1 \input texinfo @c -*-texinfo-*-
4 @settitle Message Manual
9 This file documents Message, the Emacs message composition mode.
11 Copyright @copyright{} 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003,
12 2004, 2005, 2006 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
15 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
16 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or
17 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
18 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
19 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
20 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
21 License'' in the Emacs manual.
23 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
24 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
25 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
27 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
28 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
29 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
30 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
36 * Message: (message). Mail and news composition mode that goes with Gnus.
41 @setchapternewpage odd
46 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
49 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
57 All message composition from Gnus (both mail and news) takes place in
61 * Interface:: Setting up message buffers.
62 * Commands:: Commands you can execute in message mode buffers.
63 * Variables:: Customizing the message buffers.
64 * Compatibility:: Making Message backwards compatible.
65 * Appendices:: More technical things.
66 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
67 * Key Index:: List of Message mode keys.
70 @c Adjust ../Makefile.in if you change the following lines:
71 Message is distributed with Gnus. The Gnus distribution
73 corresponding to this manual is No Gnus v0.4.
79 When a program (or a person) wants to respond to a message---reply,
80 follow up, forward, cancel---the program (or person) should just put
81 point in the buffer where the message is and call the required command.
82 @code{Message} will then pop up a new @code{message} mode buffer with
83 appropriate headers filled out, and the user can edit the message before
87 * New Mail Message:: Editing a brand new mail message.
88 * New News Message:: Editing a brand new news message.
89 * Reply:: Replying via mail.
90 * Wide Reply:: Responding to all people via mail.
91 * Followup:: Following up via news.
92 * Canceling News:: Canceling a news article.
93 * Superseding:: Superseding a message.
94 * Forwarding:: Forwarding a message via news or mail.
95 * Resending:: Resending a mail message.
96 * Bouncing:: Bouncing a mail message.
97 * Mailing Lists:: Send mail to mailing lists.
100 You can customize the Message Mode tool bar, see @kbd{M-x
101 customize-apropos RET message-tool-bar}. This feature is only available
104 @node New Mail Message
105 @section New Mail Message
108 The @code{message-mail} command pops up a new message buffer.
110 Two optional parameters are accepted: The first will be used as the
111 @code{To} header and the second as the @code{Subject} header. If these
112 are @code{nil}, those two headers will be empty.
115 @node New News Message
116 @section New News Message
119 The @code{message-news} command pops up a new message buffer.
121 This function accepts two optional parameters. The first will be used
122 as the @code{Newsgroups} header and the second as the @code{Subject}
123 header. If these are @code{nil}, those two headers will be empty.
129 @findex message-reply
130 The @code{message-reply} function pops up a message buffer that's a
131 reply to the message in the current buffer.
133 @vindex message-reply-to-function
134 Message uses the normal methods to determine where replies are to go
135 (@pxref{Responses}), but you can change the behavior to suit your needs
136 by fiddling with the @code{message-reply-to-function} variable.
138 If you want the replies to go to the @code{Sender} instead of the
139 @code{From}, you could do something like this:
142 (setq message-reply-to-function
144 (cond ((equal (mail-fetch-field "from") "somebody")
145 (list (cons 'To (mail-fetch-field "sender"))))
150 This function will be called narrowed to the head of the article that is
153 As you can see, this function should return a list. In this case, it
154 returns @code{((To . "Whom"))} if it has an opinion as to what the To
155 header should be. If it does not, it should just return @code{nil}, and
156 the normal methods for determining the To header will be used.
158 Each list element should be a cons, where the @sc{car} should be the
159 name of a header (e.g. @code{Cc}) and the @sc{cdr} should be the header
160 value (e.g. @samp{larsi@@ifi.uio.no}). All these headers will be
161 inserted into the head of the outgoing mail.
167 @findex message-wide-reply
168 The @code{message-wide-reply} pops up a message buffer that's a wide
169 reply to the message in the current buffer. A @dfn{wide reply} is a
170 reply that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From}
171 (or @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
173 @vindex message-wide-reply-to-function
174 Message uses the normal methods to determine where wide replies are to go,
175 but you can change the behavior to suit your needs by fiddling with the
176 @code{message-wide-reply-to-function}. It is used in the same way as
177 @code{message-reply-to-function} (@pxref{Reply}).
179 @vindex message-dont-reply-to-names
180 Addresses that match the @code{message-dont-reply-to-names} regular
181 expression will be removed from the @code{Cc} header.
183 @vindex message-wide-reply-confirm-recipients
184 If @code{message-wide-reply-confirm-recipients} is non-@code{nil} you
185 will be asked to confirm that you want to reply to multiple
186 recipients. The default is @code{nil}.
191 @findex message-followup
192 The @code{message-followup} command pops up a message buffer that's a
193 followup to the message in the current buffer.
195 @vindex message-followup-to-function
196 Message uses the normal methods to determine where followups are to go,
197 but you can change the behavior to suit your needs by fiddling with the
198 @code{message-followup-to-function}. It is used in the same way as
199 @code{message-reply-to-function} (@pxref{Reply}).
201 @vindex message-use-followup-to
202 The @code{message-use-followup-to} variable says what to do about
203 @code{Followup-To} headers. If it is @code{use}, always use the value.
204 If it is @code{ask} (which is the default), ask whether to use the
205 value. If it is @code{t}, use the value unless it is @samp{poster}. If
206 it is @code{nil}, don't use the value.
210 @section Canceling News
212 @findex message-cancel-news
213 The @code{message-cancel-news} command cancels the article in the
216 @vindex message-cancel-message
217 The value of @code{message-cancel-message} is inserted in the body of
218 the cancel message. The default is @samp{I am canceling my own
222 @vindex message-insert-canlock
224 When Message posts news messages, it inserts @code{Cancel-Lock}
225 headers by default. This is a cryptographic header that ensures that
226 only you can cancel your own messages, which is nice. The downside
227 is that if you lose your @file{.emacs} file (which is where Gnus
228 stores the secret cancel lock password (which is generated
229 automatically the first time you use this feature)), you won't be
230 able to cancel your message. If you want to manage a password yourself,
231 you can put something like the following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
234 (setq canlock-password "geheimnis"
235 canlock-password-for-verify canlock-password)
238 Whether to insert the header or not is controlled by the
239 @code{message-insert-canlock} variable.
241 Not many news servers respect the @code{Cancel-Lock} header yet, but
242 this is expected to change in the future.
248 @findex message-supersede
249 The @code{message-supersede} command pops up a message buffer that will
250 supersede the message in the current buffer.
252 @vindex message-ignored-supersedes-headers
253 Headers matching the @code{message-ignored-supersedes-headers} are
254 removed before popping up the new message buffer. The default is@*
255 @samp{^Path:\\|^Date\\|^NNTP-Posting-Host:\\|^Xref:\\|^Lines:\\|@*
256 ^Received:\\|^X-From-Line:\\|^X-Trace:\\|^X-Complaints-To:\\|@*
257 Return-Path:\\|^Supersedes:\\|^NNTP-Posting-Date:\\|^X-Trace:\\|@*
258 ^X-Complaints-To:\\|^Cancel-Lock:\\|^Cancel-Key:\\|^X-Hashcash:\\|@*
259 ^X-Payment:\\|^Approved:}.
266 @findex message-forward
267 The @code{message-forward} command pops up a message buffer to forward
268 the message in the current buffer. If given a prefix, forward using
272 @item message-forward-ignored-headers
273 @vindex message-forward-ignored-headers
274 All headers that match this regexp will be deleted when forwarding a message.
276 @item message-make-forward-subject-function
277 @vindex message-make-forward-subject-function
278 A list of functions that are called to generate a subject header for
279 forwarded messages. The subject generated by the previous function is
280 passed into each successive function.
282 The provided functions are:
285 @item message-forward-subject-author-subject
286 @findex message-forward-subject-author-subject
287 Source of article (author or newsgroup), in brackets followed by the
290 @item message-forward-subject-fwd
291 Subject of article with @samp{Fwd:} prepended to it.
294 @item message-wash-forwarded-subjects
295 @vindex message-wash-forwarded-subjects
296 If this variable is @code{t}, the subjects of forwarded messages have
297 the evidence of previous forwards (such as @samp{Fwd:}, @samp{Re:},
298 @samp{(fwd)}) removed before the new subject is
299 constructed. The default value is @code{nil}.
301 @item message-forward-as-mime
302 @vindex message-forward-as-mime
303 If this variable is @code{t} (the default), forwarded messages are
304 included as inline @acronym{MIME} RFC822 parts. If it's @code{nil}, forwarded
305 messages will just be copied inline to the new message, like previous,
306 non @acronym{MIME}-savvy versions of Gnus would do.
308 @item message-forward-before-signature
309 @vindex message-forward-before-signature
310 If non-@code{nil}, put forwarded message before signature, else after.
318 @findex message-resend
319 The @code{message-resend} command will prompt the user for an address
320 and resend the message in the current buffer to that address.
322 @vindex message-ignored-resent-headers
323 Headers that match the @code{message-ignored-resent-headers} regexp will
324 be removed before sending the message.
330 @findex message-bounce
331 The @code{message-bounce} command will, if the current buffer contains a
332 bounced mail message, pop up a message buffer stripped of the bounce
333 information. A @dfn{bounced message} is typically a mail you've sent
334 out that has been returned by some @code{mailer-daemon} as
337 @vindex message-ignored-bounced-headers
338 Headers that match the @code{message-ignored-bounced-headers} regexp
339 will be removed before popping up the buffer. The default is
340 @samp{^\\(Received\\|Return-Path\\|Delivered-To\\):}.
344 @section Mailing Lists
346 @cindex Mail-Followup-To
347 Sometimes while posting to mailing lists, the poster needs to direct
348 followups to the post to specific places. The Mail-Followup-To (MFT)
349 was created to enable just this. Three example scenarios where this is
354 A mailing list poster can use MFT to express that responses should be
355 sent to just the list, and not the poster as well. This will happen
356 if the poster is already subscribed to the list.
359 A mailing list poster can use MFT to express that responses should be
360 sent to the list and the poster as well. This will happen if the poster
361 is not subscribed to the list.
364 If a message is posted to several mailing lists, MFT may also be used
365 to direct the following discussion to one list only, because
366 discussions that are spread over several lists tend to be fragmented
367 and very difficult to follow.
371 Gnus honors the MFT header in other's messages (i.e. while following
372 up to someone else's post) and also provides support for generating
373 sensible MFT headers for outgoing messages as well.
376 @c * Honoring an MFT post:: What to do when one already exists
377 @c * Composing with a MFT header:: Creating one from scratch.
380 @c @node Composing with a MFT header
381 @subsection Composing a correct MFT header automagically
383 The first step in getting Gnus to automagically generate a MFT header
384 in posts you make is to give Gnus a list of the mailing lists
385 addresses you are subscribed to. You can do this in more than one
386 way. The following variables would come in handy.
390 @vindex message-subscribed-addresses
391 @item message-subscribed-addresses
392 This should be a list of addresses the user is subscribed to. Its
393 default value is @code{nil}. Example:
395 (setq message-subscribed-addresses
396 '("ding@@gnus.org" "bing@@noose.org"))
399 @vindex message-subscribed-regexps
400 @item message-subscribed-regexps
401 This should be a list of regexps denoting the addresses of mailing
402 lists subscribed to. Default value is @code{nil}. Example: If you
403 want to achieve the same result as above:
405 (setq message-subscribed-regexps
406 '("\\(ding@@gnus\\)\\|\\(bing@@noose\\)\\.org")
409 @vindex message-subscribed-address-functions
410 @item message-subscribed-address-functions
411 This can be a list of functions to be called (one at a time!!) to
412 determine the value of MFT headers. It is advisable that these
413 functions not take any arguments. Default value is @code{nil}.
415 There is a pre-defined function in Gnus that is a good candidate for
416 this variable. @code{gnus-find-subscribed-addresses} is a function
417 that returns a list of addresses corresponding to the groups that have
418 the @code{subscribed} (@pxref{Group Parameters, ,Group Parameters,
419 gnus, The Gnus Manual}) group parameter set to a non-@code{nil} value.
420 This is how you would do it.
423 (setq message-subscribed-address-functions
424 '(gnus-find-subscribed-addresses))
427 @vindex message-subscribed-address-file
428 @item message-subscribed-address-file
429 You might be one organized human freak and have a list of addresses of
430 all subscribed mailing lists in a separate file! Then you can just
431 set this variable to the name of the file and life would be good.
435 You can use one or more of the above variables. All their values are
436 ``added'' in some way that works :-)
438 Now you are all set. Just start composing a message as you normally do.
439 And just send it; as always. Just before the message is sent out, Gnus'
440 MFT generation thingy kicks in and checks if the message already has a
441 MFT field. If there is one, it is left alone. (Except if it's empty -
442 in that case, the field is removed and is not replaced with an
443 automatically generated one. This lets you disable MFT generation on a
444 per-message basis.) If there is none, then the list of recipient
445 addresses (in the To: and Cc: headers) is checked to see if one of them
446 is a list address you are subscribed to. If none of them is a list
447 address, then no MFT is generated; otherwise, a MFT is added to the
448 other headers and set to the value of all addresses in To: and Cc:
451 @findex message-generate-unsubscribed-mail-followup-to
453 @findex message-goto-mail-followup-to
454 Hm. ``So'', you ask, ``what if I send an email to a list I am not
455 subscribed to? I want my MFT to say that I want an extra copy.'' (This
456 is supposed to be interpreted by others the same way as if there were no
457 MFT, but you can use an explicit MFT to override someone else's
458 to-address group parameter.) The function
459 @code{message-generate-unsubscribed-mail-followup-to} might come in
460 handy. It is bound to @kbd{C-c C-f C-a} by default. In any case, you
461 can insert a MFT of your own choice; @kbd{C-c C-f C-m}
462 (@code{message-goto-mail-followup-to}) will help you get started.
464 @c @node Honoring an MFT post
465 @subsection Honoring an MFT post
467 @vindex message-use-mail-followup-to
468 When you followup to a post on a mailing list, and the post has a MFT
469 header, Gnus' action will depend on the value of the variable
470 @code{message-use-mail-followup-to}. This variable can be one of:
474 Always honor MFTs. The To: and Cc: headers in your followup will be
475 derived from the MFT header of the original post. This is the default.
478 Always dishonor MFTs (just ignore the darned thing)
481 Gnus will prompt you for an action.
485 It is considered good netiquette to honor MFT, as it is assumed the
486 fellow who posted a message knows where the followups need to go
493 * Buffer Entry:: Commands after entering a Message buffer.
494 * Header Commands:: Commands for moving headers or changing headers.
495 * Movement:: Moving around in message buffers.
496 * Insertion:: Inserting things into message buffers.
497 * MIME:: @acronym{MIME} considerations.
498 * IDNA:: Non-@acronym{ASCII} domain name considerations.
499 * Security:: Signing and encrypting messages.
500 * Various Commands:: Various things.
501 * Sending:: Actually sending the message.
502 * Mail Aliases:: How to use mail aliases.
503 * Spelling:: Having Emacs check your spelling.
508 @section Buffer Entry
512 You most often end up in a Message buffer when responding to some other
513 message of some sort. Message does lots of handling of quoted text, and
514 may remove signatures, reformat the text, or the like---depending on
515 which used settings you're using. Message usually gets things right,
516 but sometimes it stumbles. To help the user unwind these stumblings,
517 Message sets the undo boundary before each major automatic action it
518 takes. If you press the undo key (usually located at @kbd{C-_}) a few
519 times, you will get back the un-edited message you're responding to.
522 @node Header Commands
523 @section Header Commands
525 @subsection Commands for moving to headers
527 These following commands move to the header in question. If it doesn't
528 exist, it will be inserted.
534 @findex describe-mode
535 Describe the message mode.
539 @findex message-goto-to
540 Go to the @code{To} header (@code{message-goto-to}).
544 @findex message-goto-from
545 Go to the @code{From} header (@code{message-goto-from}). (The ``o''
546 in the key binding is for Originator.)
550 @findex message-goto-bcc
551 Go to the @code{Bcc} header (@code{message-goto-bcc}).
555 @findex message-goto-fcc
556 Go to the @code{Fcc} header (@code{message-goto-fcc}).
560 @findex message-goto-cc
561 Go to the @code{Cc} header (@code{message-goto-cc}).
565 @findex message-goto-subject
566 Go to the @code{Subject} header (@code{message-goto-subject}).
570 @findex message-goto-reply-to
571 Go to the @code{Reply-To} header (@code{message-goto-reply-to}).
575 @findex message-goto-newsgroups
576 Go to the @code{Newsgroups} header (@code{message-goto-newsgroups}).
580 @findex message-goto-distribution
581 Go to the @code{Distribution} header (@code{message-goto-distribution}).
585 @findex message-goto-followup-to
586 Go to the @code{Followup-To} header (@code{message-goto-followup-to}).
590 @findex message-goto-keywords
591 Go to the @code{Keywords} header (@code{message-goto-keywords}).
595 @findex message-goto-summary
596 Go to the @code{Summary} header (@code{message-goto-summary}).
600 @findex message-insert-or-toggle-importance
601 This inserts the @samp{Importance:} header with a value of
602 @samp{high}. This header is used to signal the importance of the
603 message to the receiver. If the header is already present in the
604 buffer, it cycles between the three valid values according to RFC
605 1376: @samp{low}, @samp{normal} and @samp{high}.
609 @findex message-generate-unsubscribed-mail-followup-to
610 Insert a reasonable @samp{Mail-Followup-To:} header
611 (@pxref{Mailing Lists}) in a post to an
612 unsubscribed list. When making original posts to a mailing list you are
613 not subscribed to, you have to type in a @samp{Mail-Followup-To:} header
614 by hand. The contents, usually, are the addresses of the list and your
615 own address. This function inserts such a header automatically. It
616 fetches the contents of the @samp{To:} header in the current mail
617 buffer, and appends the current @code{user-mail-address}.
619 If the optional argument @code{include-cc} is non-@code{nil}, the
620 addresses in the @samp{Cc:} header are also put into the
621 @samp{Mail-Followup-To:} header.
625 @subsection Commands to change headers
631 @findex message-sort-headers
632 @vindex message-header-format-alist
633 Sort headers according to @code{message-header-format-alist}
634 (@code{message-sort-headers}).
638 @findex message-insert-to
639 Insert a @code{To} header that contains the @code{Reply-To} or
640 @code{From} header of the message you're following up
641 (@code{message-insert-to}).
645 @findex message-insert-newsgroups
646 Insert a @code{Newsgroups} header that reflects the @code{Followup-To}
647 or @code{Newsgroups} header of the article you're replying to
648 (@code{message-insert-newsgroups}).
652 @findex message-to-list-only
653 Send a message to the list only. Remove all addresses but the list
654 address from @code{To:} and @code{Cc:} headers.
658 @findex message-insert-disposition-notification-to
659 Insert a request for a disposition
660 notification. (@code{message-insert-disposition-notification-to}).
661 This means that if the recipient support RFC 2298 she might send you a
662 notification that she received the message.
664 @item M-x message-insert-importance-high
665 @kindex M-x message-insert-importance-high
666 @findex message-insert-importance-high
668 Insert an @samp{Importance} header with a value of @samp{high},
669 deleting headers if necessary.
671 @item M-x message-insert-importance-low
672 @kindex M-x message-insert-importance-low
673 @findex message-insert-importance-low
675 Insert an @samp{Importance} header with a value of @samp{low}, deleting
676 headers if necessary.
680 @findex message-change-subject
682 Change the current @samp{Subject} header. Ask for new @samp{Subject}
683 header and append @samp{(was: <Old Subject>)}. The old subject can be
684 stripped on replying, see @code{message-subject-trailing-was-query}
685 (@pxref{Message Headers}).
689 @findex message-cross-post-followup-to
690 @vindex message-cross-post-default
691 @vindex message-cross-post-note-function
694 Set up the @samp{FollowUp-To} header with a target newsgroup for a
695 cross-post, add that target newsgroup to the @samp{Newsgroups} header if
696 it is not a member of @samp{Newsgroups}, and insert a note in the body.
697 If @code{message-cross-post-default} is @code{nil} or if this command is
698 called with a prefix-argument, only the @samp{FollowUp-To} header will
699 be set but the the target newsgroup will not be added to the
700 @samp{Newsgroups} header. The function to insert a note is controlled
701 by the @code{message-cross-post-note-function} variable.
705 @findex message-reduce-to-to-cc
706 Replace contents of @samp{To} header with contents of @samp{Cc} or
707 @samp{Bcc} header. (Iff @samp{Cc} header is not present, @samp{Bcc}
708 header will be used instead.)
712 @findex message-insert-wide-reply
713 Insert @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers as if you were doing a wide
714 reply even if the message was not made for a wide reply first.
718 @findex message-add-archive-header
719 @vindex message-archive-header
720 @vindex message-archive-note
722 Insert @samp{X-No-Archive: Yes} in the header and a note in the body.
723 The header and the note can be customized using
724 @code{message-archive-header} and @code{message-archive-note}. When
725 called with a prefix argument, ask for a text to insert. If you don't
726 want the note in the body, set @code{message-archive-note} to
738 @findex message-goto-body
739 Move to the beginning of the body of the message
740 (@code{message-goto-body}).
744 @findex message-goto-signature
745 Move to the signature of the message (@code{message-goto-signature}).
749 @findex message-beginning-of-line
750 @vindex message-beginning-of-line
751 If at beginning of header value, go to beginning of line, else go to
752 beginning of header value. (The header value comes after the header
753 name and the colon.) This behavior can be disabled by toggling
754 the variable @code{message-beginning-of-line}.
766 @findex message-yank-original
767 Yank the message that's being replied to into the message buffer
768 (@code{message-yank-original}).
772 @findex message-yank-buffer
773 Prompt for a buffer name and yank the contents of that buffer into the
774 message buffer (@code{message-yank-buffer}).
778 @findex message-fill-yanked-message
779 Fill the yanked message (@code{message-fill-yanked-message}). Warning:
780 Can severely mess up the yanked text if its quoting conventions are
781 strange. You'll quickly get a feel for when it's safe, though. Anyway,
782 just remember that @kbd{C-x u} (@code{undo}) is available and you'll be
787 @findex message-insert-signature
788 Insert a signature at the end of the buffer
789 (@code{message-insert-signature}).
793 @findex message-insert-headers
794 Insert the message headers (@code{message-insert-headers}).
798 @findex message-mark-inserted-region
799 Mark some region in the current article with enclosing tags. See
800 @code{message-mark-insert-begin} and @code{message-mark-insert-end}.
801 When called with a prefix argument, use slrn style verbatim marks
802 (@samp{#v+} and @samp{#v-}).
806 @findex message-mark-insert-file
807 Insert a file in the current article with enclosing tags.
808 See @code{message-mark-insert-begin} and @code{message-mark-insert-end}.
809 When called with a prefix argument, use slrn style verbatim marks
810 (@samp{#v+} and @samp{#v-}).
822 Message is a @acronym{MIME}-compliant posting agent. The user generally
823 doesn't have to do anything to make the @acronym{MIME} happen---Message will
824 automatically add the @code{Content-Type} and
825 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} headers.
829 The most typical thing users want to use the multipart things in
830 @acronym{MIME} for is to add ``attachments'' to mail they send out.
831 This can be done with the @kbd{C-c C-a} command (@kbd{M-x mml-attach}),
832 which will prompt for a file name and a @acronym{MIME} type.
834 @vindex mml-dnd-protocol-alist
835 @vindex mml-dnd-attach-options
836 If your Emacs supports drag and drop, you can also drop the file in the
837 Message buffer. The variable @code{mml-dnd-protocol-alist} specifies
838 what kind of action is done when you drop a file into the Message
839 buffer. The variable @code{mml-dnd-attach-options} controls which
840 @acronym{MIME} options you want to specify when dropping a file. If it
841 is a list, valid members are @code{type}, @code{description} and
842 @code{disposition}. @code{disposition} implies @code{type}. If it is
843 @code{nil}, don't ask for options. If it is @code{t}, ask the user
844 whether or not to specify options.
846 You can also create arbitrarily complex multiparts using the @acronym{MML}
847 language (@pxref{Composing, , Composing, emacs-mime, The Emacs MIME
853 @cindex internationalized domain names
854 @cindex non-ascii domain names
856 Message is a @acronym{IDNA}-compliant posting agent. The user
857 generally doesn't have to do anything to make the @acronym{IDNA}
858 happen---Message will encode non-@acronym{ASCII} domain names in @code{From},
859 @code{To}, and @code{Cc} headers automatically.
861 Until @acronym{IDNA} becomes more well known, Message queries you
862 whether @acronym{IDNA} encoding of the domain name really should
863 occur. Some users might not be aware that domain names can contain
864 non-@acronym{ASCII} now, so this gives them a safety net if they accidently
865 typed a non-@acronym{ASCII} domain name.
867 @vindex message-use-idna
868 The @code{message-use-idna} variable control whether @acronym{IDNA} is
869 used. If the variable is @code{nil} no @acronym{IDNA} encoding will
870 ever happen, if it is set to the symbol @code{ask} the user will be
871 queried, and if set to @code{t} (which is the default if @acronym{IDNA}
872 is fully available) @acronym{IDNA} encoding happens automatically.
874 @findex message-idna-to-ascii-rhs
875 If you want to experiment with the @acronym{IDNA} encoding, you can
876 invoke @kbd{M-x message-idna-to-ascii-rhs RET} in the message buffer
877 to have the non-@acronym{ASCII} domain names encoded while you edit
880 Note that you must have @uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/libidn/, GNU
881 Libidn} installed in order to use this functionality.
893 Using the @acronym{MML} language, Message is able to create digitally
894 signed and digitally encrypted messages. Message (or rather
895 @acronym{MML}) currently support @acronym{PGP} (RFC 1991),
896 @acronym{PGP/MIME} (RFC 2015/3156) and @acronym{S/MIME}. Instructing
897 @acronym{MML} to perform security operations on a @acronym{MIME} part is
898 done using the @kbd{C-c C-m s} key map for signing and the @kbd{C-c C-m
899 c} key map for encryption, as follows.
905 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-smime
907 Digitally sign current message using @acronym{S/MIME}.
911 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
913 Digitally sign current message using @acronym{PGP}.
917 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgpmime
919 Digitally sign current message using @acronym{PGP/MIME}.
923 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-smime
925 Digitally encrypt current message using @acronym{S/MIME}.
929 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgp
931 Digitally encrypt current message using @acronym{PGP}.
935 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgpmime
937 Digitally encrypt current message using @acronym{PGP/MIME}.
941 @findex mml-unsecure-message
942 Remove security related @acronym{MML} tags from message.
946 These commands do not immediately sign or encrypt the message, they
947 merely insert the proper @acronym{MML} secure tag to instruct the
948 @acronym{MML} engine to perform that operation when the message is
949 actually sent. They may perform other operations too, such as locating
950 and retrieving a @acronym{S/MIME} certificate of the person you wish to
951 send encrypted mail to. When the mml parsing engine converts your
952 @acronym{MML} into a properly encoded @acronym{MIME} message, the secure
953 tag will be replaced with either a part or a multipart tag. If your
954 message contains other mml parts, a multipart tag will be used; if no
955 other parts are present in your message a single part tag will be used.
956 This way, message mode will do the Right Thing (TM) with
957 signed/encrypted multipart messages.
959 Since signing and especially encryption often is used when sensitive
960 information is sent, you may want to have some way to ensure that your
961 mail is actually signed or encrypted. After invoking the above
962 sign/encrypt commands, it is possible to preview the raw article by
963 using @kbd{C-u C-c RET P} (@code{mml-preview}). Then you can
964 verify that your long rant about what your ex-significant other or
965 whomever actually did with that funny looking person at that strange
966 party the other night, actually will be sent encrypted.
968 @emph{Note!} Neither @acronym{PGP/MIME} nor @acronym{S/MIME} encrypt/signs
969 RFC822 headers. They only operate on the @acronym{MIME} object. Keep this
970 in mind before sending mail with a sensitive Subject line.
972 By default, when encrypting a message, Gnus will use the
973 ``signencrypt'' mode, which means the message is both signed and
974 encrypted. If you would like to disable this for a particular
975 message, give the @code{mml-secure-message-encrypt-*} command a prefix
976 argument, e.g., @kbd{C-u C-c C-m c p}.
978 Actually using the security commands above is not very difficult. At
979 least not compared with making sure all involved programs talk with each
980 other properly. Thus, we now describe what external libraries or
981 programs are required to make things work, and some small general hints.
983 @subsection Using S/MIME
985 @emph{Note!} This section assume you have a basic familiarity with
986 modern cryptography, @acronym{S/MIME}, various PKCS standards, OpenSSL and
989 The @acronym{S/MIME} support in Message (and @acronym{MML}) require
990 OpenSSL. OpenSSL performs the actual @acronym{S/MIME} sign/encrypt
991 operations. OpenSSL can be found at @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}.
992 OpenSSL 0.9.6 and later should work. Version 0.9.5a cannot extract mail
993 addresses from certificates, and it insert a spurious CR character into
994 @acronym{MIME} separators so you may wish to avoid it if you would like
995 to avoid being regarded as someone who send strange mail. (Although by
996 sending @acronym{S/MIME} messages you've probably already lost that
999 To be able to send encrypted mail, a personal certificate is not
1000 required. Message (@acronym{MML}) need a certificate for the person to whom you
1001 wish to communicate with though. You're asked for this when you type
1002 @kbd{C-c C-m c s}. Currently there are two ways to retrieve this
1003 certificate, from a local file or from DNS. If you chose a local
1004 file, it need to contain a X.509 certificate in @acronym{PEM} format.
1005 If you chose DNS, you're asked for the domain name where the
1006 certificate is stored, the default is a good guess. To my belief,
1007 Message (@acronym{MML}) is the first mail agent in the world to support
1008 retrieving @acronym{S/MIME} certificates from DNS, so you're not
1009 likely to find very many certificates out there. At least there
1010 should be one, stored at the domain @code{simon.josefsson.org}. LDAP
1011 is a more popular method of distributing certificates, support for it
1012 is planned. (Meanwhile, you can use @code{ldapsearch} from the
1013 command line to retrieve a certificate into a file and use it.)
1015 As for signing messages, OpenSSL can't perform signing operations
1016 without some kind of configuration. Especially, you need to tell it
1017 where your private key and your certificate is stored. @acronym{MML}
1018 uses an Emacs interface to OpenSSL, aptly named @code{smime.el}, and it
1019 contain a @code{custom} group used for this configuration. So, try
1020 @kbd{M-x customize-group RET smime RET} and look around.
1022 Currently there is no support for talking to a CA (or RA) to create
1023 your own certificate. None is planned either. You need to do this
1024 manually with OpenSSL or using some other program. I used Netscape
1025 and got a free @acronym{S/MIME} certificate from one of the big CA's on the
1026 net. Netscape is able to export your private key and certificate in
1027 PKCS #12 format. Use OpenSSL to convert this into a plain X.509
1028 certificate in PEM format as follows.
1031 $ openssl pkcs12 -in ns.p12 -clcerts -nodes > key+cert.pem
1034 The @file{key+cert.pem} file should be pointed to from the
1035 @code{smime-keys} variable. You should now be able to send signed mail.
1037 @emph{Note!} Your private key is now stored unencrypted in the file,
1038 so take care in handling it. Storing encrypted keys on the disk are
1039 supported, and Gnus will ask you for a passphrase before invoking
1040 OpenSSL. Read the OpenSSL documentation for how to achieve this. If
1041 you use unencrypted keys (e.g., if they are on a secure storage, or if
1042 you are on a secure single user machine) simply press @code{RET} at
1043 the passphrase prompt.
1045 @subsection Using PGP/MIME
1047 @acronym{PGP/MIME} requires an external OpenPGP implementation, such
1048 as @uref{http://www.gnupg.org/, GNU Privacy Guard}. Pre-OpenPGP
1049 implementations such as PGP 2.x and PGP 5.x are also supported. One
1050 Emacs interface to the PGP implementations, PGG (@pxref{Top, ,PGG,
1051 pgg, PGG Manual}), is included, but Mailcrypt and Florian Weimer's
1052 @code{gpg.el} are also supported.
1054 @vindex gpg-temp-directory
1055 Note, if you are using the @code{gpg.el} you must make sure that the
1056 directory specified by @code{gpg-temp-directory} have permissions
1059 Creating your own key is described in detail in the documentation of
1060 your PGP implementation, so we refer to it.
1062 If you have imported your old PGP 2.x key into GnuPG, and want to send
1063 signed and encrypted messages to your fellow PGP 2.x users, you'll
1064 discover that the receiver cannot understand what you send. One
1065 solution is to use PGP 2.x instead (i.e., if you use @code{pgg}, set
1066 @code{pgg-default-scheme} to @code{pgp}). If you do want to use
1067 GnuPG, you can use a compatibility script called @code{gpg-2comp}
1069 @uref{http://muppet.faveve.uni-stuttgart.de/~gero/gpg-2comp/}. You
1070 could also convince your fellow PGP 2.x users to convert to GnuPG.
1071 @vindex mml-signencrypt-style-alist
1072 As a final workaround, you can make the sign and encryption work in
1073 two steps; separately sign, then encrypt a message. If you would like
1074 to change this behavior you can customize the
1075 @code{mml-signencrypt-style-alist} variable. For example:
1078 (setq mml-signencrypt-style-alist '(("smime" separate)
1080 ("pgpauto" separate)
1081 ("pgpmime" separate)))
1084 This causes to sign and encrypt in two passes, thus generating a
1085 message that can be understood by PGP version 2.
1087 (Refer to @uref{http://www.gnupg.org/gph/en/pgp2x.html} for more
1088 information about the problem.)
1090 @node Various Commands
1091 @section Various Commands
1097 @findex message-caesar-buffer-body
1098 Caesar rotate (aka. rot13) the current message
1099 (@code{message-caesar-buffer-body}). If narrowing is in effect, just
1100 rotate the visible portion of the buffer. A numerical prefix says how
1101 many places to rotate the text. The default is 13.
1105 @findex message-elide-region
1106 @vindex message-elide-ellipsis
1107 Elide the text between point and mark (@code{message-elide-region}).
1108 The text is killed and replaced with the contents of the variable
1109 @code{message-elide-ellipsis}. The default value is to use an ellipsis
1114 @findex message-kill-address
1115 Kill the address under point.
1119 @findex message-kill-to-signature
1120 Kill all the text up to the signature, or if that's missing, up to the
1121 end of the message (@code{message-kill-to-signature}).
1125 @findex message-delete-not-region
1126 Delete all text in the body of the message that is outside the region
1127 (@code{message-delete-not-region}).
1131 @findex message-newline-and-reformat
1132 Insert four newlines, and then reformat if inside quoted text.
1137 > This is some quoted text. And here's more quoted text.
1140 If point is before @samp{And} and you press @kbd{M-RET}, you'll get:
1143 > This is some quoted text.
1147 > And here's more quoted text.
1150 @samp{*} says where point will be placed.
1154 @findex message-rename-buffer
1155 Rename the buffer (@code{message-rename-buffer}). If given a prefix,
1156 prompt for a new buffer name.
1161 @vindex message-tab-body-function
1162 If @code{message-tab-body-function} is non-@code{nil}, execute the
1163 function it specifies. Otherwise use the function bound to @kbd{TAB} in
1164 @code{text-mode-map} or @code{global-map}.
1175 @findex message-send-and-exit
1176 Send the message and bury the current buffer
1177 (@code{message-send-and-exit}).
1181 @findex message-send
1182 Send the message (@code{message-send}).
1186 @findex message-dont-send
1187 Bury the message buffer and exit (@code{message-dont-send}).
1191 @findex message-kill-buffer
1192 Kill the message buffer and exit (@code{message-kill-buffer}).
1199 @section Mail Aliases
1200 @cindex mail aliases
1205 @vindex message-mail-alias-type
1206 The @code{message-mail-alias-type} variable controls what type of mail
1207 alias expansion to use. Currently two forms are supported:
1208 @code{mailabbrev} and @code{ecomplete}. If this variable is
1209 @code{nil}, no mail alias expansion will be performed.
1211 @code{mailabbrev} works by parsing the @file{/etc/mailrc} and
1212 @file{~/.mailrc} files. These files look like:
1215 alias lmi "Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@ifi.uio.no>"
1216 alias ding "ding@@ifi.uio.no (ding mailing list)"
1219 After adding lines like this to your @file{~/.mailrc} file, you should
1220 be able to just write @samp{lmi} in the @code{To} or @code{Cc} (and so
1221 on) headers and press @kbd{SPC} to expand the alias.
1223 No expansion will be performed upon sending of the message---all
1224 expansions have to be done explicitly.
1226 If you're using @code{ecomplete}, all addresses from @code{To} and
1227 @code{Cc} headers will automatically be put into the
1228 @file{~/.ecompleterc} file. When you enter text in the @code{To} and
1229 @code{Cc} headers, @code{ecomplete} will check out the values stored
1230 there and ``electrically'' say what completions are possible. To
1231 choose one of these completions, use the @kbd{M-n} command to move
1232 down to the list. Use @kbd{M-n} and @kbd{M-p} to move down and up the
1233 list, and @kbd{RET} to choose a completion.
1238 @findex ispell-message
1240 There are two popular ways to have Emacs spell-check your messages:
1241 @code{ispell} and @code{flyspell}. @code{ispell} is the older and
1242 probably more popular package. You typically first write the message,
1243 and then run the entire thing through @code{ispell} and fix all the
1244 typos. To have this happen automatically when you send a message, put
1245 something like the following in your @file{.emacs} file:
1248 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
1251 @vindex ispell-message-dictionary-alist
1252 If you're in the habit of writing in different languages, this can be
1253 controlled by the @code{ispell-message-dictionary-alist} variable:
1256 (setq ispell-message-dictionary-alist
1257 '(("^Newsgroups:.*\\bde\\." . "deutsch8")
1258 (".*" . "default")))
1261 @code{ispell} depends on having the external @samp{ispell} command
1264 The other popular method is using @code{flyspell}. This package checks
1265 your spelling while you're writing, and marks any mis-spelled words in
1268 To use @code{flyspell}, put something like the following in your
1272 (defun my-message-setup-routine ()
1274 (add-hook 'message-setup-hook 'my-message-setup-routine)
1277 @code{flyspell} depends on having the external @samp{ispell} command
1285 * Message Headers:: General message header stuff.
1286 * Mail Headers:: Customizing mail headers.
1287 * Mail Variables:: Other mail variables.
1288 * News Headers:: Customizing news headers.
1289 * News Variables:: Other news variables.
1290 * Insertion Variables:: Customizing how things are inserted.
1291 * Various Message Variables:: Other message variables.
1292 * Sending Variables:: Variables for sending.
1293 * Message Buffers:: How Message names its buffers.
1294 * Message Actions:: Actions to be performed when exiting.
1298 @node Message Headers
1299 @section Message Headers
1301 Message is quite aggressive on the message generation front. It has to
1302 be---it's a combined news and mail agent. To be able to send combined
1303 messages, it has to generate all headers itself (instead of letting the
1304 mail/news system do it) to ensure that mail and news copies of messages
1305 look sufficiently similar.
1309 @item message-generate-headers-first
1310 @vindex message-generate-headers-first
1311 If @code{t}, generate all required headers before starting to
1312 compose the message. This can also be a list of headers to generate:
1315 (setq message-generate-headers-first
1319 @vindex message-required-headers
1320 The variables @code{message-required-headers},
1321 @code{message-required-mail-headers} and
1322 @code{message-required-news-headers} specify which headers are
1325 Note that some headers will be removed and re-generated before posting,
1326 because of the variable @code{message-deletable-headers} (see below).
1328 @item message-draft-headers
1329 @vindex message-draft-headers
1330 When running Message from Gnus, the message buffers are associated
1331 with a draft group. @code{message-draft-headers} says which headers
1332 should be generated when a draft is written to the draft group.
1334 @item message-from-style
1335 @vindex message-from-style
1336 Specifies how @code{From} headers should look. There are four valid
1341 Just the address---@samp{king@@grassland.com}.
1344 @samp{king@@grassland.com (Elvis Parsley)}.
1347 @samp{Elvis Parsley <king@@grassland.com>}.
1350 Look like @code{angles} if that doesn't require quoting, and
1351 @code{parens} if it does. If even @code{parens} requires quoting, use
1352 @code{angles} anyway.
1356 @item message-deletable-headers
1357 @vindex message-deletable-headers
1358 Headers in this list that were previously generated by Message will be
1359 deleted before posting. Let's say you post an article. Then you decide
1360 to post it again to some other group, you naughty boy, so you jump back
1361 to the @code{*post-buf*} buffer, edit the @code{Newsgroups} line, and
1362 ship it off again. By default, this variable makes sure that the old
1363 generated @code{Message-ID} is deleted, and a new one generated. If
1364 this isn't done, the entire empire would probably crumble, anarchy would
1365 prevail, and cats would start walking on two legs and rule the world.
1368 @item message-default-headers
1369 @vindex message-default-headers
1370 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
1373 @item message-subject-re-regexp
1374 @vindex message-subject-re-regexp
1378 Responses to messages have subjects that start with @samp{Re: }. This
1379 is @emph{not} an abbreviation of the English word ``response'', but is
1380 Latin, and means ``in response to''. Some illiterate nincompoops have
1381 failed to grasp this fact, and have ``internationalized'' their software
1382 to use abominations like @samp{Aw: } (``antwort'') or @samp{Sv: }
1383 (``svar'') instead, which is meaningless and evil. However, you may
1384 have to deal with users that use these evil tools, in which case you may
1385 set this variable to a regexp that matches these prefixes. Myself, I
1386 just throw away non-compliant mail.
1388 Here's an example of a value to deal with these headers when
1389 responding to a message:
1392 (setq message-subject-re-regexp
1397 "[Aa][Nn][Tt][Ww]\\.?\\|" ; antw
1399 "[Ff][Ww][Dd]?\\|" ; fwd
1400 "[Oo][Dd][Pp]\\|" ; odp
1402 "[Rr][\311\351][Ff]\\.?\\|" ; ref
1405 "\\(\\[[0-9]*\\]\\)"
1412 @item message-subject-trailing-was-query
1413 @vindex message-subject-trailing-was-query
1414 @vindex message-subject-trailing-was-ask-regexp
1415 @vindex message-subject-trailing-was-regexp
1416 Controls what to do with trailing @samp{(was: <old subject>)} in subject
1417 lines. If @code{nil}, leave the subject unchanged. If it is the symbol
1418 @code{ask}, query the user what do do. In this case, the subject is
1419 matched against @code{message-subject-trailing-was-ask-regexp}. If
1420 @code{message-subject-trailing-was-query} is @code{t}, always strip the
1421 trailing old subject. In this case,
1422 @code{message-subject-trailing-was-regexp} is used.
1424 @item message-alternative-emails
1425 @vindex message-alternative-emails
1426 Regexp matching alternative email addresses. The first address in the
1427 To, Cc or From headers of the original article matching this variable is
1428 used as the From field of outgoing messages, replacing the default From
1431 For example, if you have two secondary email addresses john@@home.net
1432 and john.doe@@work.com and want to use them in the From field when
1433 composing a reply to a message addressed to one of them, you could set
1434 this variable like this:
1437 (setq message-alternative-emails
1438 (regexp-opt '("john@@home.net" "john.doe@@work.com")))
1441 This variable has precedence over posting styles and anything that runs
1442 off @code{message-setup-hook}.
1444 @item message-allow-no-recipients
1445 @vindex message-allow-no-recipients
1446 Specifies what to do when there are no recipients other than
1447 @code{Gcc} or @code{Fcc}. If it is @code{always}, the posting is
1448 allowed. If it is @code{never}, the posting is not allowed. If it is
1449 @code{ask} (the default), you are prompted.
1451 @item message-hidden-headers
1452 @vindex message-hidden-headers
1453 A regexp, a list of regexps, or a list where the first element is
1454 @code{not} and the rest are regexps. It says which headers to keep
1455 hidden when composing a message.
1458 (setq message-hidden-headers
1459 '(not "From" "Subject" "To" "Cc" "Newsgroups"))
1462 Headers are hidden using narrowing, you can use @kbd{M-x widen} to
1463 expose them in the buffer.
1465 @item message-header-synonyms
1466 @vindex message-header-synonyms
1467 A list of lists of header synonyms. E.g., if this list contains a
1468 member list with elements @code{Cc} and @code{To}, then
1469 @code{message-carefully-insert-headers} will not insert a @code{To}
1470 header when the message is already @code{Cc}ed to the recipient.
1476 @section Mail Headers
1479 @item message-required-mail-headers
1480 @vindex message-required-mail-headers
1481 @xref{News Headers}, for the syntax of this variable. It is
1482 @code{(From Subject Date (optional . In-Reply-To) Message-ID
1483 (optional . User-Agent))} by default.
1485 @item message-ignored-mail-headers
1486 @vindex message-ignored-mail-headers
1487 Regexp of headers to be removed before mailing. The default is@*
1488 @samp{^[GF]cc:\\|^Resent-Fcc:\\|^Xref:\\|^X-Draft-From:\\|@*
1489 ^X-Gnus-Agent-Meta-Information:}.
1491 @item message-default-mail-headers
1492 @vindex message-default-mail-headers
1493 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
1494 buffers that are initialized as mail.
1496 @item message-generate-hashcash
1497 @vindex message-generate-hashcash
1498 Boolean variable that indicate whether @samp{X-Hashcash} headers
1499 should be computed for the message. @xref{Hashcash, ,Hashcash,gnus,
1505 @node Mail Variables
1506 @section Mail Variables
1509 @item message-send-mail-function
1510 @vindex message-send-mail-function
1511 @findex message-send-mail-with-sendmail
1512 @findex message-send-mail-with-mh
1513 @findex message-send-mail-with-qmail
1514 @findex message-smtpmail-send-it
1515 @findex smtpmail-send-it
1516 @findex feedmail-send-it
1517 Function used to send the current buffer as mail. The default is
1518 @code{message-send-mail-with-sendmail}, or @code{smtpmail-send-it}
1519 according to the system. Other valid values include
1520 @code{message-send-mail-with-mh}, @code{message-send-mail-with-qmail},
1521 @code{message-smtpmail-send-it} and @code{feedmail-send-it}.
1523 @item message-mh-deletable-headers
1524 @vindex message-mh-deletable-headers
1525 Most versions of MH doesn't like being fed messages that contain the
1526 headers in this variable. If this variable is non-@code{nil} (which is
1527 the default), these headers will be removed before mailing when sending
1528 messages via MH. Set it to @code{nil} if your MH can handle these
1531 @item message-qmail-inject-program
1532 @vindex message-qmail-inject-program
1534 Location of the qmail-inject program.
1536 @item message-qmail-inject-args
1537 @vindex message-qmail-inject-args
1538 Arguments passed to qmail-inject programs.
1539 This should be a list of strings, one string for each argument. It
1540 may also be a function.
1542 For e.g., if you wish to set the envelope sender address so that bounces
1543 go to the right place or to deal with listserv's usage of that address, you
1544 might set this variable to @code{'("-f" "you@@some.where")}.
1546 @item message-sendmail-f-is-evil
1547 @vindex message-sendmail-f-is-evil
1549 Non-@code{nil} means don't add @samp{-f username} to the sendmail
1550 command line. Doing so would be even more evil than leaving it out.
1552 @item message-sendmail-envelope-from
1553 @vindex message-sendmail-envelope-from
1554 When @code{message-sendmail-f-is-evil} is @code{nil}, this specifies
1555 the address to use in the @acronym{SMTP} envelope. If it is
1556 @code{nil}, use @code{user-mail-address}. If it is the symbol
1557 @code{header}, use the @samp{From} header of the message.
1559 @item message-mailer-swallows-blank-line
1560 @vindex message-mailer-swallows-blank-line
1561 Set this to non-@code{nil} if the system's mailer runs the header and
1562 body together. (This problem exists on SunOS 4 when sendmail is run
1563 in remote mode.) The value should be an expression to test whether
1564 the problem will actually occur.
1566 @item message-send-mail-partially-limit
1567 @vindex message-send-mail-partially-limit
1568 @cindex split large message
1569 The limitation of messages sent as message/partial. The lower bound
1570 of message size in characters, beyond which the message should be sent
1571 in several parts. If it is @code{nil}, the size is unlimited.
1577 @section News Headers
1579 @vindex message-required-news-headers
1580 @code{message-required-news-headers} a list of header symbols. These
1581 headers will either be automatically generated, or, if that's
1582 impossible, they will be prompted for. The following symbols are valid:
1588 @findex user-full-name
1589 @findex user-mail-address
1590 This required header will be filled out with the result of the
1591 @code{message-make-from} function, which depends on the
1592 @code{message-from-style}, @code{user-full-name},
1593 @code{user-mail-address} variables.
1597 This required header will be prompted for if not present already.
1601 This required header says which newsgroups the article is to be posted
1602 to. If it isn't present already, it will be prompted for.
1605 @cindex organization
1606 @vindex message-user-organization
1607 @vindex message-user-organization-file
1608 This optional header will be filled out depending on the
1609 @code{message-user-organization} variable.
1610 @code{message-user-organization-file} will be used if this variable is
1611 @code{t}. This variable can also be a string (in which case this string
1612 will be used), or it can be a function (which will be called with no
1613 parameters and should return a string to be used).
1617 This optional header will be computed by Message.
1621 @vindex message-user-fqdn
1622 @vindex mail-host-address
1623 @vindex user-mail-address
1626 @cindex i-did-not-set--mail-host-address--so-tickle-me
1627 This required header will be generated by Message. A unique ID will be
1628 created based on the date, time, user name (for the local part) and the
1629 domain part. For the domain part, message will look (in this order) at
1630 @code{message-user-fqdn}, @code{system-name}, @code{mail-host-address}
1631 and @code{message-user-mail-address} (i.e. @code{user-mail-address})
1632 until a probably valid fully qualified domain name (FQDN) was found.
1636 This optional header will be filled out according to the
1637 @code{message-newsreader} local variable.
1640 This optional header is filled out using the @code{Date} and @code{From}
1641 header of the article being replied to.
1645 @vindex message-expires
1646 This extremely optional header will be inserted according to the
1647 @code{message-expires} variable. It is highly deprecated and shouldn't
1648 be used unless you know what you're doing.
1651 @cindex Distribution
1652 @vindex message-distribution-function
1653 This optional header is filled out according to the
1654 @code{message-distribution-function} variable. It is a deprecated and
1655 much misunderstood header.
1659 @vindex message-user-path
1660 This extremely optional header should probably never be used.
1661 However, some @emph{very} old servers require that this header is
1662 present. @code{message-user-path} further controls how this
1663 @code{Path} header is to look. If it is @code{nil}, use the server name
1664 as the leaf node. If it is a string, use the string. If it is neither
1665 a string nor @code{nil}, use the user name only. However, it is highly
1666 unlikely that you should need to fiddle with this variable at all.
1670 @cindex Mime-Version
1671 In addition, you can enter conses into this list. The @sc{car} of this cons
1672 should be a symbol. This symbol's name is the name of the header, and
1673 the @sc{cdr} can either be a string to be entered verbatim as the value of
1674 this header, or it can be a function to be called. This function should
1675 return a string to be inserted. For instance, if you want to insert
1676 @code{Mime-Version: 1.0}, you should enter @code{(Mime-Version . "1.0")}
1677 into the list. If you want to insert a funny quote, you could enter
1678 something like @code{(X-Yow . yow)} into the list. The function
1679 @code{yow} will then be called without any arguments.
1681 If the list contains a cons where the @sc{car} of the cons is
1682 @code{optional}, the @sc{cdr} of this cons will only be inserted if it is
1685 If you want to delete an entry from this list, the following Lisp
1686 snippet might be useful. Adjust accordingly if you want to remove
1690 (setq message-required-news-headers
1691 (delq 'Message-ID message-required-news-headers))
1694 Other variables for customizing outgoing news articles:
1698 @item message-syntax-checks
1699 @vindex message-syntax-checks
1700 Controls what syntax checks should not be performed on outgoing posts.
1701 To disable checking of long signatures, for instance, add
1704 (signature . disabled)
1713 Check the subject for commands.
1716 Insert a new @code{Sender} header if the @code{From} header looks odd.
1717 @item multiple-headers
1718 Check for the existence of multiple equal headers.
1721 Check for the existence of version and sendsys commands.
1723 Check whether the @code{Message-ID} looks ok.
1725 Check whether the @code{From} header seems nice.
1728 Check for too long lines.
1730 Check for invalid characters.
1732 Check for excessive size.
1734 Check whether there is any new text in the messages.
1736 Check the length of the signature.
1739 Check whether the article has an @code{Approved} header, which is
1740 something only moderators should include.
1742 Check whether the article is empty.
1743 @item invisible-text
1744 Check whether there is any invisible text in the buffer.
1746 Check whether any of the headers are empty.
1747 @item existing-newsgroups
1748 Check whether the newsgroups mentioned in the @code{Newsgroups} and
1749 @code{Followup-To} headers exist.
1750 @item valid-newsgroups
1751 Check whether the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-to} headers
1752 are valid syntactically.
1753 @item repeated-newsgroups
1754 Check whether the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-to} headers
1755 contains repeated group names.
1756 @item shorten-followup-to
1757 Check whether to add a @code{Followup-to} header to shorten the number
1758 of groups to post to.
1761 All these conditions are checked by default.
1763 @item message-ignored-news-headers
1764 @vindex message-ignored-news-headers
1765 Regexp of headers to be removed before posting. The default is@*
1766 @samp{^NNTP-Posting-Host:\\|^Xref:\\|^[BGF]cc:\\|^Resent-Fcc:\\|@*
1767 ^X-Draft-From:\\|^X-Gnus-Agent-Meta-Information:}.
1769 @item message-default-news-headers
1770 @vindex message-default-news-headers
1771 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
1772 buffers that are initialized as news.
1777 @node News Variables
1778 @section News Variables
1781 @item message-send-news-function
1782 @vindex message-send-news-function
1783 Function used to send the current buffer as news. The default is
1784 @code{message-send-news}.
1786 @item message-post-method
1787 @vindex message-post-method
1788 Gnusish @dfn{select method} (see the Gnus manual for details) used for
1789 posting a prepared news message.
1794 @node Insertion Variables
1795 @section Insertion Variables
1798 @item message-ignored-cited-headers
1799 @vindex message-ignored-cited-headers
1800 All headers that match this regexp will be removed from yanked
1801 messages. The default is @samp{.}, which means that all headers will be
1804 @item message-cite-prefix-regexp
1805 @vindex message-cite-prefix-regexp
1806 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
1808 @item message-citation-line-function
1809 @vindex message-citation-line-function
1810 @cindex attribution line
1811 Function called to insert the citation line. The default is
1812 @code{message-insert-citation-line}, which will lead to citation lines
1816 Hallvard B Furuseth <h.b.furuseth@@usit.uio.no> writes:
1819 @c FIXME: Add `message-insert-formated-citation-line' and
1820 @c `message-citation-line-format'
1822 Point will be at the beginning of the body of the message when this
1825 Note that Gnus provides a feature where clicking on `writes:' hides the
1826 cited text. If you change the citation line too much, readers of your
1827 messages will have to adjust their Gnus, too. See the variable
1828 @code{gnus-cite-attribution-suffix}. @xref{Article Highlighting, ,
1829 Article Highlighting, gnus, The Gnus Manual}, for details.
1831 @item message-yank-prefix
1832 @vindex message-yank-prefix
1835 When you are replying to or following up an article, you normally want
1836 to quote the person you are answering. Inserting quoted text is done by
1837 @dfn{yanking}, and each line you yank will have
1838 @code{message-yank-prefix} prepended to it (except for quoted lines
1839 which use @code{message-yank-cited-prefix} and empty lines which use
1840 @code{message-yank-empty-prefix}). The default is @samp{> }.
1842 @item message-yank-cited-prefix
1843 @vindex message-yank-cited-prefix
1847 When yanking text from an article which contains already cited text,
1848 each line will be prefixed with the contents of this variable. The
1849 default is @samp{>}. See also @code{message-yank-prefix}.
1851 @item message-yank-empty-prefix
1852 @vindex message-yank-empty-prefix
1855 When yanking text from an article, each empty line will be prefixed with
1856 the contents of this variable. The default is @samp{>}. You can set
1857 this variable to an empty string to split the cited text into paragraphs
1858 automatically. See also @code{message-yank-prefix}.
1860 @item message-indentation-spaces
1861 @vindex message-indentation-spaces
1862 Number of spaces to indent yanked messages.
1864 @item message-cite-function
1865 @vindex message-cite-function
1866 @findex message-cite-original
1867 @findex sc-cite-original
1868 @findex message-cite-original-without-signature
1870 Function for citing an original message. The default is
1871 @code{message-cite-original}, which simply inserts the original message
1872 and prepends @samp{> } to each line.
1873 @code{message-cite-original-without-signature} does the same, but elides
1874 the signature. You can also set it to @code{sc-cite-original} to use
1877 @item message-indent-citation-function
1878 @vindex message-indent-citation-function
1879 Function for modifying a citation just inserted in the mail buffer.
1880 This can also be a list of functions. Each function can find the
1881 citation between @code{(point)} and @code{(mark t)}. And each function
1882 should leave point and mark around the citation text as modified.
1884 @item message-mark-insert-begin
1885 @vindex message-mark-insert-begin
1886 String to mark the beginning of some inserted text.
1888 @item message-mark-insert-end
1889 @vindex message-mark-insert-end
1890 String to mark the end of some inserted text.
1892 @item message-signature
1893 @vindex message-signature
1894 String to be inserted at the end of the message buffer. If @code{t}
1895 (which is the default), the @code{message-signature-file} file will be
1896 inserted instead. If a function, the result from the function will be
1897 used instead. If a form, the result from the form will be used instead.
1898 If this variable is @code{nil}, no signature will be inserted at all.
1900 @item message-signature-file
1901 @vindex message-signature-file
1902 File containing the signature to be inserted at the end of the buffer.
1903 The default is @file{~/.signature}.
1905 @item message-signature-insert-empty-line
1906 @vindex message-signature-insert-empty-line
1907 If @code{t} (the default value) an empty line is inserted before the
1908 signature separator.
1912 Note that RFC1036bis says that a signature should be preceded by the three
1913 characters @samp{-- } on a line by themselves. This is to make it
1914 easier for the recipient to automatically recognize and process the
1915 signature. So don't remove those characters, even though you might feel
1916 that they ruin your beautiful design, like, totally.
1918 Also note that no signature should be more than four lines long.
1919 Including @acronym{ASCII} graphics is an efficient way to get
1920 everybody to believe that you are silly and have nothing important to
1924 @node Various Message Variables
1925 @section Various Message Variables
1928 @item message-default-charset
1929 @vindex message-default-charset
1931 Symbol naming a @acronym{MIME} charset. Non-@acronym{ASCII} characters
1932 in messages are assumed to be encoded using this charset. The default
1933 is @code{iso-8859-1} on non-@sc{mule} Emacsen; otherwise @code{nil},
1934 which means ask the user. (This variable is used only on non-@sc{mule}
1935 Emacsen.) @xref{Charset Translation, , Charset Translation, emacs-mime,
1936 Emacs MIME Manual}, for details on the @sc{mule}-to-@acronym{MIME}
1937 translation process.
1939 @item message-signature-separator
1940 @vindex message-signature-separator
1941 Regexp matching the signature separator. It is @samp{^-- *$} by
1944 @item mail-header-separator
1945 @vindex mail-header-separator
1946 String used to separate the headers from the body. It is @samp{--text
1947 follows this line--} by default.
1949 @item message-directory
1950 @vindex message-directory
1951 Directory used by many mailey things. The default is @file{~/Mail/}.
1952 All other mail file variables are derived from @code{message-directory}.
1954 @item message-auto-save-directory
1955 @vindex message-auto-save-directory
1956 Directory where Message auto-saves buffers if Gnus isn't running. If
1957 @code{nil}, Message won't auto-save. The default is @file{~/Mail/drafts/}.
1959 @item message-signature-setup-hook
1960 @vindex message-signature-setup-hook
1961 Hook run when initializing the message buffer. It is run after the
1962 headers have been inserted but before the signature has been inserted.
1964 @item message-setup-hook
1965 @vindex message-setup-hook
1966 Hook run as the last thing when the message buffer has been initialized,
1967 but before yanked text is inserted.
1969 @item message-header-setup-hook
1970 @vindex message-header-setup-hook
1971 Hook called narrowed to the headers after initializing the headers.
1973 For instance, if you're running Gnus and wish to insert a
1974 @samp{Mail-Copies-To} header in all your news articles and all messages
1975 you send to mailing lists, you could do something like the following:
1978 (defun my-message-header-setup-hook ()
1979 (let ((group (or gnus-newsgroup-name "")))
1980 (when (or (message-fetch-field "newsgroups")
1981 (gnus-group-find-parameter group 'to-address)
1982 (gnus-group-find-parameter group 'to-list))
1983 (insert "Mail-Copies-To: never\n"))))
1985 (add-hook 'message-header-setup-hook
1986 'my-message-header-setup-hook)
1989 @item message-send-hook
1990 @vindex message-send-hook
1991 Hook run before sending messages.
1993 If you want to add certain headers before sending, you can use the
1994 @code{message-add-header} function in this hook. For instance:
1995 @findex message-add-header
1998 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'my-message-add-content)
1999 (defun my-message-add-content ()
2000 (message-add-header "X-In-No-Sense: Nonsense")
2001 (message-add-header "X-Whatever: no"))
2004 This function won't add the header if the header is already present.
2006 @item message-send-mail-hook
2007 @vindex message-send-mail-hook
2008 Hook run before sending mail messages. This hook is run very late --
2009 just before the message is actually sent as mail.
2011 @item message-send-news-hook
2012 @vindex message-send-news-hook
2013 Hook run before sending news messages. This hook is run very late --
2014 just before the message is actually sent as news.
2016 @item message-sent-hook
2017 @vindex message-sent-hook
2018 Hook run after sending messages.
2020 @item message-cancel-hook
2021 @vindex message-cancel-hook
2022 Hook run when canceling news articles.
2024 @item message-mode-syntax-table
2025 @vindex message-mode-syntax-table
2026 Syntax table used in message mode buffers.
2028 @item message-cite-articles-with-x-no-archive
2029 @vindex message-cite-articles-with-x-no-archive
2030 If non-@code{nil}, don't strip quoted text from articles that have
2031 @samp{X-No-Archive} set. Even if this variable isn't set, you can
2032 undo the stripping by hitting the @code{undo} keystroke.
2034 @item message-strip-special-text-properties
2035 @vindex message-strip-special-text-properties
2036 Emacs has a number of special text properties which can break message
2037 composing in various ways. If this option is set, message will strip
2038 these properties from the message composition buffer. However, some
2039 packages requires these properties to be present in order to work. If
2040 you use one of these packages, turn this option off, and hope the
2041 message composition doesn't break too bad.
2043 @item message-send-method-alist
2044 @vindex message-send-method-alist
2045 @findex message-mail-p
2046 @findex message-news-p
2047 @findex message-send-via-mail
2048 @findex message-send-via-news
2049 Alist of ways to send outgoing messages. Each element has the form:
2052 (@var{type} @var{predicate} @var{function})
2057 A symbol that names the method.
2060 A function called without any parameters to determine whether the
2061 message is a message of type @var{type}. The function will be called in
2062 the buffer where the message is.
2065 A function to be called if @var{predicate} returns non-@code{nil}.
2066 @var{function} is called with one parameter---the prefix.
2072 ((news message-news-p message-send-via-news)
2073 (mail message-mail-p message-send-via-mail))
2076 The @code{message-news-p} function returns non-@code{nil} if the message
2077 looks like news, and the @code{message-send-via-news} function sends the
2078 message according to the @code{message-send-news-function} variable
2079 (@pxref{News Variables}). The @code{message-mail-p} function returns
2080 non-@code{nil} if the message looks like mail, and the
2081 @code{message-send-via-mail} function sends the message according to the
2082 @code{message-send-mail-function} variable (@pxref{Mail Variables}).
2084 All the elements in this alist will be tried in order, so a message
2085 containing both a valid @samp{Newsgroups} header and a valid @samp{To}
2086 header, for example, will be sent as news, and then as mail.
2091 @node Sending Variables
2092 @section Sending Variables
2096 @item message-fcc-handler-function
2097 @vindex message-fcc-handler-function
2098 A function called to save outgoing articles. This function will be
2099 called with the name of the file to store the article in. The default
2100 function is @code{message-output} which saves in Unix mailbox format.
2102 @item message-courtesy-message
2103 @vindex message-courtesy-message
2104 When sending combined messages, this string is inserted at the start of
2105 the mailed copy. If the string contains the format spec @samp{%s}, the
2106 newsgroups the article has been posted to will be inserted there. If
2107 this variable is @code{nil}, no such courtesy message will be added.
2108 The default value is @samp{"The following message is a courtesy copy of
2109 an article\\nthat has been posted to %s as well.\\n\\n"}.
2111 @item message-fcc-externalize-attachments
2112 @vindex message-fcc-externalize-attachments
2113 If @code{nil}, attach files as normal parts in Fcc copies; if it is
2114 non-@code{nil}, attach local files as external parts.
2116 @item message-interactive
2117 @vindex message-interactive
2118 If non-@code{nil} wait for and display errors when sending a message;
2119 if @code{nil} let the mailer mail back a message to report errors.
2124 @node Message Buffers
2125 @section Message Buffers
2127 Message will generate new buffers with unique buffer names when you
2128 request a message buffer. When you send the message, the buffer isn't
2129 normally killed off. Its name is changed and a certain number of old
2130 message buffers are kept alive.
2133 @item message-generate-new-buffers
2134 @vindex message-generate-new-buffers
2135 If non-@code{nil}, generate new buffers. The default is @code{t}. If
2136 this is a function, call that function with three parameters: The type,
2137 the to address and the group name. (Any of these may be @code{nil}.)
2138 The function should return the new buffer name.
2140 @item message-max-buffers
2141 @vindex message-max-buffers
2142 This variable says how many old message buffers to keep. If there are
2143 more message buffers than this, the oldest buffer will be killed. The
2144 default is 10. If this variable is @code{nil}, no old message buffers
2145 will ever be killed.
2147 @item message-send-rename-function
2148 @vindex message-send-rename-function
2149 After sending a message, the buffer is renamed from, for instance,
2150 @samp{*reply to Lars*} to @samp{*sent reply to Lars*}. If you don't
2151 like this, set this variable to a function that renames the buffer in a
2152 manner you like. If you don't want to rename the buffer at all, you can
2156 (setq message-send-rename-function 'ignore)
2159 @item message-kill-buffer-on-exit
2160 @findex message-kill-buffer-on-exit
2161 If non-@code{nil}, kill the buffer immediately on exit.
2166 @node Message Actions
2167 @section Message Actions
2169 When Message is being used from a news/mail reader, the reader is likely
2170 to want to perform some task after the message has been sent. Perhaps
2171 return to the previous window configuration or mark an article as
2174 @vindex message-kill-actions
2175 @vindex message-postpone-actions
2176 @vindex message-exit-actions
2177 @vindex message-send-actions
2178 The user may exit from the message buffer in various ways. The most
2179 common is @kbd{C-c C-c}, which sends the message and exits. Other
2180 possibilities are @kbd{C-c C-s} which just sends the message, @kbd{C-c
2181 C-d} which postpones the message editing and buries the message buffer,
2182 and @kbd{C-c C-k} which kills the message buffer. Each of these actions
2183 have lists associated with them that contains actions to be executed:
2184 @code{message-send-actions}, @code{message-exit-actions},
2185 @code{message-postpone-actions}, and @code{message-kill-actions}.
2187 Message provides a function to interface with these lists:
2188 @code{message-add-action}. The first parameter is the action to be
2189 added, and the rest of the arguments are which lists to add this action
2190 to. Here's an example from Gnus:
2194 `(set-window-configuration ,(current-window-configuration))
2195 'exit 'postpone 'kill)
2198 This restores the Gnus window configuration when the message buffer is
2199 killed, postponed or exited.
2201 An @dfn{action} can be either: a normal function, or a list where the
2202 @sc{car} is a function and the @sc{cdr} is the list of arguments, or
2203 a form to be @code{eval}ed.
2207 @chapter Compatibility
2208 @cindex compatibility
2210 Message uses virtually only its own variables---older @code{mail-}
2211 variables aren't consulted. To force Message to take those variables
2212 into account, you can put the following in your @file{.emacs} file:
2215 (require 'messcompat)
2218 This will initialize many Message variables from the values in the
2219 corresponding mail variables.
2226 * Responses:: Standard rules for determining where responses go.
2233 To determine where a message is to go, the following algorithm is used
2238 A @dfn{reply} is when you want to respond @emph{just} to the person who
2239 sent the message via mail. There will only be one recipient. To
2240 determine who the recipient will be, the following headers are
2251 A @dfn{wide reply} is a mail response that includes @emph{all} entities
2252 mentioned in the message you are responded to. All mailboxes from the
2253 following headers will be concatenated to form the outgoing
2254 @code{To}/@code{Cc} headers:
2258 (unless there's a @code{Reply-To}, in which case that is used instead).
2265 If a @code{Mail-Copies-To} header is present, it will also be included
2266 in the list of mailboxes. If this header is @samp{never}, that means
2267 that the @code{From} (or @code{Reply-To}) mailbox will be suppressed.
2271 A @dfn{followup} is a response sent via news. The following headers
2272 (listed in order of precedence) determine where the response is to be
2283 If a @code{Mail-Copies-To} header is present, it will be used as the
2284 basis of the new @code{Cc} header, except if this header is
2306 arch-tag: 16ab76af-a281-4e34-aed6-5624569f7601