons:: Get tendonitis in ten easy steps!
13585 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
13586 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
13587 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
13588 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
13589 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
13590 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
13591 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
13592 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
13596 @node Process/Prefix
13597 @section Process/Prefix
13598 @cindex process/prefix convention
13600 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
13601 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
13603 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
13604 command to be performed on.
13608 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
13609 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
13610 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
13611 with the current one.
13613 @vindex transient-mark-mode
13614 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
13615 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
13617 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
13618 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
13621 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
13622 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
13624 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
13627 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
13628 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
13629 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
13630 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
13632 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
13633 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
13634 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
13635 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
13636 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
13637 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
13638 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
13639 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
13643 @section Interactive
13644 @cindex interaction
13648 @item gnus-novice-user
13649 @vindex gnus-novice-user
13650 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
13651 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
13652 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
13653 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
13656 @item gnus-expert-user
13657 @vindex gnus-expert-user
13658 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
13659 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
13660 matter how strange.
13662 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
13663 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
13664 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
13665 is @code{t} by default.
13667 @item gnus-interactive-exit
13668 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
13669 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
13674 @node Symbolic Prefixes
13675 @section Symbolic Prefixes
13676 @cindex symbolic prefixes
13678 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
13679 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
13680 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
13681 rule of 900 to the current article.
13683 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
13684 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
13685 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
13686 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
13687 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
13688 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
13689 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
13691 @kindex M-i (Summary)
13692 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
13693 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
13694 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
13695 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
13696 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a M-C-u} means ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u}
13697 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b M-C-u} means
13698 ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
13699 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
13701 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
13702 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
13703 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
13705 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
13709 @node Formatting Variables
13710 @section Formatting Variables
13711 @cindex formatting variables
13713 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
13714 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
13715 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
13716 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
13717 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
13720 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
13721 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
13722 lots of percentages everywhere.
13725 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
13726 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
13727 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
13728 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
13729 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
13732 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
13733 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
13734 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
13735 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
13736 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
13737 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
13738 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
13739 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
13741 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
13742 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
13744 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
13745 @findex gnus-update-format
13746 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
13747 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
13748 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
13749 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
13753 @node Formatting Basics
13754 @subsection Formatting Basics
13756 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
13757 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
13758 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
13760 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
13761 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
13762 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
13763 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
13764 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
13767 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
13768 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
13769 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
13770 less than 4 characters wide.
13773 @node Mode Line Formatting
13774 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
13776 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
13777 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
13778 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
13779 with the following two differences:
13784 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
13787 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
13788 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
13789 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
13790 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
13791 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
13792 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
13793 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
13798 @node Advanced Formatting
13799 @subsection Advanced Formatting
13801 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
13802 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
13803 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
13804 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
13806 These are the valid modifiers:
13811 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
13815 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
13820 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
13823 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
13828 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
13831 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
13834 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
13837 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
13841 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
13842 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
13843 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
13844 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
13845 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
13846 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
13847 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
13849 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
13850 last operation, padding.
13852 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
13853 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
13854 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
13855 @xref{Compilation}.
13858 @node User-Defined Specs
13859 @subsection User-Defined Specs
13861 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
13862 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
13863 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
13864 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
13865 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
13866 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
13867 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
13868 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
13869 should protect against that.
13871 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
13872 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
13873 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
13874 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
13878 @node Formatting Fonts
13879 @subsection Formatting Fonts
13881 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
13882 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
13883 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
13884 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
13887 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
13888 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
13889 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
13890 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
13891 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
13892 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
13894 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
13897 ;; Create three face types.
13898 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
13899 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
13901 ;; We want the article count to be in
13902 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
13903 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
13904 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
13906 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
13907 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
13909 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
13910 (setq gnus-group-line-format
13911 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
13914 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
13915 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
13917 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
13918 mode-line variables.
13921 @node Windows Configuration
13922 @section Windows Configuration
13923 @cindex windows configuration
13925 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
13927 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
13928 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
13929 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
13930 @code{t} by default.
13932 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
13933 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
13934 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
13937 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
13938 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
13939 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
13943 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
13944 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
13945 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
13946 possible names is listed below.
13948 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
13949 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
13952 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
13956 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
13957 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
13958 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
13959 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
13960 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
13961 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
13962 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
13963 size spec per split.
13965 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
13966 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
13967 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
13968 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
13969 present) gets focus.
13971 Here's a more complicated example:
13974 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
13975 (summary 0.25 point)
13976 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
13980 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
13981 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
13982 occupy, not a percentage.
13984 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
13985 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
13986 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
13987 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
13988 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
13991 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
13994 (article (horizontal 1.0
13999 (summary 0.25 point)
14004 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
14005 @code{horizontal} thingie?
14007 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
14008 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
14009 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
14010 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
14011 the screen is to be given to this strip.
14013 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
14014 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
14015 lines from the splits.
14017 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
14021 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
14022 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
14023 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
14024 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
14025 buffer = "(" buffer-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
14026 size = number | frame-params
14027 buffer-name = group | article | summary ...
14030 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
14031 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
14032 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
14033 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
14035 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
14036 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
14037 @cindex window height
14038 @cindex window width
14039 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
14040 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
14041 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
14042 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
14043 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
14044 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
14046 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
14047 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
14048 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
14049 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
14051 @findex gnus-configure-frame
14052 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
14053 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
14054 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
14055 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
14056 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
14057 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
14058 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
14059 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
14060 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
14061 configuration list.
14064 (gnus-configure-frame
14068 (article 0.3 point))
14076 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
14077 @code{frame} split:
14080 (gnus-configure-frame
14083 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
14085 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
14086 (user-position . t)
14087 (left . -1) (top . 1))
14092 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
14093 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
14094 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
14095 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
14096 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
14097 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
14098 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
14099 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
14102 Here's a list of all possible keys for
14103 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration}:
14105 @code{group}, @code{summary}, @code{article}, @code{server},
14106 @code{browse}, @code{message}, @code{pick}, @code{info},
14107 @code{summary-faq}, @code{edit-group}, @code{edit-server},
14108 @code{edit-score}, @code{post}, @code{reply}, @code{forward},
14109 @code{reply-yank}, @code{mail-bounce}, @code{draft}, @code{pipe},
14110 @code{bug}, @code{compose-bounce}, and @code{score-trace}.
14112 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
14113 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
14114 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
14118 (message (horizontal 1.0
14119 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
14121 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
14126 @findex gnus-add-configuration
14127 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
14128 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
14129 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
14130 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
14133 (gnus-add-configuration
14134 '(article (vertical 1.0
14136 (summary .25 point)
14140 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
14141 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
14142 Gnus has been loaded.
14144 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
14145 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
14146 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
14147 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
14148 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
14151 @node Faces and Fonts
14152 @section Faces and Fonts
14157 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
14158 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
14159 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
14164 @section Compilation
14165 @cindex compilation
14166 @cindex byte-compilation
14168 @findex gnus-compile
14170 Remember all those line format specification variables?
14171 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
14172 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
14173 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
14174 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
14175 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
14178 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
14179 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
14180 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
14181 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
14182 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
14183 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
14184 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
14188 @section Mode Lines
14191 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
14192 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
14193 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
14194 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
14195 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
14196 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
14197 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
14200 @cindex display-time
14202 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
14203 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
14204 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
14205 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
14206 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
14207 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
14208 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
14209 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
14212 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
14214 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
14215 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
14217 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
14218 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
14219 (length display-time-string)))))
14222 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
14223 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
14224 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
14225 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
14226 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
14229 @node Highlighting and Menus
14230 @section Highlighting and Menus
14232 @cindex highlighting
14235 @vindex gnus-visual
14236 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
14237 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
14238 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
14241 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
14242 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
14245 @item group-highlight
14246 Do highlights in the group buffer.
14247 @item summary-highlight
14248 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
14249 @item article-highlight
14250 Do highlights in the article buffer.
14252 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
14254 Create menus in the group buffer.
14256 Create menus in the summary buffers.
14258 Create menus in the article buffer.
14260 Create menus in the browse buffer.
14262 Create menus in the server buffer.
14264 Create menus in the score buffers.
14266 Create menus in all buffers.
14269 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
14270 buffers, you could say something like:
14273 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
14276 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
14279 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
14282 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
14283 in all Gnus buffers.
14285 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
14288 @item gnus-mouse-face
14289 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
14290 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
14291 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
14295 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
14299 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
14300 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
14301 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
14303 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
14304 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
14305 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
14307 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
14308 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
14309 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
14311 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
14312 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
14313 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
14315 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
14316 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
14317 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
14319 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
14320 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
14321 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
14332 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
14333 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
14334 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
14335 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
14336 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
14340 @vindex gnus-carpal
14341 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
14342 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
14343 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
14348 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
14349 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
14350 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
14352 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
14353 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
14354 Face used on buttons.
14356 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
14357 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
14358 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
14360 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
14361 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
14362 Buttons in the group buffer.
14364 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
14365 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
14366 Buttons in the summary buffer.
14368 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
14369 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
14370 Buttons in the server buffer.
14372 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
14373 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
14374 Buttons in the browse buffer.
14377 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
14378 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
14379 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
14387 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
14388 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
14389 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
14390 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
14391 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
14393 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
14394 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
14395 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
14397 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
14398 been idle for thirty minutes:
14401 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
14404 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
14408 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
14411 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
14412 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
14413 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
14415 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
14416 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
14417 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
14418 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
14420 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
14421 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
14422 @var{idle} minutes.
14424 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
14425 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
14428 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
14429 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
14430 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
14432 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
14433 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
14434 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
14435 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
14437 @vindex gnus-use-demon
14438 To set the whole thing in motion, though, you have to set
14439 @code{gnus-use-demon} to @code{t}.
14441 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
14442 your @file{.gnus} file:
14444 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
14446 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
14449 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
14450 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
14451 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
14452 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
14453 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
14454 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
14455 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
14456 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
14457 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
14458 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
14459 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
14461 @findex gnus-demon-init
14462 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
14463 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
14464 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
14465 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
14466 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
14468 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
14469 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
14470 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
14479 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
14480 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
14482 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
14483 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
14484 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
14485 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
14488 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
14489 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
14490 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
14491 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
14493 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
14494 this will make spam disappear.
14496 There are some variables to customize, of course:
14499 @item gnus-use-nocem
14500 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
14501 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
14504 @item gnus-nocem-groups
14505 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
14506 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
14507 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
14508 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
14510 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
14511 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
14512 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
14513 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
14514 "rbraver@@ohww.norman.ok.us" "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca"
14515 "jem@@xpat.com" "snowhare@@xmission.com" "red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us
14516 (Richard E. Depew)")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
14518 Known despammers that you can put in this list include:
14521 @item clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca;
14522 @cindex Chris Lewis
14523 Chris Lewis---Major Canadian despammer who has probably canceled more
14524 usenet abuse than anybody else.
14527 @cindex CancelMoose[tm]
14528 The CancelMoose[tm] on autopilot. The CancelMoose[tm] is reputed to be
14529 Norwegian, and was the person(s) who invented NoCeM.
14531 @item jem@@xpat.com;
14533 John Milburn---despammer located in Korea who is getting very busy these
14536 @item red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us (Richard E. Depew)
14537 Richard E. Depew---lone American despammer. He mostly cancels binary
14538 postings to non-binary groups and removes spews (regurgitated articles).
14541 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
14542 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
14543 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
14544 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
14545 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
14546 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
14547 @var{(issuer conditions ...)} elements in the list. Each condition is
14548 either a string (which is a regexp that matches types you want to use)
14549 or a list on the form @code{(not STRING)}, where @var{string} is a
14550 regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
14552 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
14553 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
14556 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
14559 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
14560 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
14563 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
14566 The specs are applied left-to-right.
14569 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
14570 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
14572 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
14573 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
14574 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
14575 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
14577 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
14578 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
14581 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
14583 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
14591 This might be dangerous, though.
14593 @item gnus-nocem-directory
14594 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
14595 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
14596 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
14598 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
14599 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
14600 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
14601 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
14602 might then see old spam.
14606 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
14607 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
14608 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
14609 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
14616 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
14617 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
14618 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
14620 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
14621 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
14622 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
14623 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
14624 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
14625 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
14626 @code{undo} function.
14628 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
14629 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
14630 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
14631 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
14632 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
14633 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
14634 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
14635 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
14636 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
14637 never be totally undoable.
14639 @findex gnus-undo-mode
14640 @vindex gnus-use-undo
14642 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
14643 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
14644 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo} command
14645 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
14650 @section Moderation
14653 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
14654 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
14655 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
14658 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
14662 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
14665 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
14667 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
14672 You split your incoming mail by matching on
14673 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
14674 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
14677 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
14678 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
14681 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
14682 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
14686 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
14689 (setq gnus-moderated-list
14690 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
14694 @node XEmacs Enhancements
14695 @section XEmacs Enhancements
14698 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
14702 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
14703 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
14704 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
14705 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
14718 So... You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
14719 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
14720 over your shoulder as you read news.
14723 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
14724 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
14725 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
14726 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
14727 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
14732 @subsubsection Picon Basics
14734 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
14743 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
14744 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
14745 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
14746 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
14747 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
14748 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
14749 @code{GIF} formats.
14752 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
14753 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
14754 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
14755 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string
14756 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
14758 @vindex gnus-picons-database
14759 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
14760 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at
14761 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
14762 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
14763 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
14766 @node Picon Requirements
14767 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
14769 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
14770 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
14773 Additionally, you must have @code{x} support compiled into XEmacs. To
14774 display color picons which are much nicer than the black & white one,
14775 you also need one of @code{xpm} or @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
14777 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
14778 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
14779 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
14780 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
14781 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
14785 @subsubsection Easy Picons
14787 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
14788 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
14791 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
14792 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-display-picons t)
14793 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-picons-article-display-x-face)
14796 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
14797 containing the Picons databases.
14799 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
14802 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
14807 @subsubsection Hard Picons
14815 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
14816 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
14817 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
14818 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
14819 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
14824 @item gnus-picons-database
14825 @vindex gnus-picons-database
14826 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
14827 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
14828 subdirectories. This is only useful if
14829 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
14830 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
14832 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
14833 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
14834 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
14835 engine is @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
14836 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
14837 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
14838 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
14840 @item gnus-picons-display-where
14841 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
14842 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
14843 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
14844 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
14845 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
14846 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
14847 routines---@pxref{Windows Configuration}.
14849 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
14850 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
14851 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
14856 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
14857 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
14859 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
14860 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
14863 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
14864 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
14866 @item gnus-article-display-picons
14867 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
14868 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
14869 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer. Should be added to the
14870 @code{gnus-article-display-hook}.
14872 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
14873 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
14874 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present. This function
14875 should be added to @code{gnus-article-display-hook}.
14879 Note: You must append them to the hook, so make sure to specify 't'
14880 for the append flag of @code{add-hook}:
14883 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-display-picons t)
14887 @node Picon Useless Configuration
14888 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
14896 The following variables offer further control over how things are
14897 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
14898 don't need to worry about.
14902 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
14903 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
14904 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
14905 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
14907 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
14908 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
14909 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
14910 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
14912 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
14913 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
14914 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
14915 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
14916 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
14918 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
14919 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
14920 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
14921 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
14922 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
14923 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
14924 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
14926 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
14927 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
14928 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
14929 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
14931 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
14932 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
14933 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
14934 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
14935 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
14936 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
14937 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
14939 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
14940 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
14941 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
14942 Defaults to @code{nil}.
14944 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
14945 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
14946 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
14947 Defaults to @code{t}.
14949 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
14950 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
14951 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
14952 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
14954 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
14955 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
14956 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
14957 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
14959 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
14960 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
14961 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
14962 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
14963 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
14964 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
14965 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
14966 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
14977 @subsection Smileys
14982 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/BigFace.ps,height=20cm}}
14987 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
14988 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
14990 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
14991 @file{.gnus.el} file:
14994 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-smiley-display t)
14997 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
14998 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
14999 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
15000 text and maps that to file names.
15002 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
15003 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
15004 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
15005 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
15006 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
15007 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
15009 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
15010 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
15012 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
15013 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
15014 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
15016 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
15017 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
15021 @item smiley-data-directory
15022 @vindex smiley-data-directory
15023 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
15025 @item smiley-flesh-color
15026 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
15027 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
15029 @item smiley-features-color
15030 @vindex smiley-features-color
15031 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
15033 @item smiley-tongue-color
15034 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
15035 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
15037 @item smiley-circle-color
15038 @vindex smiley-circle-color
15039 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
15041 @item smiley-mouse-face
15042 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
15043 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
15049 @subsection Toolbar
15059 @item gnus-use-toolbar
15060 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
15061 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
15062 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
15063 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
15065 @item gnus-group-toolbar
15066 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
15067 The toolbar in the group buffer.
15069 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
15070 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
15071 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
15073 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
15074 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
15075 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
15081 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
15084 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
15085 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
15086 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
15087 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
15088 unusual directory structure.
15090 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
15091 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
15092 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
15093 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
15095 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
15096 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
15097 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
15098 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
15099 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
15100 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
15102 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
15103 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
15104 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
15118 @node Fuzzy Matching
15119 @section Fuzzy Matching
15120 @cindex fuzzy matching
15122 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
15123 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
15125 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
15126 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
15127 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
15129 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
15130 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
15131 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
15132 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
15133 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
15136 @node Thwarting Email Spam
15137 @section Thwarting Email Spam
15141 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
15143 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
15144 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
15145 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
15146 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
15147 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
15148 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
15149 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
15150 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
15153 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
15154 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
15155 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
15156 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
15157 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
15158 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
15162 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
15163 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
15165 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
15166 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
15167 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
15168 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
15169 sysadm whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
15170 part of the mail address.)
15173 (setq message-default-news-headers
15174 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
15177 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
15178 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
15183 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
15184 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
15185 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
15191 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
15192 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
15193 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
15194 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
15196 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
15197 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
15198 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
15199 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
15200 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
15201 your fancy split rule in this way:
15206 (to "larsi" "misc")
15210 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
15211 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
15212 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
15213 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
15214 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
15216 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
15217 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
15218 at @file{<URL:http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html>}.
15219 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
15220 cosmic balance somewhat.
15222 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
15223 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
15224 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
15225 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
15228 @node Various Various
15229 @section Various Various
15235 @item gnus-home-directory
15236 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
15237 defaults to @file{~/}.
15239 @item gnus-directory
15240 @vindex gnus-directory
15241 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
15242 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
15243 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
15245 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
15246 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
15247 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
15248 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
15250 @item gnus-default-directory
15251 @vindex gnus-default-directory
15252 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
15253 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
15254 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
15255 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
15256 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
15257 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
15260 @vindex gnus-verbose
15261 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
15262 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
15263 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
15264 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
15265 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
15267 @item gnus-verbose-backends
15268 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
15269 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
15270 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
15272 @item nnheader-max-head-length
15273 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
15274 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
15275 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
15276 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
15277 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
15278 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
15279 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
15280 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
15281 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
15283 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
15284 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
15285 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
15286 read when doing the operation described above.
15288 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
15289 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
15291 @cindex invalid characters in file names
15292 @cindex characters in file names
15293 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
15294 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
15295 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
15298 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
15302 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
15303 Windows (phooey) systems.
15305 @item gnus-hidden-properties
15306 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
15307 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
15308 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
15309 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
15311 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
15312 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
15313 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
15314 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
15315 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
15317 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
15318 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
15319 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
15328 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
15329 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
15331 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
15333 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
15339 Not because of victories @*
15342 but for the common sunshine,@*
15344 the largess of the spring.
15348 but for the day's work done@*
15349 as well as I was able;@*
15350 not for a seat upon the dais@*
15351 but at the common table.@*
15356 @chapter Appendices
15359 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
15360 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
15361 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
15362 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
15363 * A Programmers Guide to Gnus:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
15364 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
15365 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
15373 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
15374 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
15376 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage, you
15377 can point your (feh!) web browser to
15378 @file{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/}. This is also the primary
15379 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is known
15380 as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
15382 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
15383 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
15384 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
15385 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
15386 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
15387 appropriate name, don't you think?)
15389 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
15390 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
15391 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
15392 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
15394 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
15395 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
15396 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
15398 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
15399 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
15401 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
15402 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
15404 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37
15405 releases. If was released as ``Gnus 5.6.31' on March 8th 1998.
15407 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
15408 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'' --
15409 don't panic. Don't let it know that you're frightened. Back away.
15410 Slowly. Whatever you do, don't run. Walk away, calmly, until you're
15411 out of its reach. Find a proper released version of Gnus and snuggle up
15415 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
15416 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
15417 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
15418 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
15419 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
15420 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
15421 * Newest Features:: Features so new that they haven't been written yet.
15428 What's the point of Gnus?
15430 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
15431 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
15432 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
15433 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
15434 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
15435 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
15436 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
15437 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
15438 keep track of millions of people who post?
15440 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
15441 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
15442 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
15443 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
15444 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
15445 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
15446 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
15447 every one of you to explore and invent.
15449 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
15450 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
15453 @node Compatibility
15454 @subsection Compatibility
15456 @cindex compatibility
15457 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
15458 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
15459 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
15464 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
15468 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
15471 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
15474 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
15475 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
15476 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
15477 important variables have their values copied into their global
15478 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
15479 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
15481 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
15482 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
15483 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
15484 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
15485 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
15489 @cindex highlighting
15490 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
15491 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
15492 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
15493 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
15494 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
15495 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
15498 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
15499 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
15500 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
15501 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
15503 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
15504 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
15505 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
15506 to stop doing it the old way.
15508 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
15510 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
15512 @cindex reporting bugs
15514 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
15515 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
15516 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
15518 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
15519 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
15520 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
15521 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
15526 @subsection Conformity
15528 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
15529 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
15536 There are no known breaches of this standard.
15540 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
15542 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
15543 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
15544 We do have some breaches to this one.
15549 Gnus does no MIME handling, and this standard-to-be seems to think that
15550 MIME is the bees' knees, so we have major breakage here.
15553 This is considered to be a ``vanity header'', while I consider it to be
15554 consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted articles
15555 coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use either of
15556 those for posting articles. I would not have known that if it wasn't
15557 for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
15562 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
15563 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
15568 @subsection Emacsen
15574 Gnus should work on :
15579 Emacs 19.32 and up.
15582 XEmacs 19.14 and up.
15585 Mule versions based on Emacs 19.32 and up.
15589 Gnus will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than that. Not
15590 reliably, at least.
15592 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
15593 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
15594 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
15599 @subsection Contributors
15600 @cindex contributors
15602 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
15603 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
15604 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
15605 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
15606 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
15607 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
15608 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
15609 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
15610 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
15611 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
15613 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
15619 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
15622 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
15623 well as numerous other things).
15626 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
15629 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
15632 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
15633 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
15636 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
15639 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
15640 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
15643 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
15646 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
15649 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
15652 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
15655 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
15656 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
15659 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
15662 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
15665 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
15668 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
15672 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
15675 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
15678 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
15681 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
15682 well as autoconf support.
15686 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
15687 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
15689 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
15698 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
15702 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
15724 Massimo Campostrini,
15732 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
15738 Michael Welsh Duggan,
15741 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
15745 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
15751 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
15753 Michelangelo Grigni,
15756 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
15758 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
15760 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
15765 François Felix Ingrand,
15766 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
15768 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
15776 Peter Skov Knudsen,
15777 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
15778 Thor Kristoffersen,
15780 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
15797 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
15798 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
15805 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
15809 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
15811 John McClary Prevost,
15816 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
15821 Christian von Roques,
15823 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
15829 Philippe Schnoebelen,
15831 Randal L. Schwartz,
15859 Katsumi Yamaoka, @c Yamaoka
15861 Shenghuo Zhu. @c Zhu
15863 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
15864 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
15865 (550kB and counting).
15867 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
15870 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
15871 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
15875 @subsection New Features
15876 @cindex new features
15879 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
15880 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.3/5.3.
15881 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
15882 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6.31.
15885 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
15886 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
15887 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
15891 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
15893 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
15898 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
15899 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
15902 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
15903 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
15906 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
15909 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
15910 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
15911 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
15914 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
15915 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
15916 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
15917 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
15920 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
15921 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
15924 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
15925 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
15926 (@pxref{The Active File}).
15929 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
15930 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
15933 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
15934 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
15935 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
15938 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
15939 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
15940 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
15943 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
15944 the @file{.emacs} file.
15947 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
15948 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15951 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
15952 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
15955 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
15956 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
15959 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
15960 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
15963 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
15964 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
15967 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
15970 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
15971 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
15974 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
15975 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
15978 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
15979 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
15982 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
15985 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
15986 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
15989 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
15993 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
15997 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
15998 configuration (@pxref{Windows Configuration}).
16001 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
16007 @node September Gnus
16008 @subsubsection September Gnus
16012 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/september.ps,height=20cm}}
16016 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
16021 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
16022 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
16026 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
16027 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
16031 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
16035 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
16036 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
16039 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
16043 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
16046 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
16049 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
16052 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
16056 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
16057 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
16060 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
16064 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
16068 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
16072 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
16076 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
16079 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
16080 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
16083 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
16087 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
16088 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
16091 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
16094 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
16095 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
16096 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
16099 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
16103 The Gnus cache is much faster.
16106 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
16110 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
16111 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
16114 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
16115 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
16118 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
16119 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
16122 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
16123 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
16124 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
16127 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
16128 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
16131 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
16134 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
16137 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
16138 'gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head)
16142 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
16145 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
16148 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
16149 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
16152 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Windows
16156 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
16159 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}}
16164 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
16167 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
16171 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
16174 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
16178 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
16181 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
16184 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
16185 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
16188 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
16189 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
16193 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
16194 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
16197 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
16201 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
16202 buffer to allow easier treatment.
16205 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
16208 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
16212 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
16216 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
16217 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
16220 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
16224 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
16225 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
16228 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
16229 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
16232 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
16236 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
16239 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
16240 'gnus-article-hide-boring-headers t)
16244 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
16247 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
16253 @subsubsection Red Gnus
16255 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
16259 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/red.ps,height=20cm}}
16266 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
16269 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
16270 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
16273 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
16274 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
16278 Article washing status can be displayed in the
16279 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
16282 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
16285 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
16286 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
16289 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
16293 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
16294 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
16298 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
16299 Server Internals}).
16302 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
16306 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
16309 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
16310 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
16313 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
16314 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
16315 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
16318 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
16319 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
16322 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
16323 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
16326 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
16330 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
16331 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
16334 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
16335 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
16338 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
16342 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
16345 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
16349 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
16350 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
16353 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
16354 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
16357 A new command for reading collections of documents
16358 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
16359 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
16362 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
16366 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the NNTP
16367 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
16370 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
16371 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
16372 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
16375 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
16376 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
16380 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
16384 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
16388 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}}
16393 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
16397 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
16401 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
16402 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
16405 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
16408 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-emphasize)
16415 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
16417 New features in Gnus 5.6.31:
16422 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
16423 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
16424 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
16427 The @code{nndraft} backend has returned, but works differently than
16428 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
16429 group, which is created automatically.
16432 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
16436 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
16439 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
16440 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
16443 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
16447 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
16450 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
16451 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
16454 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
16457 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
16458 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
16461 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
16462 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
16465 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
16466 control over simplification.
16469 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
16472 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
16476 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
16479 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
16482 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
16483 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
16484 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
16487 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
16488 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
16491 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
16495 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
16496 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
16499 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
16500 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
16503 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
16507 A history of where mails have been split is available.
16510 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
16513 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
16514 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
16517 A new function for citing in Message has been
16518 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
16521 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
16524 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
16528 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
16529 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
16532 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
16533 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
16536 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} backend.
16539 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
16544 @node Newest Features
16545 @subsection Newest Features
16548 Also known as the @dfn{todo list}. Sure to be implemented before the
16551 Be afraid. Be very afraid.
16553 (That a feature appears in this list doesn't necessarily mean that I've
16554 decided to actually implement it. It just means that I think it sounds
16557 (Yes, this is the actual, up-to-the-second todo list.)
16562 Native @sc{mime} support is something that should be done.
16565 Really do unbinhexing.
16568 I would like the zombie-page to contain an URL to the source of the
16569 latest version of gnus or some explanation on where to find it.
16572 A way to continue editing the latest Message composition.
16575 http://www.sonicnet.com/feature/ari3/
16578 facep is not declared.
16581 Include a section in the manual on why the number of articles
16582 isn't the same in the group buffer and on the SPC prompt.
16585 Interacting with rmail fcc isn't easy.
16590 <URL:http://www.falch.no/people/pepper/DSSSL-Lite/archives/>
16591 <URL:http://www.eit.com/software/hypermail/hypermail.html>
16592 <URL:http://homer.ncm.com/>
16593 <URL:http://www.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Internet/World_Wide_Web/HTML_Converters/>
16594 http://www.uwsg.indiana.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9610/index.html
16595 <URL:http://union.ncsa.uiuc.edu/HyperNews/get/www/html/converters.html>
16596 http://www.miranova.com/gnus-list/
16601 @samp{^-- } is made into - in LaTeX.
16604 gnus-kill is much slower than it was in GNUS 4.1.3.
16607 when expunging articles on low score, the sparse nodes keep hanging on?
16609 starting the first time seems to hang Gnus on some systems. Does
16610 NEWGROUPS answer too fast?
16612 nndir doesn't read gzipped files.
16614 FAQ doesn't have an up node?
16616 when moving mail from a procmail spool to the crash-box,
16617 the crash-box is only appropriate to one specific group.
16619 `t' `t' makes X-Faces disappear.
16621 nnmh-be-safe means that crossposted articles will
16622 be marked as unread.
16624 Orphan score entries don't show on "V t" score trace
16626 when clearing out data, the cache data should also be reset.
16628 rewrite gnus-summary-limit-children to be non-recursive
16629 to avoid exceeding lisp nesting on huge groups.
16631 expunged articles are counted when computing scores.
16633 implement gnus-batch-brew-soup
16635 ticked articles aren't easy to read in pick mode -- `n' and
16636 stuff just skips past them. Read articles are the same.
16638 topics that contain just groups with ticked
16639 articles aren't displayed.
16641 nndoc should always allocate unique Message-IDs.
16643 implement gnus-score-thread
16645 If there are mail groups the first time you use Gnus, Gnus'll
16646 make the mail groups killed.
16648 no "no news is good news" when using topics.
16650 when doing crosspost marking, the cache has to be consulted
16651 and articles have to be removed.
16653 nnweb should fetch complete articles when they are split into several
16656 scoring on head immediate doesn't work.
16658 finding short score file names takes forever.
16660 canceling articles in foreign groups.
16662 nntp-open-rlogin no longer works.
16664 C-u C-x C-s (Summary) switches to the group buffer.
16666 move nnmail-split-history out to the backends.
16668 nnweb doesn't work properly.
16670 using a virtual server name as `gnus-select-method' doesn't work?
16672 when killing/yanking a group from one topic to another in a slave, the
16673 master will yank it first to one topic and then add it to another.
16677 warn user about `=' redirection of a group in the active file?
16679 really unbinhex binhex files.
16681 take over the XEmacs menubar and offer a toggle between the XEmacs
16682 bar and the Gnus bar.
16685 push active file and NOV file parsing down into C code.
16686 `(canonize-message-id id)'
16687 `(mail-parent-message-id references n)'
16688 `(parse-news-nov-line &optional dependency-hashtb)'
16689 `(parse-news-nov-region beg end &optional dependency-hashtb fullp)'
16690 `(parse-news-active-region beg end hashtb)'
16695 nnml .overview directory with splits.
16699 postponed commands.
16701 the selected article show have its Subject displayed in its summary line.
16703 when entering groups, get the real number of unread articles from
16706 sort after gathering threads -- make false roots have the
16707 headers of the oldest orphan with a 0 article number?
16709 nndoc groups should inherit the score files of their parents? Also
16710 inherit copy prompts and save files.
16712 command to start up Gnus (if not running) and enter a mail mode buffer.
16714 allow editing the group description from the group buffer
16715 for backends that support that.
16717 gnus-hide,show-all-topics
16719 groups and sub-topics should be allowed to mingle inside each topic,
16720 and not just list all subtopics at the end.
16722 a command to remove all read articles that are not needed to connect
16723 threads -- `gnus-summary-limit-to-sparse-unread'?
16725 a variable to turn off limiting/cutting of threads in the tree buffer.
16727 a variable to limit how many files are uudecoded.
16729 add zombie groups to a special "New Groups" topic.
16731 server mode command: close/open all connections
16733 put a file date in gnus-score-alist and check whether the file
16734 has been changed before using it.
16736 on exit from a digest group, go to the next article in the parent group.
16738 hide (sub)threads with low score.
16740 when expiring, remove all marks from expired articles.
16742 gnus-summary-limit-to-body
16744 a regexp alist that says what level groups are to be subscribed
16745 on. Eg. -- `(("nnml:" . 1))'.
16747 easier interface to nnkiboze to create ephemeral groups that
16748 contain groups that match a regexp.
16750 allow newlines in <URL:> urls, but remove them before using
16753 If there is no From line, the mail backends should fudge one from the
16756 fuzzy simplifying should strip all non-alpha-numerical info
16757 from subject lines.
16759 gnus-soup-brew-soup-with-high-scores.
16761 nntp-ping-before-connect
16763 command to check whether NOV is evil. "list overview.fmt".
16765 when entering a group, Gnus should look through the score
16766 files very early for `local' atoms and set those local variables.
16768 message annotations.
16770 topics are always yanked before groups, and that's not good.
16772 (set-extent-property extent 'help-echo "String to display in minibuf")
16773 to display help in the minibuffer on buttons under XEmacs.
16775 allow group line format spec to say how many articles there
16780 support qmail maildir spools
16782 `run-with-idle-timer' in gnus-demon.
16784 stop using invisible text properties and start using overlays instead
16786 C-c C-f C-e to add an Expires header.
16788 go from one group to the next; everything is expunged; go to the
16789 next group instead of going to the group buffer.
16791 gnus-renumber-cache -- to renumber the cache using "low" numbers.
16793 record topic changes in the dribble buffer.
16795 `nnfolder-generate-active-file' should look at the folders it
16796 finds and generate proper active ranges.
16798 nneething-look-in-files-for-article-heads variable to control
16799 whether nneething should sniff all files in the directories.
16801 gnus-fetch-article -- start Gnus, enter group, display article
16803 gnus-dont-move-articles-to-same-group variable when respooling.
16805 when messages are crossposted between several auto-expirable groups,
16806 articles aren't properly marked as expirable.
16808 nneething should allow deletion/moving.
16810 TAB on the last button should go to the first button.
16812 if the car of an element in `mail-split-methods' is a function,
16813 and the function returns non-nil, use that as the name of the group(s) to
16816 command for listing all score files that have been applied.
16818 a command in the article buffer to return to `summary' config.
16820 `gnus-always-post-using-current-server' -- variable to override
16821 `C-c C-c' when posting.
16823 nnmail-group-spool-alist -- says where each group should use
16826 when an article is crossposted to an auto-expirable group, the article
16827 should be marker as expirable.
16829 article mode command/menu for "send region as URL to browser".
16831 on errors, jump to info nodes that explain the error. For instance,
16832 on invalid From headers, or on error messages from the nntp server.
16834 when gathering threads, make the article that has no "Re: " the parent.
16835 Also consult Date headers.
16837 a token in splits to call shrink-window-if-larger-than-buffer
16839 `1 0 A M' to do matches on the active hashtb.
16841 duplicates -- command to remove Gnus-Warning header, use the read
16842 Message-ID, delete the "original".
16844 when replying to several messages at once, put the "other" message-ids
16845 into a See-Also header.
16847 support setext: URL:http://www.bsdi.com/setext/
16849 support ProleText: <URL:http://proletext.clari.net/prole/proletext.html>
16851 when browsing a foreign server, the groups that are already subscribed
16852 should be listed as such and not as "K".
16854 generate font names dynamically.
16856 score file mode auto-alist.
16858 allow nndoc to change/add/delete things from documents. Implement
16859 methods for each format for adding an article to the document.
16861 `gnus-fetch-old-headers' `all' value to incorporate
16862 absolutely all headers there is.
16864 function like `|', but concatenate all marked articles
16865 and pipe them to the process.
16867 cache the list of killed (or active) groups in a separate file. Update
16868 the file whenever we read the active file or the list
16869 of killed groups in the .eld file reaches a certain length.
16871 function for starting to edit a file to put into
16872 the current mail group.
16874 score-find-trace should display the total score of the article.
16876 "ghettozie" -- score on Xref header and nix it out after using it
16877 to avoid marking as read in other groups it has been crossposted to.
16879 look at procmail splitting. The backends should create
16880 the groups automatically if a spool file exists for that group.
16882 function for backends to register themselves with Gnus.
16884 when replying to several process-marked articles,
16885 have all the From end up in Cc headers? Variable to toggle.
16887 command to delete a crossposted mail article from all
16888 groups it has been mailed to.
16890 `B c' and `B m' should be crosspost aware.
16892 hide-pgp should also hide PGP public key blocks.
16894 Command in the group buffer to respool process-marked groups.
16896 `gnus-summary-find-matching' should accept
16897 pseudo-"headers" like "body", "head" and "all"
16899 When buttifying <URL: > things, all white space (including
16900 newlines) should be ignored.
16902 Process-marking all groups in a topic should process-mark
16903 groups in subtopics as well.
16905 Add non-native groups to the list of killed groups when killing them.
16907 nntp-suggest-kewl-config to probe the nntp server and suggest
16910 add edit and forward secondary marks.
16912 nnml shouldn't visit its .overview files.
16914 allow customizing sorting within gathered threads.
16916 `B q' shouldn't select the current article.
16918 nnmbox should support a newsgroups file for descriptions.
16920 allow fetching mail from several pop servers.
16922 Be able to specify whether the saving commands save the original
16923 or the formatted article.
16925 a command to reparent with the child process-marked (cf. `T ^'.).
16927 I think the possibility to send a password with nntp-open-rlogin
16928 should be a feature in Red Gnus.
16930 The `Z n' command should be possible to execute from a mouse click.
16932 more limiting functions -- date, etc.
16934 be able to limit on a random header; on body; using reverse matches.
16936 a group parameter (`absofucking-total-expiry') that will make Gnus expire
16937 even unread articles.
16939 a command to print the article buffer as postscript.
16941 variable to disable password fetching when opening by nntp-open-telnet.
16943 manual: more example servers -- nntp with rlogin, telnet
16945 checking for bogus groups should clean topic alists as well.
16947 canceling articles in foreign groups.
16949 article number in folded topics isn't properly updated by
16952 Movement in the group buffer to the next unread group should go to the
16953 next closed topic with unread messages if no group can be found.
16955 Extensive info pages generated on the fly with help everywhere --
16956 in the "*Gnus edit*" buffers, for instance.
16958 Topic movement commands -- like thread movement. Up, down, forward, next.
16960 a way to tick/mark as read Gcc'd articles.
16962 a way to say that all groups within a specific topic comes
16963 from a particular server? Hm.
16965 `gnus-article-fill-if-long-lines' -- a function to fill
16966 the article buffer if there are any looong lines there.
16968 `T h' should jump to the parent topic and fold it.
16970 a command to create an ephemeral nndoc group out of a file,
16971 and then splitting it/moving it to some other group/backend.
16973 a group parameter for nnkiboze groups that says that
16974 all kibozed articles should be entered into the cache.
16976 It should also probably be possible to delimit what
16977 `gnus-jog-cache' does -- for instance, work on just some groups, or on
16978 some levels, and entering just articles that have a score higher than
16981 nnfolder should append to the folder instead of re-writing
16982 the entire folder to disk when accepting new messages.
16984 allow all backends to do the proper thing with .gz files.
16986 a backend for reading collections of babyl files nnbabylfolder?
16988 a command for making the native groups into foreign groups.
16990 server mode command for clearing read marks from all groups
16993 when following up multiple articles, include all To, Cc, etc headers
16996 a command for deciding what the total score of the current
16997 thread is. Also a way to highlight based on this.
16999 command to show and edit group scores
17001 a gnus-tree-minimize-horizontal to minimize tree buffers
17004 command to generate nnml overview file for one group.
17006 `C-u C-u a' -- prompt for many crossposted groups.
17008 keep track of which mail groups have received new articles (in this session).
17009 Be able to generate a report and perhaps do some marking in the group
17012 gnus-build-sparse-threads to a number -- build only sparse threads
17013 that are of that length.
17015 have nnmh respect mh's unseen sequence in .mh_profile.
17017 cache the newsgroups descriptions locally.
17019 asynchronous posting under nntp.
17021 be able to control word adaptive scoring from the score files.
17023 a variable to make `C-c C-c' post using the "current" select method.
17025 `limit-exclude-low-scored-articles'.
17027 if `gnus-summary-show-thread' is a number, hide threads that have
17028 a score lower than this number.
17030 split newsgroup subscription variable up into "order" and "method".
17032 buttonize ange-ftp file names.
17034 a command to make a duplicate copy of the current article
17035 so that each copy can be edited separately.
17037 nnweb should allow fetching from the local nntp server.
17039 record the sorting done in the summary buffer so that
17040 it can be repeated when limiting/regenerating the buffer.
17042 nnml-generate-nov-databses should generate for
17045 when the user does commands in the group buffer, check
17046 the modification time of the .newsrc.eld file and use
17047 ask-user-about-supersession-threat. Also warn when trying
17048 to save .newsrc.eld and it has changed.
17050 M-g on a topic will display all groups with 0 articles in
17053 command to remove all topic stuff.
17055 allow exploding incoming digests when reading incoming mail
17056 and splitting the resulting digests.
17058 nnsoup shouldn't set the `message-' variables.
17060 command to nix out all nnoo state information.
17062 nnmail-process-alist that calls functions if group names
17063 matches an alist -- before saving.
17065 use buffer-invisibility-spec everywhere for hiding text.
17067 variable to activate each group before entering them
17068 to get the (new) number of articles. `gnus-activate-before-entering'.
17070 command to fetch a Message-ID from any buffer, even
17071 starting Gnus first if necessary.
17073 when posting and checking whether a group exists or not, just
17074 ask the nntp server instead of relying on the active hashtb.
17076 buttonize the output of `C-c C-a' in an apropos-like way.
17078 `G p' should understand process/prefix, and allow editing
17079 of several groups at once.
17081 command to create an ephemeral nnvirtual group that
17082 matches some regexp(s).
17084 nndoc should understand "Content-Type: message/rfc822" forwarded messages.
17086 it should be possible to score "thread" on the From header.
17088 hitting RET on a "gnus-uu-archive" pseudo article should unpack it.
17090 `B i' should display the article at once in the summary buffer.
17092 remove the "*" mark at once when unticking an article.
17094 `M-s' should highlight the matching text.
17096 when checking for duplicated mails, use Resent-Message-ID if present.
17098 killing and yanking groups in topics should be better. If killing one copy
17099 of a group that exists in multiple topics, only that copy should
17100 be removed. Yanking should insert the copy, and yanking topics
17101 should be possible to be interspersed with the other yankings.
17103 command for enter a group just to read the cached articles. A way to say
17104 "ignore the nntp connection; just read from the cache."
17106 `X u' should decode base64 articles.
17108 a way to hide all "inner" cited text, leaving just the most
17109 recently cited text.
17111 nnvirtual should be asynchronous.
17113 after editing an article, gnus-original-article-buffer should
17116 there should probably be a way to make Gnus not connect to the
17117 server and just read the articles in the server
17119 allow a `set-default' (or something) to change the default
17120 value of nnoo variables.
17122 a command to import group infos from a .newsrc.eld file.
17124 groups from secondary servers have the entire select method
17125 listed in each group info.
17127 a command for just switching from the summary buffer to the group
17130 a way to specify that some incoming mail washing functions
17131 should only be applied to some groups.
17133 Message `C-f C-t' should ask the user whether to heed
17134 mail-copies-to: never.
17136 new group parameter -- `post-to-server' that says to post
17137 using the current server. Also a variable to do the same.
17139 the slave dribble files should autosave to the slave file names.
17141 a group parameter that says what articles to display on group entry, based
17144 a way to visually distinguish slave Gnusae from masters. (Whip instead
17147 Use DJ Bernstein "From " quoting/dequoting, where applicable.
17149 Why is hide-citation-maybe and hide-citation different? Also
17152 group user-defined meta-parameters.
17156 From: John Griffith <griffith@@sfs.nphil.uni-tuebingen.de>
17158 I like the option for trying to retrieve the FAQ for a group and I was
17159 thinking it would be great if for those newsgroups that had archives
17160 you could also try to read the archive for that group. Part of the
17161 problem is that archives are spread all over the net, unlike FAQs.
17162 What would be best I suppose is to find the one closest to your site.
17164 In any case, there is a list of general news group archives at
17165 ftp://ftp.neosoft.com/pub/users/claird/news.lists/newsgroup_archives.html
17172 From: Jason L Tibbitts III <tibbs@@hpc.uh.edu>
17173 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
17175 (gnus-group-add-parameter group
17176 (cons 'gnus-group-date-last-entered (list (current-time-string))))))
17178 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
17179 "Return the date the group was last read."
17180 (cond ((car (gnus-group-get-parameter gnus-tmp-group 'gnus-group-date-last-entered)))
17185 tanken var at når du bruker `gnus-startup-file' som prefix (FOO) til å lete
17186 opp en fil FOO-SERVER, FOO-SERVER.el, FOO-SERVER.eld, kan du la den være en
17187 liste hvor du bruker hvert element i listen som FOO, istedet. da kunne man
17188 hatt forskjellige serveres startup-filer forskjellige steder.
17192 LMI> Well, nnbabyl could alter the group info to heed labels like
17193 LMI> answered and read, I guess.
17195 It could also keep them updated (the same for the Status: header of
17198 They could be used like this:
17202 `M l <name> RET' add label <name> to current message.
17203 `M u <name> RET' remove label <name> from current message.
17204 `/ l <expr> RET' limit summary buffer according to <expr>.
17206 <expr> would be a boolean expression on the labels, e.g.
17208 `/ l bug & !fixed RET'
17211 would show all the messages which are labeled `bug' but not labeled
17214 One could also imagine the labels being used for highlighting, or
17215 affect the summary line format.
17219 Sender: abraham@@dina.kvl.dk
17221 I'd like a gnus-find-file which work like find file, except that it
17222 would recognize things that looks like messages or folders:
17224 - If it is a directory containing numbered files, create an nndir
17227 - For other directories, create a nneething summary buffer.
17229 - For files matching "\\`From ", create a nndoc/mbox summary.
17231 - For files matching "\\`BABYL OPTIONS:", create a nndoc/baby summary.
17233 - For files matching "\\`[^ \t\n]+:", create an *Article* buffer.
17235 - For other files, just find them normally.
17237 I'd like `nneething' to use this function, so it would work on a
17238 directory potentially containing mboxes or babyl files.
17241 Please send a mail to bwarsaw@@cnri.reston.va.us (Barry A. Warsaw) and
17242 tell him what you are doing.
17245 Currently, I get prompted:
17249 decend into sci.something ?
17253 The problem above is that since there is really only one subsection of
17254 science, shouldn't it prompt you for only descending sci.something? If
17255 there was a sci.somethingelse group or section, then it should prompt
17256 for sci? first the sci.something? then sci.somethingelse?...
17259 Ja, det burde være en måte å si slikt. Kanskje en ny variabel?
17260 `gnus-use-few-score-files'? SÃ¥ kunne score-regler legges til den
17261 "mest" lokale score-fila. F. eks. ville no-gruppene betjenes av
17262 "no.all.SCORE", osv.
17265 What i want is for Gnus to treat any sequence or combination of the following
17266 as a single spoiler warning and hide it all, replacing it with a "Next Page"
17272 more than n blank lines
17274 more than m identical lines
17275 (which should be replaced with button to show them)
17277 any whitespace surrounding any of the above
17281 Well, we could allow a new value to `gnus-thread-ignore-subject' --
17282 `spaces', or something. (We could even default to that.) And then
17283 subjects that differ in white space only could be considered the
17284 "same" subject for threading purposes.
17287 Modes to preprocess the contents (e.g. jka-compr) use the second form
17288 "(REGEXP FUNCTION NON-NIL)" while ordinary modes (e.g. tex) use the first
17289 form "(REGEXP . FUNCTION)", so you could use it to distinguish between
17290 those two types of modes. (auto-modes-alist, insert-file-contents-literally.)
17293 Under XEmacs -- do funny article marks:
17296 soup - bowl of soup
17297 score below - dim light bulb
17298 score over - bright light bulb
17301 Yes. I think the algorithm is as follows:
17306 show-list-of-articles-in-group
17307 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
17308 if (no-more-articles-in-group-to-select)
17309 if (articles-selected)
17310 start-reading-selected-articles;
17311 junk-unread-articles;
17316 else if (key-pressed = '.')
17317 if (consolidated-menus) # same as hide-thread in Gnus
17318 select-thread-under-cursor;
17320 select-article-under-cursor;
17324 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
17325 if (more-pages-in-article)
17327 else if (more-selected-articles-to-read)
17334 My precise need here would have been to limit files to Incoming*.
17335 One could think of some `nneething-only-files' variable, but I guess
17336 it would have been unacceptable if one was using many unrelated such
17339 A more useful approach would be to, in response to the `G D' prompt, be
17340 allowed to say something like: `~/.mail/Incoming*', somewhat limiting
17341 the top-level directory only (in case directories would be matched by
17342 the wildcard expression).
17345 It would be nice if it also handled
17347 <URL:news://sunsite.auc.dk/>
17349 which should correspond to `B nntp RET sunsite.auc.dk' in *Group*.
17354 Take a look at w3-menu.el in the Emacs-W3 distribution - this works out
17355 really well. Each menu is 'named' by a symbol that would be on a
17356 gnus-*-menus (where * would be whatever, but at least group, summary, and
17357 article versions) variable.
17359 So for gnus-summary-menus, I would set to '(sort mark dispose ...)
17361 A value of '1' would just put _all_ the menus in a single 'GNUS' menu in
17362 the main menubar. This approach works really well for Emacs-W3 and VM.
17366 nndoc should take care to create unique Message-IDs for all its
17369 gnus-score-followup-article only works when you have a summary buffer
17370 active. Make it work when posting from the group buffer as well.
17371 (message-sent-hook).
17373 rewrite gnus-demon to use run-with-idle-timers.
17376 * Enhancements to Gnus:
17380 * gnus-servers (gnus-start-server-buffer?)--enters Gnus and goes
17381 straight to the server buffer, without opening any connections to
17384 * gnus-server-read-server-newsrc--produces a buffer very similar to
17385 the group buffer, but with only groups from that server listed;
17386 quitting this buffer returns to the server buffer.
17389 add a command to check the integrity of an nnfolder folder --
17390 go through the article numbers and see that there are no duplicates,
17394 `unsmileyfy-buffer' to undo smileification.
17397 a command to give all relevant info on an article, including all
17401 when doing `-request-accept-article', the backends should do
17402 the nnmail duplicate checking.
17405 allow `message-signature-file' to be a function to return the
17406 value of the signature file.
17409 In addition, I would love it if I could configure message-tab so that it
17410 could call `bbdb-complete-name' in other headers. So, some sort of
17413 (setq message-tab-alist
17414 '((message-header-regexp message-expand-group)
17415 ("^\\(To\\|[cC]c\\|[bB]cc\\)" bbdb-complete-name)))
17417 then you could run the relevant function to complete the information in
17421 cache the newsgroups file locally to avoid reloading it all the time.
17424 a command to import a buffer into a group.
17427 nnweb should allow fetching by Message-ID from servers.
17430 point in the article buffer doesn't always go to the
17431 beginning of the buffer when selecting new articles.
17434 a command to process mark all unread articles.
17437 `gnus-gather-threads-by-references-and-subject' -- first
17438 do gathering by references, and then go through the dummy roots and
17439 do more gathering by subject.
17442 gnus-uu-mark-in-numerical-order -- process mark articles in
17443 article numerical order.
17446 (gnus-thread-total-score
17447 (gnus-id-to-thread (mail-header-id (gnus-summary-article-header))))
17451 sorting by score is wrong when using sparse threads.
17454 a command to fetch an arbitrary article -- without having to be
17455 in the summary buffer.
17458 a new nncvs backend. Each group would show an article, using
17459 version branches as threading, checkin date as the date, etc.
17462 http://www.dejanews.com/forms/dnsetfilter_exp.html ?
17463 This filter allows one to construct advance queries on the Dejanews
17464 database such as specifying start and end dates, subject, author,
17465 and/or newsgroup name.
17468 new Date header scoring type -- older, newer
17471 use the summary toolbar in the article buffer.
17474 a command to fetch all articles that are less than X days old.
17477 in pick mode, `q' should save the list of selected articles in the
17478 group info. The next time the group is selected, these articles
17479 will automatically get the process mark.
17482 Isn't it possible to (also?) allow M-^ to automatically try the
17483 default server if it fails on the current server? (controlled by a
17484 user variable, (nil, t, 'ask)).
17487 make it possible to cancel articles using the select method for the
17491 `gnus-summary-select-article-on-entry' or something. It'll default
17492 to t and will select whatever article decided by `gnus-auto-select-first'.
17495 a new variable to control which selection commands should be unselecting.
17496 `first', `best', `next', `prev', `next-unread', `prev-unread' are
17500 be able to select groups that have no articles in them
17501 to be able to post in them (using the current select method).
17504 be able to post via DejaNews.
17507 `x' should retain any sortings that have been performed.
17510 allow the user to specify the precedence of the secondary marks. Also
17511 allow them to be displayed separately.
17514 gnus-summary-save-in-pipe should concatenate the results from
17515 the processes when doing a process marked pipe.
17518 a new match type, like Followup, but which adds Thread matches on all
17519 articles that match a certain From header.
17522 a function that can be read from kill-emacs-query-functions to offer
17523 saving living summary buffers.
17526 a function for selecting a particular group which will contain
17527 the articles listed in a list of article numbers/id's.
17530 a battery of character translation functions to translate common
17531 Mac, MS (etc) characters into ISO 8859-1.
17534 (defun article-fix-m$word ()
17535 "Fix M$Word smartquotes in an article."
17538 (let ((buffer-read-only nil))
17539 (goto-char (point-min))
17540 (while (search-forward "\221" nil t)
17541 (replace-match "`" t t))
17542 (goto-char (point-min))
17543 (while (search-forward "\222" nil t)
17544 (replace-match "'" t t))
17545 (goto-char (point-min))
17546 (while (search-forward "\223" nil t)
17547 (replace-match "\"" t t))
17548 (goto-char (point-min))
17549 (while (search-forward "\224" nil t)
17550 (replace-match "\"" t t)))))
17555 (add-hook 'gnus-exit-query-functions
17557 (if (and (file-exists-p nnmail-spool-file)
17558 (> (nnheader-file-size nnmail-spool-file) 0))
17559 (yes-or-no-p "New mail has arrived. Quit Gnus anyways? ")
17560 (y-or-n-p "Are you sure you want to quit Gnus? "))))
17564 allow message-default-headers to be a function.
17567 new Date score match types -- < > = (etc) that take floating point
17568 numbers and match on the age of the article.
17571 gnus-cacheable-groups
17575 > > > If so, I've got one gripe: It seems that when I fire up gnus 5.2.25
17576 > > > under xemacs-19.14, it's creating a new frame, but is erasing the
17577 > > > buffer in the frame that it was called from =:-O
17579 > > Hm. How do you start up Gnus? From the toolbar or with
17580 > > `M-x gnus-other-frame'?
17582 > I normally start it up from the toolbar; at
17583 > least that's the way I've caught it doing the
17588 all commands that react to the process mark should push
17589 the current process mark set onto the stack.
17592 gnus-article-hide-pgp
17593 Selv ville jeg nok ha valgt å slette den dersom teksten matcher
17595 "\\(This\s+\\)?[^ ]+ has been automatically signed by"
17597 og det er maks hundre tegn mellom match-end og ----linja. Men -det-
17598 er min type heuristikk og langt fra alles.
17601 `gnus-subscribe-sorted' -- insert new groups where they would have been
17602 sorted to if `gnus-group-sort-function' were run.
17605 gnus-(group,summary)-highlight should respect any `face' text props set
17609 use run-with-idle-timer for gnus-demon instead of the
17610 home-brewed stuff for better reliability.
17613 add a way to select which NoCeM type to apply -- spam, troll, etc.
17616 nndraft-request-group should tally autosave files.
17619 implement nntp-retry-on-break and nntp-command-timeout.
17622 gnus-article-highlight-limit that says when not to highlight (long)
17626 (nnoo-set SERVER VARIABLE VALUE)
17632 interrupitng agent fetching of articles should save articles.
17635 command to open a digest group, and copy all the articles there to the
17639 a variable to disable article body highlights if there's more than
17640 X characters in the body.
17643 handle 480/381 authinfo requests separately.
17646 include the texi/dir file in the distribution.
17649 format spec to "tab" to a position.
17652 Move all prompting to the new `M-n' default style.
17655 command to display all dormant articles.
17658 gnus-auto-select-next makeover -- list of things it should do.
17661 a score match type that adds scores matching on From if From has replied
17662 to something someone else has said.
17665 Read Netscape discussion groups:
17666 snews://secnews.netscape.com/netscape.communicator.unix
17669 One command to edit the original version if an article, and one to edit
17670 the displayed version.
17673 @kbd{T v} -- make all process-marked articles the children of the
17677 Switch from initial text to the new default text mechanism.
17680 How about making it possible to expire local articles? Will it be
17681 possible to make various constraints on when an article can be
17682 expired, e.g. (read), (age > 14 days), or the more interesting (read
17686 New limit command---limit to articles that have a certain string
17687 in the head or body.
17690 Allow breaking lengthy NNTP commands.
17693 gnus-article-highlight-limit, to disable highlighting in big articles.
17696 Editing an article should put the article to be edited
17697 in a special, unique buffer.
17700 A command to send a mail to the admin-address group param.
17703 A Date scoring type that will match if the article
17704 is less than a certain number of days old.
17707 New spec: %~(tab 56) to put point on column 56
17710 Allow Gnus Agent scoring to use normal score files.
17713 Rething the Agent active file thing. `M-g' doesn't update the active
17714 file, for instance.
17717 With dummy roots, `^' and then selecing the first article
17718 in any other dummy thread will make Gnus highlight the
17719 dummy root instead of the first article.
17722 Propagate all group properties (marks, article numbers, etc) up to the
17723 topics for displaying.
17726 `n' in the group buffer with topics should go to the next group
17727 with unread articles, even if that group is hidden in a topic.
17730 gnus-posting-styles doesn't work in drafts.
17733 gnus-summary-limit-include-cached is slow when there are
17734 many articles in the cache, since it regenerates big parts of the
17735 summary buffer for each article.
17738 Implement gnus-batch-brew-soup.
17741 Solve the halting problem.
17750 @section The Manual
17754 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
17755 either @code{texi2dvi}
17757 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
17758 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
17760 to get what you hold in your hands now.
17762 The following conventions have been used:
17767 This is a @samp{string}
17770 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
17773 This is a @file{file}
17776 This is a @code{symbol}
17780 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
17784 (setq flargnoze "yes")
17787 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
17790 (setq flumphel 'yes)
17793 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
17794 ever get them confused.
17798 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
17799 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
17800 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
17801 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
17802 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
17803 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
17804 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
17812 @section Terminology
17814 @cindex terminology
17819 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
17820 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
17821 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
17822 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
17823 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
17827 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
17828 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
17829 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
17830 not posting, and replying is not following up.
17834 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
17838 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
17843 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
17844 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
17845 is all done by the backends.
17849 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
17850 default, way of getting news.
17854 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
17855 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary backends for getting
17860 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
17861 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
17865 A message that has been posted as news.
17868 @cindex mail message
17869 A message that has been mailed.
17873 A mail message or news article
17877 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
17882 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
17887 A line from the head of an article.
17891 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
17892 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
17896 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
17897 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
17898 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
17899 normal @sc{head} format.
17903 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
17904 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
17905 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
17906 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
17907 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
17908 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
17910 @item killed groups
17911 @cindex killed groups
17912 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
17913 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
17915 @item zombie groups
17916 @cindex zombie groups
17917 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
17920 @cindex active file
17921 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
17922 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
17923 is rather large, as you might surmise.
17926 @cindex bogus groups
17927 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
17928 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
17929 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
17932 @cindex activating groups
17933 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
17934 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
17935 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
17939 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
17941 @item select method
17942 @cindex select method
17943 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
17946 @item virtual server
17947 @cindex virtual server
17948 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
17949 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
17950 whole is a virtual server.
17954 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
17955 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
17958 @item ephemeral groups
17959 @cindex ephemeral groups
17960 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
17961 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
17962 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
17965 @cindex solid groups
17966 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
17967 group buffer are solid groups.
17969 @item sparse articles
17970 @cindex sparse articles
17971 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
17972 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
17976 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
17977 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
17981 @cindex thread root
17982 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
17983 articles in the thread.
17987 An article that has responses.
17991 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
17995 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
17996 specified by RFC1153.
18002 @node Customization
18003 @section Customization
18004 @cindex general customization
18006 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
18007 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
18008 for some quite common situations.
18011 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
18012 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
18013 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
18014 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
18018 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
18019 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
18021 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
18022 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
18023 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
18027 @item gnus-read-active-file
18028 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
18029 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
18030 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
18031 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
18032 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
18034 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
18035 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
18036 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
18037 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
18041 @node Slow Terminal Connection
18042 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
18044 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
18045 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
18046 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
18050 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
18051 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
18052 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
18053 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
18054 horizontal and vertical recentering.
18056 @item gnus-visible-headers
18057 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
18058 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
18059 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
18060 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
18062 @item gnus-article-display-hook
18063 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
18065 (setq gnus-article-display-hook
18066 '(gnus-article-hide-headers gnus-article-hide-signature
18067 gnus-article-hide-citation))
18070 @item gnus-use-full-window
18071 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
18072 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
18073 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
18074 want to read them anyway.
18076 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
18077 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
18080 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
18081 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
18082 lines, which might save some time.
18086 @node Little Disk Space
18087 @subsection Little Disk Space
18090 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
18091 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
18095 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
18096 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
18097 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
18098 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
18101 @item gnus-save-killed-list
18102 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
18103 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
18104 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
18105 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
18111 @subsection Slow Machine
18112 @cindex slow machine
18114 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
18115 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
18117 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
18118 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
18120 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
18121 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
18122 summary buffer faster.
18124 Set @code{gnus-article-display-hook} to @code{nil} to make article
18125 processing a bit faster.
18129 @node Troubleshooting
18130 @section Troubleshooting
18131 @cindex troubleshooting
18133 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
18141 Make sure your computer is switched on.
18144 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
18145 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
18149 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
18150 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
18151 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
18152 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
18155 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
18159 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
18160 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
18161 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
18162 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
18163 something like that.
18166 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
18169 @cindex reporting bugs
18171 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
18173 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
18174 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
18175 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
18176 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
18178 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
18179 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
18180 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
18181 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
18184 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
18185 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
18186 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
18187 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
18188 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
18189 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
18191 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
18192 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
18193 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
18196 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
18197 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
18199 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
18200 @cindex ding mailing list
18201 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
18202 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
18206 @node A Programmers Guide to Gnus
18207 @section A Programmer@'s Guide to Gnus
18209 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
18210 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
18211 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
18212 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
18215 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
18216 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
18217 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
18218 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
18219 and general methods of operation.
18222 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
18223 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
18224 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
18225 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
18226 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
18227 * Group Info:: The group info format.
18228 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
18229 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
18230 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
18234 @node Gnus Utility Functions
18235 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
18236 @cindex Gnus utility functions
18237 @cindex utility functions
18239 @cindex internal variables
18241 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
18242 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
18243 Below is a list of the most common ones.
18247 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
18248 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
18249 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
18251 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
18252 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
18253 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
18255 @item gnus-group-real-name
18256 @findex gnus-group-real-name
18257 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
18260 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
18261 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
18262 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
18263 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
18265 @item gnus-get-info
18266 @findex gnus-get-info
18267 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
18269 @item gnus-group-unread
18270 @findex gnus-group-unread
18271 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
18275 @findex gnus-active
18276 The active entry for @var{group}.
18278 @item gnus-set-active
18279 @findex gnus-set-active
18280 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
18282 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
18283 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
18284 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
18287 @item gnus-continuum-version
18288 @findex gnus-continuum-version
18289 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
18290 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
18293 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
18294 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
18295 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
18297 @item gnus-news-group-p
18298 @findex gnus-news-group-p
18299 Says whether @var{group} came from a news backend.
18301 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
18302 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
18303 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
18305 @item gnus-server-to-method
18306 @findex gnus-server-to-method
18307 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
18309 @item gnus-server-equal
18310 @findex gnus-server-equal
18311 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
18313 @item gnus-group-native-p
18314 @findex gnus-group-native-p
18315 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
18317 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
18318 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
18319 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
18321 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
18322 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
18323 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
18325 @item group-group-find-parameter
18326 @findex group-group-find-parameter
18327 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
18328 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
18330 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
18331 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
18332 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
18334 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
18335 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
18336 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
18338 @item gnus-check-backend-function
18339 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
18340 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the backend
18341 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
18344 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
18348 @item gnus-read-method
18349 @findex gnus-read-method
18350 Prompts the user for a select method.
18355 @node Backend Interface
18356 @subsection Backend Interface
18358 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
18359 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
18360 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
18361 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
18362 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
18363 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
18365 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
18366 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
18367 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
18368 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
18369 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
18370 been opened, the function should fail.
18372 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
18373 name. Take this example:
18377 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
18378 (nntp-port-number 4324))
18381 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
18382 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
18384 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
18385 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
18386 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
18388 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
18389 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
18390 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
18392 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
18393 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
18394 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
18395 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
18396 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
18397 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
18400 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
18401 some might be said not to be. The latter are backends that generally
18402 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
18403 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
18406 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
18409 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
18412 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
18413 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
18414 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
18415 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
18416 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
18417 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
18421 @node Required Backend Functions
18422 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
18426 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
18428 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
18429 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
18430 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
18431 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
18433 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
18434 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
18435 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
18436 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
18438 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
18439 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
18440 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
18441 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
18442 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
18443 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
18444 number, do maximum fetches.
18446 Here's an example HEAD:
18449 221 1056 Article retrieved.
18450 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
18451 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
18452 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
18453 Subject: Re: Something very droll
18454 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
18455 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
18457 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
18458 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
18459 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
18463 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
18464 these in the data buffer.
18466 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
18470 head = error / valid-head
18471 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
18472 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
18473 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
18474 header = <text> eol
18477 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
18478 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
18482 nov-buffer = *nov-line
18483 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
18484 field = <text except TAB>
18487 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
18491 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
18493 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
18494 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
18496 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
18497 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
18498 server. In fact, it should do so.
18500 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
18501 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
18504 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
18506 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
18507 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
18510 There should be no data returned.
18513 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
18515 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
18516 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
18517 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
18518 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
18520 There should be no data returned.
18523 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
18525 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
18526 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
18527 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
18528 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
18530 There should be no data returned.
18533 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
18535 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
18537 There should be no data returned.
18540 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
18542 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
18543 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
18544 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
18545 it would be nice if that were possible.
18547 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
18548 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
18549 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
18550 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
18551 into its article buffer.
18553 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
18554 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
18555 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
18556 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
18557 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
18558 on successful article retrieval.
18561 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
18563 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
18564 making @var{group} the current group.
18566 If @var{FAST}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
18569 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
18572 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
18575 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
18576 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
18577 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
18578 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
18579 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
18580 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
18581 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
18582 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
18585 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
18586 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
18587 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
18591 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
18593 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
18594 a no-op on most backends.
18596 There should be no data returned.
18599 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
18601 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
18604 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
18607 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
18608 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
18611 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
18612 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
18615 active-file = *active-line
18616 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
18618 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
18621 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
18622 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
18623 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
18626 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
18628 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
18629 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
18630 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
18631 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
18632 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
18633 clear if the posting could not be completed.
18635 There should be no result data from this function.
18640 @node Optional Backend Functions
18641 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
18645 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
18647 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
18648 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
18649 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
18651 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
18652 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
18653 former is in the same format as the data from
18654 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
18655 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
18658 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
18662 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
18664 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
18665 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
18666 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
18667 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
18668 should return the (altered) group info.
18670 There should be no result data from this function.
18673 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
18675 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
18676 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
18677 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
18678 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
18679 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
18680 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
18681 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
18682 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
18684 There should be no result data from this function.
18687 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
18689 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
18690 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
18691 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
18692 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
18693 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
18695 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
18696 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
18697 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
18700 There should be no result data from this function.
18703 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
18705 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
18706 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
18707 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
18708 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
18709 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
18710 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
18711 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
18713 There should be no result data from this function.
18716 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
18718 The result data from this function should be a description of
18722 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
18724 description = <text>
18727 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
18729 The result data from this function should be the description of all
18730 groups available on the server.
18733 description-buffer = *description-line
18737 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
18739 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
18740 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
18741 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
18744 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
18746 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
18748 There should be no return data.
18751 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
18753 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
18754 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
18755 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
18756 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
18757 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
18760 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
18763 There should be no result data returned.
18766 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
18769 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
18770 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
18772 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
18773 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
18774 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
18775 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
18776 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
18777 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
18779 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
18780 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
18783 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
18784 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
18786 There should be no data returned.
18789 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
18791 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
18792 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
18793 this function in short order.
18795 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
18796 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
18798 There should be no data returned.
18801 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
18803 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
18804 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
18806 There should be no data returned.
18809 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
18811 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
18812 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
18813 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
18815 There should be no data returned.
18818 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
18820 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
18821 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
18823 There should be no data returned.
18828 @node Error Messaging
18829 @subsubsection Error Messaging
18831 @findex nnheader-report
18832 @findex nnheader-get-report
18833 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
18834 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
18835 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
18836 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
18837 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
18838 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
18841 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
18843 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
18846 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
18847 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
18848 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
18849 takes one argument---the server symbol.
18851 Internally, these functions access @var{backend}@code{-status-string},
18852 so the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
18853 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
18856 @node Writing New Backends
18857 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
18859 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
18860 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
18861 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
18862 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
18863 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
18866 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
18867 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
18868 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
18870 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
18871 package called @code{nnoo}.
18873 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
18874 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
18880 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
18881 parameters. For instance:
18884 (nnoo-declare nndir
18888 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
18889 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
18892 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
18893 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
18894 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
18896 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
18897 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
18898 a function in those backends.
18901 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
18902 "Where nndir will look for groups."
18903 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
18906 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
18907 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
18908 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
18910 @item nnoo-define-basics
18911 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
18915 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
18919 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
18920 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
18921 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
18923 @item nnoo-map-functions
18924 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
18925 functions from the parent backends.
18928 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
18929 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
18930 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
18933 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
18934 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
18935 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
18936 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
18939 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
18940 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
18941 haven't already been defined.
18947 nnmh-request-newgroups)
18951 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
18952 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
18953 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
18958 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
18961 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
18962 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
18966 (require 'nnheader)
18970 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
18972 (nnoo-declare nndir
18975 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
18976 "Where nndir will look for groups."
18977 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
18979 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
18980 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
18983 (defvoo nndir-current-group "" nil nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
18984 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
18985 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
18987 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
18988 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
18990 ;;; Interface functions.
18992 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
18994 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
18995 (setq nndir-directory
18996 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
18998 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
18999 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
19000 (push `(nndir-current-group
19001 ,(file-name-nondirectory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
19003 (push `(nndir-top-directory
19004 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
19006 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
19008 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
19009 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
19010 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
19011 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
19012 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
19016 nnmh-status-message
19018 nnmh-request-newgroups))
19024 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
19025 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
19027 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
19028 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
19029 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
19030 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
19032 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
19033 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
19038 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
19041 The abilities can be:
19045 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
19047 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
19049 This backend supports both mail and news.
19051 This is neither a post nor mail backend---it's something completely
19054 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
19055 articles and groups.
19057 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
19058 true for almost all backends.
19059 @item prompt-address
19060 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
19061 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
19062 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
19066 @node Mail-like Backends
19067 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
19069 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
19070 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
19071 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
19072 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
19075 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
19076 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
19077 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
19080 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
19081 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
19084 This function takes four parameters.
19088 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
19091 @item exit-function
19092 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
19094 @item temp-directory
19095 Where the temporary files should be stored.
19098 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
19099 performed for one group only.
19102 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
19103 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
19104 find the article number assigned to this article.
19106 The function also uses the following variables:
19107 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
19108 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
19109 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
19110 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
19114 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
19115 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
19119 @node Score File Syntax
19120 @subsection Score File Syntax
19122 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
19123 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
19124 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
19126 Here's a typical score file:
19130 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
19137 BNF definition of a score file:
19140 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
19141 element = rule / atom
19142 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
19143 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
19144 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
19145 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
19147 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
19148 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
19149 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
19150 date-header = "date"
19151 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
19152 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
19153 score = "nil" / <integer>
19154 date = "nil" / <natural number>
19155 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
19156 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
19157 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
19158 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
19159 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
19160 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
19161 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
19162 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
19163 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
19164 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
19165 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
19166 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
19167 exclude-files / read-only / touched
19168 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
19169 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
19170 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
19171 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
19172 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
19173 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
19174 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
19175 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
19176 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
19177 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
19178 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
19179 eval = "eval" space <form>
19180 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
19183 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
19186 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
19187 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
19188 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
19189 one looong line, then that's ok.
19191 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
19192 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
19196 @subsection Headers
19198 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
19199 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
19200 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
19201 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
19203 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
19204 RFC1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
19205 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
19206 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
19207 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
19208 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
19209 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
19211 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
19212 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
19213 @code{xref}. There are macros for accessing and setting these
19214 slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
19215 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
19217 The @code{xref} slot is really a @code{misc} slot. Any extra info will
19224 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
19225 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
19227 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
19228 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
19229 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
19230 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
19232 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
19236 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
19239 is transformed into
19242 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
19245 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
19246 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
19249 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
19252 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
19253 is slightly tricky:
19256 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
19262 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
19265 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
19271 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
19278 and is equal to the previous range.
19280 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
19281 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
19282 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
19286 range = simple-range / normal-range
19287 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
19288 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
19289 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
19290 number *[ " " contents ]
19293 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
19294 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
19295 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
19296 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
19297 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
19302 @subsection Group Info
19304 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
19305 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
19306 describes the group.
19308 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
19309 second is a more complex one:
19312 ("no.group" 5 (1 . 54324))
19314 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
19315 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
19317 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
19320 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
19321 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
19322 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
19323 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
19324 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
19325 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
19326 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
19327 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
19328 this section is about.
19330 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
19331 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
19332 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
19334 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
19337 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
19338 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
19339 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
19340 group = quote <string> quote
19341 ralevel = rank / level
19342 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
19343 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
19344 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
19346 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
19347 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
19348 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
19349 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
19352 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
19353 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
19356 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
19357 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
19360 @item gnus-info-group
19361 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
19362 @findex gnus-info-group
19363 @findex gnus-info-set-group
19364 Get/set the group name.
19366 @item gnus-info-rank
19367 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
19368 @findex gnus-info-rank
19369 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
19370 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
19372 @item gnus-info-level
19373 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
19374 @findex gnus-info-level
19375 @findex gnus-info-set-level
19376 Get/set the group level.
19378 @item gnus-info-score
19379 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
19380 @findex gnus-info-score
19381 @findex gnus-info-set-score
19382 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
19384 @item gnus-info-read
19385 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
19386 @findex gnus-info-read
19387 @findex gnus-info-set-read
19388 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
19390 @item gnus-info-marks
19391 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
19392 @findex gnus-info-marks
19393 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
19394 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
19396 @item gnus-info-method
19397 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
19398 @findex gnus-info-method
19399 @findex gnus-info-set-method
19400 Get/set the group select method.
19402 @item gnus-info-params
19403 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
19404 @findex gnus-info-params
19405 @findex gnus-info-set-params
19406 Get/set the group parameters.
19409 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
19410 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
19412 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
19413 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
19414 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
19415 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
19418 @node Extended Interactive
19419 @subsection Extended Interactive
19420 @cindex interactive
19421 @findex gnus-interactive
19423 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
19424 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
19425 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
19428 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
19429 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
19434 The best thing to do would have been to implement
19435 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
19436 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
19437 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
19438 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
19439 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
19440 @code{interactive}.
19442 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
19447 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
19448 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
19452 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
19453 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
19454 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
19457 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
19461 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
19465 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
19471 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
19472 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
19476 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
19477 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
19478 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
19480 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
19481 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
19482 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
19483 Gnus, that's very useful.
19485 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
19486 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
19487 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
19488 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
19489 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
19490 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
19491 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
19492 following function:
19495 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
19499 (,function ,@@args))
19503 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
19504 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
19505 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
19508 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
19509 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
19510 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
19512 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
19513 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
19514 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
19517 @node Various File Formats
19518 @subsection Various File Formats
19521 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
19522 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
19526 @node Active File Format
19527 @subsubsection Active File Format
19529 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
19530 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
19533 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
19536 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
19537 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
19538 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
19539 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
19540 no.general 1000 900 y
19543 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
19546 active = *group-line
19547 group-line = group space high-number space low-number space flag <NEWLINE>
19548 group = <non-white-space string>
19550 high-number = <non-negative integer>
19551 low-number = <positive integer>
19552 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
19555 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
19556 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
19559 @node Newsgroups File Format
19560 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
19562 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
19563 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
19564 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
19567 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
19568 Here's the definition:
19572 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
19573 group = <non-white-space string>
19575 description = <string>
19580 @node Emacs for Heathens
19581 @section Emacs for Heathens
19583 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
19584 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
19585 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
19586 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
19587 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
19588 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
19589 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
19593 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
19594 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
19599 @subsection Keystrokes
19603 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
19606 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
19609 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
19610 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
19611 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
19612 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
19613 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
19614 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
19616 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
19617 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
19618 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
19619 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
19620 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
19621 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
19622 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
19624 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
19625 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
19626 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
19627 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
19628 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
19629 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
19630 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
19632 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
19633 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
19634 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
19635 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
19636 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
19642 @subsection Emacs Lisp
19644 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
19645 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
19646 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
19647 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
19649 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
19650 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
19651 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
19652 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
19653 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
19654 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
19655 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
19658 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
19659 write the following:
19662 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
19665 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
19666 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
19667 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
19670 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
19671 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
19672 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
19673 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
19674 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
19676 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
19677 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
19678 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
19682 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
19686 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
19689 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
19690 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
19693 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
19696 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
19697 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
19700 @include gnus-faq.texi