10 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
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289 Copyright \copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001
290 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
293 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
294 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
295 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
296 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
297 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
298 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
299 License'' in the Emacs manual.
301 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
302 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
303 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
305 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
306 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
307 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
308 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
316 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
318 Copyright (C) 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001
319 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
321 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
322 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
323 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
324 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
325 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
326 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
327 License'' in the Emacs manual.
329 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
330 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
331 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
333 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
334 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
335 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
336 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
344 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
347 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
348 Copyright @copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001
349 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
351 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
352 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
353 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
354 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
355 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
356 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
357 License'' in the Emacs manual.
359 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
360 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
361 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
363 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
364 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
365 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
366 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
375 @top The Gnus Newsreader
379 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
380 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
381 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
384 This manual corresponds to Oort Gnus v0.05
395 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
396 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
398 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
399 being accused of plagiarism:
401 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
402 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
403 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
404 can even read news with it!
406 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
407 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
408 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
409 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
410 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
416 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
417 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
418 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
419 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
420 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
421 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
422 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
423 * Various:: General purpose settings.
424 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
425 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
426 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
427 * Key Index:: Key Index.
430 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
434 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
435 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
436 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
437 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
438 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
439 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
440 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
441 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
442 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
443 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
444 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
448 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
449 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
450 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
454 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
455 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
456 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
457 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
458 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
459 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
460 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
461 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
462 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
463 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
464 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
465 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
466 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
467 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
468 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
469 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
470 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
474 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
475 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
476 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
480 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
481 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
482 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
483 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
484 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
488 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
489 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
490 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
491 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
492 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
496 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
497 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
498 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
499 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
500 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
502 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
503 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
504 * Threading:: How threads are made.
505 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
506 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
507 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
508 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
509 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
510 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
511 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
512 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
513 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
514 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
515 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
516 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
517 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
518 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
519 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
520 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
521 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
522 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
523 or reselecting the current group.
524 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
525 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
526 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
527 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
529 Summary Buffer Format
531 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
532 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
533 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
534 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
538 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
539 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
541 Reply, Followup and Post
543 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
544 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
545 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
546 * Canceling and Superseding::
550 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
551 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
552 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
554 * Generic Marking Commands::
555 * Setting Process Marks::
559 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
560 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
561 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
565 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
566 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
568 Customizing Threading
570 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
571 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
572 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
573 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
577 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
578 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
579 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
580 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
581 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
582 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
586 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
587 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
588 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
592 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
593 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
594 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
595 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
596 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
597 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
598 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
599 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
600 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
601 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
603 Alternative Approaches
605 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
606 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
608 Various Summary Stuff
610 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
611 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
612 * Summary Generation Commands::
613 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
617 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
618 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
619 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
620 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
621 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
625 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
626 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
627 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
628 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
629 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
630 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
631 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
632 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
636 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
637 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
638 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
639 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
640 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
641 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
642 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
643 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
647 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
648 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
649 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
650 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
651 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
652 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
653 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
657 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
658 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
662 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
663 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
664 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
668 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
669 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
670 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
671 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
672 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
673 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
674 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
675 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
676 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
677 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
678 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
679 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
680 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
684 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
685 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
686 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
688 Choosing a Mail Back End
690 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
691 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
692 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
693 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
694 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
695 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
700 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
701 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
702 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
703 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
704 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
705 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
709 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
710 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
711 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
715 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
716 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
717 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
718 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
719 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
723 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
727 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
728 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
729 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
733 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
734 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
738 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
739 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
740 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
741 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
742 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
743 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
744 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
745 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
746 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
747 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
751 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
752 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
753 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
757 * Group Agent Commands::
758 * Summary Agent Commands::
759 * Server Agent Commands::
763 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
764 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
765 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
766 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
767 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
768 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
769 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
770 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
771 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
772 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
773 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
774 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
775 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
776 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
777 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
778 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
779 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
783 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
784 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
785 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
786 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
790 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
791 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
792 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
796 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
797 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
798 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
799 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
800 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
801 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
802 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
803 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
804 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
805 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
806 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
807 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
808 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
809 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
810 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
811 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
812 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
813 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
814 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
818 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
819 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
820 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
821 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
822 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
823 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
824 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
825 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
829 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
830 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
831 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
832 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
833 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
837 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
838 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
839 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
840 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
841 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
845 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
846 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
847 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
848 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
849 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
850 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
851 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
852 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
853 * Frequently Asked Questions::
857 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
858 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
859 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
860 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
861 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
862 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
863 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
864 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
865 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
869 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
870 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
871 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
872 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
873 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
877 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
878 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
879 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
880 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
884 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
885 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
886 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
887 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
888 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
889 * Group Info:: The group info format.
890 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
891 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
892 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
896 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
897 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
898 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
899 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
900 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
901 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
905 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
906 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
910 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
911 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
917 @chapter Starting Gnus
922 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
923 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
926 @findex gnus-other-frame
927 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
928 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
929 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
931 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
932 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
933 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
935 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
936 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
939 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
940 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
941 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
942 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
943 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
944 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
945 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
946 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
947 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
948 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
949 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
953 @node Finding the News
954 @section Finding the News
957 @vindex gnus-select-method
959 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
960 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
961 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
962 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
965 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
966 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
969 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
972 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
975 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
978 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
979 certainly be much faster. But do not use the local spool if your
980 server is running Leafnode; in this case, use @code{(nntp "localhost")}.
982 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
984 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
985 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
986 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
987 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
988 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
989 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
991 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
992 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
993 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
994 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
996 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
997 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
998 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
999 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
1000 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
1001 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
1002 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
1003 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
1004 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
1007 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
1009 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
1010 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
1011 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
1012 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
1013 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
1014 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
1016 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
1018 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
1019 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
1020 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
1021 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
1022 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
1023 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
1026 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} back end to read your mail,
1027 you would typically set this variable to
1030 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
1034 @node The First Time
1035 @section The First Time
1036 @cindex first time usage
1038 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
1039 be subscribed by default.
1041 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
1042 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
1043 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
1044 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1047 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1048 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1049 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1051 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
1052 help you with most common problems.
1054 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
1055 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1059 @node The Server is Down
1060 @section The Server is Down
1061 @cindex server errors
1063 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
1064 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1065 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
1067 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1068 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1069 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1070 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1071 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1072 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1073 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1075 @findex gnus-no-server
1076 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1078 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1079 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1080 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
1081 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1082 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1083 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1084 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1088 @section Slave Gnusae
1091 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
1092 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1093 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
1094 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1096 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1097 @code{.newsrc} file.
1099 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
1100 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1101 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1102 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1103 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1104 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1105 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1107 Anyway, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1108 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
1109 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1110 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1111 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
1112 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1113 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1114 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1116 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1117 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
1120 @node Fetching a Group
1121 @section Fetching a Group
1122 @cindex fetching a group
1124 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1125 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1126 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
1127 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1128 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1129 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1135 @cindex subscription
1137 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1138 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1139 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1140 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1141 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1142 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1143 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1144 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the back ends for new groups even
1145 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1148 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1149 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1150 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1154 @node Checking New Groups
1155 @subsection Checking New Groups
1157 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1158 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1159 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1160 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
1161 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1162 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1163 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1164 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1165 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1166 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1168 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1169 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1170 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1171 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1172 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1173 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
1174 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1175 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1176 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1177 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1178 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1180 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
1181 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1182 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1183 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1184 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1185 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1188 @node Subscription Methods
1189 @subsection Subscription Methods
1191 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1192 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1193 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1195 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1196 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1198 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1202 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1203 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1204 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1205 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1206 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1208 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1209 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1210 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1211 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1213 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1214 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1215 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1217 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1218 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1219 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1220 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1221 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1222 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1223 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1224 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1225 up. Or something like that.
1227 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1228 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1229 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
1230 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1231 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1233 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1234 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1235 Kill all new groups.
1237 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1238 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1239 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1240 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1241 topic parameter that looks like
1247 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1250 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1255 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1256 A closely related variable is
1257 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1258 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
1259 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1260 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1263 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1264 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1265 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1266 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1269 @node Filtering New Groups
1270 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1272 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1273 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1274 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1277 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1280 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1281 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1282 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1283 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1284 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1285 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1286 subscribing these groups.
1287 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1288 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1290 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1291 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1292 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1293 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1294 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1295 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1296 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1297 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1299 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1300 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1301 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1302 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1303 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1304 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1305 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1306 that come from mail back ends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1307 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
1308 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
1310 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1311 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1314 @node Changing Servers
1315 @section Changing Servers
1316 @cindex changing servers
1318 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
1319 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1320 very flaky and you want to use another.
1322 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1323 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1327 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1328 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1329 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1330 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1333 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1334 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1335 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1336 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1338 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1339 @findex gnus-change-server
1340 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1341 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1342 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1343 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1344 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1346 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1347 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1348 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1349 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1350 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1352 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1353 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1354 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1355 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1356 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1357 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1359 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1360 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1361 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1365 @section Startup Files
1366 @cindex startup files
1371 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1372 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1374 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1375 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1376 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1377 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1378 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1379 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1380 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1382 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1383 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1384 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1385 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1386 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1387 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1389 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1390 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1391 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1392 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1393 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
1394 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1395 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1396 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
1397 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1398 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1400 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1401 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1402 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1403 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1404 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1405 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1406 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1407 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1408 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1409 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1410 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1411 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1413 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1414 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1415 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1416 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1418 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1419 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1420 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1421 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1422 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1423 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1424 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1425 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1426 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1427 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1430 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1431 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1433 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1434 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1437 @vindex gnus-init-file
1438 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1439 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1440 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1441 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1442 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1443 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1444 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1445 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1446 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1452 @cindex dribble file
1455 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
1456 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1457 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1458 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1459 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1462 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1463 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1466 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1467 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
1468 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1470 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1471 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1472 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
1473 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1474 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1475 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
1477 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1478 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1479 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1482 @node The Active File
1483 @section The Active File
1485 @cindex ignored groups
1487 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1488 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1489 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1491 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1492 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
1493 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1494 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
1495 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1496 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1497 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1500 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1501 @c if you set it to anything else.
1503 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1505 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1506 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
1507 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1509 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1510 you actually subscribe to.
1512 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1513 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
1514 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
1515 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1517 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1518 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1519 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1520 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1521 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1522 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1524 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1525 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1526 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1529 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
1530 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1531 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1532 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1533 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1534 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1536 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1537 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1539 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1540 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1542 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1543 secondary select methods.
1546 @node Startup Variables
1547 @section Startup Variables
1551 @item gnus-load-hook
1552 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1553 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1554 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1555 times you start Gnus.
1557 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1558 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1559 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1561 @item gnus-startup-hook
1562 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1563 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1565 @item gnus-started-hook
1566 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1567 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1570 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1571 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1572 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1573 generating the group buffer.
1575 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1576 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1577 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1578 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1579 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1580 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1581 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1582 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1584 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1585 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1586 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1587 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1588 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1589 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1591 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1592 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1593 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1595 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1596 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1597 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1599 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1600 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1601 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1602 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1608 @chapter Group Buffer
1609 @cindex group buffer
1611 @c Alex Schroeder suggests to rearrange this as follows:
1613 @c <kensanata> ok, just save it for reference. I'll go to bed in a minute.
1614 @c 1. Selecting a Group, 2. (new) Finding a Group, 3. Group Levels,
1615 @c 4. Subscription Commands, 5. Group Maneuvering, 6. Group Data,
1616 @c 7. Group Score, 8. Group Buffer Format
1617 @c <kensanata> Group Levels should have more information on levels 5 to 9. I
1618 @c suggest to split the 4th paragraph ("Gnus considers groups...") as follows:
1619 @c <kensanata> First, "Gnus considers groups... (default 9)."
1620 @c <kensanata> New, a table summarizing what levels 1 to 9 mean.
1621 @c <kensanata> Third, "Gnus treats subscribed ... reasons of efficiency"
1622 @c <kensanata> Then expand the next paragraph or add some more to it.
1623 @c This short one sentence explains levels 1 and 2, therefore I understand
1624 @c that I should keep important news at 3 and boring news at 4.
1625 @c Say so! Then go on to explain why I should bother with levels 6 to 9.
1626 @c Maybe keep those that you don't want to read temporarily at 6,
1627 @c those that you never want to read at 8, those that offend your
1628 @c human rights at 9...
1631 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1632 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1633 long as Gnus is active.
1637 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1638 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group,height=9cm}}
1639 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1640 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1641 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1642 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1643 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1644 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1650 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1651 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1652 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1653 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1654 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1655 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1656 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1657 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1658 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1659 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1660 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1661 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1662 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1663 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1664 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1665 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1666 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1670 @node Group Buffer Format
1671 @section Group Buffer Format
1674 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1675 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1676 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1680 @node Group Line Specification
1681 @subsection Group Line Specification
1682 @cindex group buffer format
1684 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1685 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1687 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1690 25: news.announce.newusers
1691 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1696 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1697 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1698 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1699 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1701 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1702 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1703 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1704 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1705 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1706 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1708 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1710 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1711 the colon after performing an operation. @xref{Positioning
1712 Point}. Nothing else is required---not even the group name. All
1713 displayed text is just window dressing, and is never examined by Gnus.
1714 Gnus stores all real information it needs using text properties.
1716 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1717 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1718 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1720 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1725 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1728 Whether the group is subscribed.
1731 Level of subscribedness.
1734 Number of unread articles.
1737 Number of dormant articles.
1740 Number of ticked articles.
1743 Number of read articles.
1746 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1747 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1749 Gnus uses this estimation because the NNTP protocol provides efficient
1750 access to @var{max-number} and @var{min-number} but getting the true
1751 unread message count is not possible efficiently. For hysterical
1752 raisins, even the mail back ends, where the true number of unread
1753 messages might be available efficiently, use the same limited
1754 interface. To remove this restriction from Gnus means that the
1755 back end interface has to be changed, which is not an easy job. If you
1756 want to work on this, please contact the Gnus mailing list.
1759 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1762 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1771 Newsgroup description.
1774 @samp{m} if moderated.
1777 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1786 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1790 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1793 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1794 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1795 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1796 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1797 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1800 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1802 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1806 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1809 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1813 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1814 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1815 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1816 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1817 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1818 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1823 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1824 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1825 group, or a bogus native group.
1828 @node Group Modeline Specification
1829 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1830 @cindex group modeline
1832 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1833 The mode line can be changed by setting
1834 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1835 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1839 The native news server.
1841 The native select method.
1845 @node Group Highlighting
1846 @subsection Group Highlighting
1847 @cindex highlighting
1848 @cindex group highlighting
1850 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1851 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1852 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1853 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1854 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1856 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1860 (cond (window-system
1861 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1862 (defface my-group-face-1
1863 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1864 (defface my-group-face-2
1865 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1866 (defface my-group-face-3
1867 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1868 (defface my-group-face-4
1869 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1870 (defface my-group-face-5
1871 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1873 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1874 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1875 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1876 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1877 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1878 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1881 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1883 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1890 The number of unread articles in the group.
1894 Whether the group is a mail group.
1896 The level of the group.
1898 The score of the group.
1900 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1902 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1903 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1905 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1906 topic being inserted.
1909 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1910 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1911 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1913 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1914 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1915 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1916 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1917 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1920 @node Group Maneuvering
1921 @section Group Maneuvering
1922 @cindex group movement
1924 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1925 expected, hopefully.
1931 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1932 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1933 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1939 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1940 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1941 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1945 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1946 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1950 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1951 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1955 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1956 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1957 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1961 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1962 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1963 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1966 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1972 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1973 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1974 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1979 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1980 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1981 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1985 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1986 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1987 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1990 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1991 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1992 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1993 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1997 @node Selecting a Group
1998 @section Selecting a Group
1999 @cindex group selection
2004 @kindex SPACE (Group)
2005 @findex gnus-group-read-group
2006 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
2007 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
2008 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
2009 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
2010 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
2011 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
2012 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
2013 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{N})} oldest articles.
2015 Thus, @kbd{SPC} enters the group normally, @kbd{C-u SPC} offers old
2016 articles, @kbd{C-u 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 newest articles, and @kbd{C-u
2017 - 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 oldest ones.
2019 When you are in the group (in the Summary buffer), you can type
2020 @kbd{M-g} to fetch new articles, or @kbd{C-u M-g} to also show the old
2025 @findex gnus-group-select-group
2026 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
2027 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
2028 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
2029 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
2033 @kindex M-RET (Group)
2034 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
2035 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
2036 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
2037 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
2038 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
2039 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
2040 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
2041 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
2042 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
2045 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
2046 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
2047 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
2048 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
2049 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
2052 @kindex C-M-RET (Group)
2053 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
2054 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
2055 doing any processing of its contents
2056 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
2057 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
2058 manner will have no permanent effects.
2062 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
2063 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
2064 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
2065 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
2066 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
2067 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
2068 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
2069 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
2072 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
2073 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
2074 If @code{gnus-auto-select-first} is non-@code{nil}, select an article
2075 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
2076 Which article this is is controlled by the
2077 @code{gnus-auto-select-subject} variable. Valid values for this
2083 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article.
2086 Place point on the subject line of the first article.
2089 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article.
2092 Place point on the subject line of the highest-scored unread article.
2096 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function
2097 will be called to place point on a subject line.
2099 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2100 binary group with Huge articles) you can set the
2101 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} variable to @code{nil} in
2102 @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2106 @node Subscription Commands
2107 @section Subscription Commands
2108 @cindex subscription
2116 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2117 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2118 Toggle subscription to the current group
2119 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2125 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2126 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2127 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2128 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2134 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2135 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2136 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2142 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2143 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2146 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2147 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2148 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2149 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2150 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2156 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2157 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2161 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2162 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2165 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2166 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2167 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2168 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2169 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2170 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2171 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2172 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2173 @file{.newsrc} file.
2177 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2187 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2188 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2189 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2190 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2191 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2192 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2197 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2198 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2199 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2203 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2204 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2205 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2207 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2208 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2209 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2210 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
2211 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2212 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2219 @section Group Levels
2223 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2224 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2225 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2226 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2227 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2229 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2235 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2236 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2237 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2238 prompted for a level.
2241 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2242 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2243 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2244 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2245 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2246 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2247 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2248 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2249 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2250 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2251 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2252 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2253 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2254 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2255 reasons of efficiency.
2257 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2258 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2260 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2261 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2262 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2263 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2264 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2265 groups are hidden, in a way.
2267 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2268 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2269 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2270 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2271 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2272 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2274 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2275 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2276 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2277 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2278 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2279 list of killed groups.)
2281 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2282 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2283 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2285 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2286 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2287 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2288 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2289 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2290 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2291 relevant valid ranges.
2293 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2294 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2295 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2296 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2297 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2298 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2301 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2302 one with the best level.
2304 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2305 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2306 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2309 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2310 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2311 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2312 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2315 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2316 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2317 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2318 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2320 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2321 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2322 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2323 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2324 to 5. The default is 6.
2328 @section Group Score
2333 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2334 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2335 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2338 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2339 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2340 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2341 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2342 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2343 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2344 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2345 least significant part.))
2347 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2348 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2349 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2350 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2351 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2352 action after each summary exit, you can add
2353 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2354 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2355 slow things down somewhat.
2358 @node Marking Groups
2359 @section Marking Groups
2360 @cindex marking groups
2362 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2363 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2364 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2365 bidding on those groups.
2367 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2368 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2369 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2377 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2378 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2384 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2385 Remove the mark from the current group
2386 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2390 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2391 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2395 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2396 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2400 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2401 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2405 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2406 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2407 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2410 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2412 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2413 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2414 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2415 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2416 the command to be executed.
2419 @node Foreign Groups
2420 @section Foreign Groups
2421 @cindex foreign groups
2423 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2424 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2425 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2426 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2433 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2434 @cindex making groups
2435 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2436 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2437 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2441 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2442 @cindex renaming groups
2443 Rename the current group to something else
2444 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2445 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2451 @findex gnus-group-customize
2452 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2456 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2457 @cindex renaming groups
2458 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2459 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2463 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2464 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2465 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2469 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2470 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2471 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2475 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2477 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2478 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2483 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2484 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2488 @cindex (ding) archive
2489 @cindex archive group
2490 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2491 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2492 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2493 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2494 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2495 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2496 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2500 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2502 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2503 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2504 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2505 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2509 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2511 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2512 @code{nneething} back end (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2513 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2517 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2518 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2520 Make a group based on some file or other
2521 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2522 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2523 Currently supported types are @code{mbox}, @code{babyl},
2524 @code{digest}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward},
2525 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts},
2526 @code{standard-digest}, @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs},
2527 @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook}, @code{oe-dbx}, and @code{mailman}. If
2528 you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2529 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2533 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2534 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2535 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2536 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2540 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2545 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2546 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2547 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2548 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2549 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
2550 @xref{Web Searches}.
2552 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
2553 to a particular group by using a match string like
2554 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
2557 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2558 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2559 This function will delete the current group
2560 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2561 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2562 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2563 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2564 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2568 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2569 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2570 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2574 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2575 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2576 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2579 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2582 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2583 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2584 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2585 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2586 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2587 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2591 @node Group Parameters
2592 @section Group Parameters
2593 @cindex group parameters
2595 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2596 Here's an example group parameter list:
2599 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2603 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2604 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2605 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2606 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2608 Some parameters have correspondant customizable variables, each of which
2609 is an alist of regexps and values.
2611 The following group parameters can be used:
2616 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2619 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2622 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2623 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2624 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2625 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2626 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2628 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2629 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2630 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2631 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2632 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2633 list address instead.
2635 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-address-alist}.
2639 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2642 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2645 It is totally ignored
2646 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2647 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2649 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2650 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2651 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2652 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2653 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2655 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2656 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2657 sending the message.
2659 @findex gnus-mailing-list-mode
2660 @cindex Mail List Groups
2661 If this variable is set, @code{gnus-mailing-list-mode} is turned on when
2662 entering summary buffer.
2664 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-list-alist}.
2668 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2669 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2670 of whether it has any unread articles.
2672 @item broken-reply-to
2673 @cindex broken-reply-to
2674 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2675 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2676 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2677 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2678 broken behavior. So there!
2682 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2683 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2687 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2688 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2689 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2694 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2695 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2696 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2697 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2698 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2699 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2700 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2704 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2705 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2706 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2708 See also @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups}.
2711 @cindex total-expire
2712 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2713 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2714 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2715 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2718 See also @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups}.
2722 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2723 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2724 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2725 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2726 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2727 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2730 @cindex score file group parameter
2731 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2732 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2733 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2736 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2737 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2738 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2739 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2742 @cindex admin-address
2743 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2744 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2745 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2746 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2750 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2751 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2755 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2758 Display the last INTEGER articles in the group. This is the same as
2759 entering the group with C-u INTEGER.
2762 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2766 Display articles that satisfy a predicate.
2768 Here are some examples:
2772 Display only read articles.
2775 Display everything except expirable articles.
2777 @item [and (not reply) (not expire)]
2778 Display everything except expirable and articles you've already
2782 The available operators are @code{not}, @code{and} and @code{or}.
2783 Predicates include @code{tick}, @code{unsend}, @code{undownload},
2784 @code{read}, @code{dormant}, @code{expire}, @code{reply},
2785 @code{killed}, @code{bookmark}, @code{score}, @code{save},
2786 @code{cache}, @code{forward}, @code{seen} and @code{recent}.
2790 The @code{display} parameter works by limiting the summary buffer to
2791 the subset specified. You can pop the limit by using the @kbd{/ w}
2792 command (@pxref{Limiting}).
2796 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2797 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2798 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2803 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2804 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2805 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2807 See also @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}.
2809 @item ignored-charsets
2810 @cindex ignored-charset
2811 Elements that look like @code{(ignored-charsets x-unknown iso-8859-1)}
2812 will make @code{iso-8859-1} and @code{x-unknown} ignored; that is, the
2813 default charset will be used for decoding articles.
2815 See also @code{gnus-group-ignored-charsets-alist}.
2818 @cindex posting-style
2819 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2820 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2821 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2822 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2823 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2825 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2826 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2827 like this in the group parameters:
2832 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2837 If it is set, the value is used as the method for posting message
2838 instead of @code{gnus-post-method}.
2842 An item like @code{(banner . "regex")} causes any part of an article
2843 that matches the regular expression "regex" to be stripped. Instead of
2844 "regex", you can also use the symbol @code{signature} which strips the
2845 last signature or any of the elements of the alist
2846 @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}.
2850 This parameter contains a Sieve test that should match incoming mail
2851 that should be placed in this group. From this group parameter, a
2852 Sieve @samp{IF} control structure is generated, having the test as the
2853 condition and @samp{fileinto "group.name";} as the body.
2855 For example, if the INBOX.list.sieve group has the @code{(sieve
2856 address "sender" "sieve-admin@@extundo.com")} group parameter, when
2857 translating the group parameter into a Sieve script (@pxref{Sieve
2858 Commands}) the following Sieve code is generated:
2861 if address \"sender\" \"sieve-admin@@extundo.com\" @{
2862 fileinto \"INBOX.list.sieve\";
2866 The Sieve language is described in RFC 3028. @xref{Top, , Top, sieve,
2869 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2870 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2871 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2872 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2873 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2874 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2875 @code{eval}ed there.
2877 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2878 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2879 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2880 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2881 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2885 Use the @kbd{G p} or the @kbd{G c} command to edit group parameters of a
2886 group. (@kbd{G p} presents you with a Lisp-based interface, @kbd{G c}
2887 presents you with a Customize-like interface. The latter helps avoid
2888 silly Lisp errors.) You might also be interested in reading about topic
2889 parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}).
2891 Group parameters can be set via the @code{gnus-parameters} variable too.
2892 But some variables, such as @code{visible}, have no effect. For
2896 (setq gnus-parameters
2898 (gnus-show-threads nil)
2899 (gnus-use-scoring nil)
2900 (gnus-summary-line-format
2901 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%d:%ub%-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
2905 ("^nnimap:\\(foo.bar\\)$"
2909 (gnus-use-scoring t))
2913 (broken-reply-to . t))))
2916 String value of parameters will be subjected to regexp substitution, as
2917 the @code{to-group} example shows.
2920 @node Listing Groups
2921 @section Listing Groups
2922 @cindex group listing
2924 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2932 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2933 List all groups that have unread articles
2934 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2935 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2936 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2937 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2944 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2945 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2946 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2947 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2948 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2949 unsubscribed groups).
2953 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2954 List all unread groups on a specific level
2955 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2956 with no unread articles.
2960 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2961 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2962 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2963 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2968 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2969 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2973 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2974 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2975 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2979 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2980 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2984 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2985 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2986 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2987 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2988 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2989 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2990 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2991 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2995 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2996 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2997 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
3001 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
3002 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
3003 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
3007 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
3008 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
3012 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
3013 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
3017 @findex gnus-group-list-limit
3018 List groups limited within the current selection
3019 (@code{gnus-group-list-limit}).
3023 @findex gnus-group-list-flush
3024 Flush groups from the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-flush}).
3028 @findex gnus-group-list-plus
3029 List groups plus the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-plus}).
3033 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3034 @cindex visible group parameter
3035 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
3036 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
3037 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
3038 get the same effect.
3040 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
3041 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
3042 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
3043 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
3044 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
3047 @node Sorting Groups
3048 @section Sorting Groups
3049 @cindex sorting groups
3051 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
3052 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
3053 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
3054 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
3055 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
3056 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
3061 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3062 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3063 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
3065 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3066 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3067 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
3069 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
3070 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
3071 Sort by group level.
3073 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
3074 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
3075 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
3077 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3078 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3079 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
3080 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
3082 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3083 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3084 Sort by number of unread articles.
3086 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
3087 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
3088 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
3090 @item gnus-group-sort-by-server
3091 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-server
3092 Sort alphabetically on the Gnus server name.
3097 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
3098 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
3102 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
3103 some sorting criteria:
3107 @kindex G S a (Group)
3108 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3109 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
3110 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3113 @kindex G S u (Group)
3114 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
3115 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
3116 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3119 @kindex G S l (Group)
3120 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
3121 Sort the group buffer by group level
3122 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
3125 @kindex G S v (Group)
3126 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
3127 Sort the group buffer by group score
3128 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3131 @kindex G S r (Group)
3132 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
3133 Sort the group buffer by group rank
3134 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3137 @kindex G S m (Group)
3138 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
3139 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by back end name
3140 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
3144 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
3145 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3147 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
3148 commands will sort in reverse order.
3150 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
3154 @kindex G P a (Group)
3155 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
3156 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
3157 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
3160 @kindex G P u (Group)
3161 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
3162 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
3163 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
3166 @kindex G P l (Group)
3167 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
3168 Sort the groups by group level
3169 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
3172 @kindex G P v (Group)
3173 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
3174 Sort the groups by group score
3175 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3178 @kindex G P r (Group)
3179 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
3180 Sort the groups by group rank
3181 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3184 @kindex G P m (Group)
3185 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
3186 Sort the groups alphabetically by back end name
3187 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
3191 And finally, note that you can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} to manually
3195 @node Group Maintenance
3196 @section Group Maintenance
3197 @cindex bogus groups
3202 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
3203 Find bogus groups and delete them
3204 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
3208 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
3209 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
3210 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
3211 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
3212 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
3216 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
3217 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
3218 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
3219 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}). That is, delete
3220 all expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
3221 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3224 @kindex C-c C-M-x (Group)
3225 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3226 Run all expirable articles in all groups through the expiry process
3227 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3232 @node Browse Foreign Server
3233 @section Browse Foreign Server
3234 @cindex foreign servers
3235 @cindex browsing servers
3240 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3241 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3242 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3243 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3246 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3247 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3248 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3249 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3251 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3256 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3257 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3261 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3262 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3265 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3266 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3267 Enter the current group and display the first article
3268 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3271 @kindex RET (Browse)
3272 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3273 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3277 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3278 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3279 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3285 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3286 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3290 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3291 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3292 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3297 @section Exiting Gnus
3298 @cindex exiting Gnus
3300 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
3305 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3306 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
3307 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3308 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3312 @findex gnus-group-exit
3313 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3314 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3318 @findex gnus-group-quit
3319 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3320 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3323 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3324 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3325 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
3326 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
3327 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3332 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
3333 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
3334 trying to customize meta-variables.
3339 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3340 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3341 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3347 @section Group Topics
3350 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3351 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3352 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3353 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3354 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3355 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3359 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3360 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group-topic,height=9cm}}
3371 2: alt.religion.emacs
3374 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3376 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3377 13: comp.sources.unix
3380 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3382 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3383 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3384 is a toggling command.)
3386 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3387 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and
3388 now press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
3389 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
3392 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3393 the hook for the group mode. Put the following line in your
3394 @file{~/.gnus} file:
3397 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3401 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3402 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3403 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3404 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3405 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3409 @node Topic Commands
3410 @subsection Topic Commands
3411 @cindex topic commands
3413 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3414 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3415 definitions slightly.
3417 In general, the following kinds of operations are possible on topics.
3418 First of all, you want to create topics. Secondly, you want to put
3419 groups in topics and to move them around until you have an order you
3420 like. The third kind of operation is to show/hide parts of the whole
3421 shebang. You might want to hide a topic including its subtopics and
3422 groups, to get a better overview of the other groups.
3424 Here is a list of the basic keys that you might need to set up topics
3431 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3432 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3433 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3437 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3439 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3440 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3441 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3442 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3445 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3446 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3447 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3448 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3452 The following two keys can be used to move groups and topics around.
3453 They work like the well-known cut and paste. @kbd{C-k} is like cut and
3454 @kbd{C-y} is like paste. Of course, this being Emacs, we use the terms
3455 kill and yank rather than cut and paste.
3461 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3462 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3463 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3467 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3468 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3469 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3472 So, to move a topic to the beginning of the list of topics, just hit
3473 @kbd{C-k} on it. This is like the `cut' part of cut and paste. Then,
3474 move the cursor to the beginning of the buffer (just below the `Gnus'
3475 topic) and hit @kbd{C-y}. This is like the `paste' part of cut and
3476 paste. Like I said -- E-Z.
3478 You can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} on groups as well as on topics. So
3479 you can move topics around as well as groups.
3483 After setting up the topics the way you like them, you might wish to
3484 hide a topic, or to show it again. That's why we have the following
3491 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3493 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3494 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3495 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3496 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3497 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3498 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3502 Now for a list of other commands, in no particular order.
3508 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3509 Move the current group to some other topic
3510 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3511 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3515 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3516 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3520 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3521 Copy the current group to some other topic
3522 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3523 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3527 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3528 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3529 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3533 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3534 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3535 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3539 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3540 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3541 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3542 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3543 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3544 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3545 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3548 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3549 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3553 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3554 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3555 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3559 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3560 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3561 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3565 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3566 Toggle hiding empty topics
3567 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3571 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3572 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3573 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
3576 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3577 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3578 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3579 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
3582 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3583 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3584 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the
3585 expiry process (if any)
3586 (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}). (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3590 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3591 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3594 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3595 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3596 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3600 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3601 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3602 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3605 @kindex T M-n (Topic)
3606 @findex gnus-topic-goto-next-topic
3607 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-next-topic}).
3610 @kindex T M-p (Topic)
3611 @findex gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic
3612 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic}).
3616 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3617 @cindex group parameters
3618 @cindex topic parameters
3620 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3621 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3626 @node Topic Variables
3627 @subsection Topic Variables
3628 @cindex topic variables
3630 The previous section told you how to tell Gnus which topics to display.
3631 This section explains how to tell Gnus what to display about each topic.
3633 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3634 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3635 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3648 Number of groups in the topic.
3650 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3652 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3655 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3656 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3657 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3660 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3661 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3663 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3664 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3665 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3669 @subsection Topic Sorting
3670 @cindex topic sorting
3672 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3678 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3679 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3680 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3681 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3684 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3685 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3686 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3687 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3690 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3691 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3692 Sort the current topic by group level
3693 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3696 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3697 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3698 Sort the current topic by group score
3699 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3702 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3703 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3704 Sort the current topic by group rank
3705 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3708 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3709 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3710 Sort the current topic alphabetically by back end name
3711 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3714 @kindex T S e (Topic)
3715 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server
3716 Sort the current topic alphabetically by server name
3717 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server}).
3721 @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group sorting.
3724 @node Topic Topology
3725 @subsection Topic Topology
3726 @cindex topic topology
3729 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3735 2: alt.religion.emacs
3738 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3740 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3741 13: comp.sources.unix
3744 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3745 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3746 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3751 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3752 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3756 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3757 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3758 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3759 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3760 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3761 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3763 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3764 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3765 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3768 @node Topic Parameters
3769 @subsection Topic Parameters
3770 @cindex topic parameters
3772 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3773 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3774 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3776 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3781 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3782 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3783 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3786 @item subscribe-level
3787 When subscribing new groups by topic (see the @code{subscribe} parameter),
3788 the group will be subscribed with the level specified in the
3789 @code{subscribe-level} instead of @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}.
3793 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3794 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3795 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3796 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3802 2: alt.religion.emacs
3806 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3808 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3809 13: comp.sources.unix
3813 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3814 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3815 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3816 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3817 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3818 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3820 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3821 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3822 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3823 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3824 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3826 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3827 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3828 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3829 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3830 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3831 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3832 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3833 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3836 @node Misc Group Stuff
3837 @section Misc Group Stuff
3840 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3841 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
3842 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3843 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3844 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
3851 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3852 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3853 @xref{Server Buffer}.
3857 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3858 Start composing a message (a news by default)
3859 (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a prefix, post to the group
3860 under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
3861 Contrary to what the name of this function suggests, the prepared
3862 article might be a mail instead of a news, if a mail group is specified
3863 with the prefix argument. @xref{Composing Messages}.
3867 @findex gnus-group-mail
3868 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}). If given a prefix,
3869 use the posting style of the group under the point. If the prefix is 1,
3870 prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
3871 @xref{Composing Messages}.
3875 @findex gnus-group-news
3876 Start composing a news (@code{gnus-group-news}). If given a prefix,
3877 post to the group under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt
3878 for group to post to. @xref{Composing Messages}.
3880 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
3881 This is useful for "posting" messages to mail groups without actually
3882 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
3883 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
3884 for this to work though.
3888 Variables for the group buffer:
3892 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3893 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3894 is called after the group buffer has been
3897 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3898 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3899 is called after the group buffer is
3900 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3903 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3904 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3905 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3906 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3908 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3909 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3910 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3911 whether they are empty or not.
3913 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3914 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3915 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
3916 non-ASCII group names.
3920 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3921 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
3924 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3925 @cindex UTF-8 group names
3926 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3927 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names. It
3928 is used to show non-ASCII group names. @code{((".*" utf-8))} is the
3929 default value if UTF-8 is supported, otherwise the default is nil.
3933 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3934 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
3939 @node Scanning New Messages
3940 @subsection Scanning New Messages
3941 @cindex new messages
3942 @cindex scanning new news
3948 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
3949 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
3950 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
3951 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
3952 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
3953 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
3958 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
3959 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
3960 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
3961 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
3962 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
3963 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
3964 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
3966 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
3967 @cindex activating groups
3969 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
3970 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
3975 @findex gnus-group-restart
3976 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
3977 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
3978 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
3982 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3983 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3985 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3986 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3990 @node Group Information
3991 @subsection Group Information
3992 @cindex group information
3993 @cindex information on groups
4000 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
4001 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
4004 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
4005 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
4006 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
4007 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
4008 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
4009 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
4010 for fetching the file.
4012 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
4013 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
4017 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
4019 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
4020 @cindex describing groups
4021 @cindex group description
4022 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
4023 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
4024 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
4028 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
4029 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
4030 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
4037 @findex gnus-version
4038 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
4042 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
4043 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
4046 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
4049 @findex gnus-info-find-node
4050 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
4054 @node Group Timestamp
4055 @subsection Group Timestamp
4057 @cindex group timestamps
4059 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
4060 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
4061 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
4064 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
4067 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
4069 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
4070 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
4073 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4074 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
4077 This will result in lines looking like:
4080 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
4081 0: custom 19961002T012713
4084 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
4085 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
4089 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4090 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
4093 If you would like greater control of the time format, you can use a
4094 user-defined format spec. Something like the following should do the
4098 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4099 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %Ud\n")
4100 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
4101 (let ((time (gnus-group-timestamp gnus-tmp-group)))
4102 (format-time-string "%b %d %H:%M" time)))
4107 @subsection File Commands
4108 @cindex file commands
4114 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
4115 @vindex gnus-init-file
4116 @cindex reading init file
4117 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
4118 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
4122 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
4123 @cindex saving .newsrc
4124 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
4125 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
4126 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
4129 @c @kindex Z (Group)
4130 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
4131 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
4136 @node Sieve Commands
4137 @subsection Sieve Commands
4138 @cindex group sieve commands
4140 Sieve is a server-side mail filtering language. In Gnus you can use
4141 the @code{sieve} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to specify
4142 sieve rules that should apply to each group. Gnus provides two
4143 commands to translate all these group parameters into a proper Sieve
4144 script that can be transfered to the server somehow.
4146 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4147 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-start
4148 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-end
4149 The generated Sieve script is placed in @code{gnus-sieve-file} (by
4150 default @file{~/.sieve}). The Sieve code that Gnus generate is placed
4151 between two delimiters, @code{gnus-sieve-region-start} and
4152 @code{gnus-sieve-region-end}, so you may write additional Sieve code
4153 outside these delimiters that will not be removed the next time you
4154 regenerate the Sieve script.
4156 @vindex gnus-sieve-crosspost
4157 The variable @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} controls how the Sieve script
4158 is generated. If it is non-nil (the default) articles is placed in
4159 all groups that have matching rules, otherwise the article is only
4160 placed in the group with the first matching rule. For example, the
4161 group parameter @samp{(sieve address "sender"
4162 "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu")} will generate the following piece of Sieve
4163 code if @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is nil. (When
4164 @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is non-nil, it looks the same except that
4165 the line containing the call to @code{stop} is removed.)
4168 if address "sender" "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu" @{
4169 fileinto "INBOX.ding";
4174 @xref{Top, ,Top, sieve, Emacs Sieve}.
4180 @findex gnus-sieve-generate
4181 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4182 @cindex generating sieve script
4183 Regenerate a Sieve script from the @code{sieve} group parameters and
4184 put you into the @code{gnus-sieve-file} without saving it.
4188 @findex gnus-sieve-update
4189 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4190 @cindex updating sieve script
4191 Regenerates the Gnus managed part of @code{gnus-sieve-file} using the
4192 @code{sieve} group parameters, save the file and upload it to the
4193 server using the @code{sieveshell} program.
4198 @node Summary Buffer
4199 @chapter Summary Buffer
4200 @cindex summary buffer
4202 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
4203 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
4205 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
4206 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
4208 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
4211 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
4212 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
4213 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
4214 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
4215 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
4216 * Delayed Articles::
4217 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
4218 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
4219 * Threading:: How threads are made.
4220 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
4221 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
4222 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
4223 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
4224 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
4225 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
4226 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
4227 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
4228 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
4229 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
4230 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
4231 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
4232 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
4233 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
4234 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
4235 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
4236 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
4237 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
4238 or reselecting the current group.
4239 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
4240 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
4241 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
4242 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
4246 @node Summary Buffer Format
4247 @section Summary Buffer Format
4248 @cindex summary buffer format
4252 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
4253 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary,width=7.5cm}}
4254 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-article,width=7.5cm}}}
4260 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
4261 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
4262 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
4263 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
4266 @findex mail-extract-address-components
4267 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
4268 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
4269 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
4270 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
4271 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
4272 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
4273 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
4274 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
4275 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
4276 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead:
4279 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
4280 'mail-extract-address-components)
4283 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
4284 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
4285 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
4286 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
4289 @node Summary Buffer Lines
4290 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
4292 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4293 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
4294 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
4295 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
4296 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
4298 There should always be a colon or a point position marker on the line;
4299 the cursor always moves to the point position marker or the colon after
4300 performing an operation. (Of course, Gnus wouldn't be Gnus if it wasn't
4301 possible to change this. Just write a new function
4302 @code{gnus-goto-colon} which does whatever you like with the cursor.)
4303 @xref{Positioning Point}.
4305 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%) %s\n}.
4307 The following format specification characters and extended format
4308 specification(s) are understood:
4314 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
4315 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
4317 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
4318 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
4319 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
4321 Full @code{From} header.
4323 The name (from the @code{From} header).
4325 The name, code @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header
4326 (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
4328 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
4329 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
4330 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
4331 may be more thorough.
4333 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
4336 Number of lines in the article.
4338 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported
4339 in some methods (like nnfolder).
4341 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4343 A complex trn-style thread tree, showing response-connecting trace
4346 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
4347 pushes everything after it off the screen).
4349 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
4350 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4352 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
4353 for adopted articles.
4355 One space for each thread level.
4357 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
4359 Unread. @xref{Read Articles}.
4362 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
4363 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
4364 or has been saved. @xref{Other Marks}.
4367 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
4369 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
4370 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
4371 default level. If the difference between
4372 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
4373 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
4381 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
4383 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
4389 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
4390 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
4392 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
4393 article has any children.
4399 Age sensitive date format. Various date format is defined in
4400 @code{gnus-user-date-format-alist}.
4402 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4403 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4404 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4405 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4406 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4407 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4410 Text between @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} will be highlighted with
4411 @code{gnus-mouse-face} when the mouse point is placed inside the area.
4412 There can only be one such area.
4414 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4415 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
4416 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4417 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4418 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4419 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4421 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4422 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4424 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
4427 @node To From Newsgroups
4428 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4432 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4433 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4434 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4435 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4436 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4440 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4441 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4442 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4446 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4447 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4450 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4451 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4454 @findex gnus-extra-header
4455 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4456 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4457 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4460 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4464 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4465 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4466 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4467 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4468 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4469 headers are used instead.
4473 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4474 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4475 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
4476 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
4479 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4480 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4481 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4482 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4484 In summary, you'd typically put something like the following in
4488 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4490 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4491 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4492 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
4493 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4497 (The values listed above are the default values in Gnus. Alter them
4500 Now, this is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4501 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4508 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4509 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4512 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4513 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4515 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4516 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4517 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4518 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4520 Here are the elements you can play with:
4526 Unprefixed group name.
4528 Current article number.
4530 Current article score.
4534 Number of unread articles in this group.
4536 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4539 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4540 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4541 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4542 and no unselected ones.
4544 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4545 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4547 Subject of the current article.
4549 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4551 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4553 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4555 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4557 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4559 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4563 @node Summary Highlighting
4564 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4568 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4569 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4570 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4571 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4572 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4574 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4575 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4576 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4577 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4579 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4580 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4581 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4582 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4584 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4585 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4586 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4587 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4588 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4589 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4592 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4593 ((> score default) . bold))
4595 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4596 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4600 @node Summary Maneuvering
4601 @section Summary Maneuvering
4602 @cindex summary movement
4604 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4605 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4607 None of these commands select articles.
4612 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4613 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4614 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4615 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4616 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4620 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4621 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4622 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4623 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4624 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4627 @kindex G g (Summary)
4628 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4629 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4630 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4633 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4634 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4635 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4636 to the group buffer.
4638 Variables related to summary movement:
4642 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4643 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4644 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4645 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
4646 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4647 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4648 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
4649 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
4650 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
4651 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
4652 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
4653 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
4654 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
4655 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
4657 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4658 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4659 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4660 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4661 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4662 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4663 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4665 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4667 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4668 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4669 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4670 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4671 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4673 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4674 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4675 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4676 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4677 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4678 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4679 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4680 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4683 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4684 the given number of lines from the top.
4689 @node Choosing Articles
4690 @section Choosing Articles
4691 @cindex selecting articles
4694 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4695 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4699 @node Choosing Commands
4700 @subsection Choosing Commands
4702 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4703 and they all select and display an article.
4705 If you want to fetch new articles or redisplay the group, see
4706 @ref{Exiting the Summary Buffer}.
4710 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4711 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4712 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4713 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4718 @kindex G n (Summary)
4719 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4720 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4721 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4726 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4727 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4728 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4733 @kindex G N (Summary)
4734 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4735 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4740 @kindex G P (Summary)
4741 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4742 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4745 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4746 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4747 Go to the next article with the same subject
4748 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4751 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4752 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4753 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4754 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4758 @kindex G f (Summary)
4760 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4761 Go to the first unread article
4762 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
4766 @kindex G b (Summary)
4768 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
4769 Go to the unread article with the highest score
4770 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}). If given a prefix argument,
4771 go to the first unread article that has a score over the default score.
4776 @kindex G l (Summary)
4777 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
4778 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
4781 @kindex G o (Summary)
4782 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
4784 @cindex article history
4785 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
4786 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
4787 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
4788 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
4789 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
4790 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
4795 @kindex G j (Summary)
4796 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
4797 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
4798 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
4803 @node Choosing Variables
4804 @subsection Choosing Variables
4806 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
4809 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4810 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4811 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
4812 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
4813 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
4814 the server and display it in the article buffer.
4816 @item gnus-select-article-hook
4817 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
4818 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
4819 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
4821 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
4822 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
4823 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
4824 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
4825 @findex gnus-unread-mark
4826 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
4827 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
4828 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
4829 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
4830 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
4831 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
4832 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
4833 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
4834 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
4839 @node Paging the Article
4840 @section Scrolling the Article
4841 @cindex article scrolling
4846 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4847 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4848 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
4849 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
4850 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4853 @kindex DEL (Summary)
4854 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
4855 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
4858 @kindex RET (Summary)
4859 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
4860 Scroll the current article one line forward
4861 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
4864 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
4865 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
4866 Scroll the current article one line backward
4867 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
4871 @kindex A g (Summary)
4873 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
4874 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4875 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
4876 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
4877 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
4878 the way it came from the server.
4880 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
4881 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
4882 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
4885 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4890 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
4895 @kindex A < (Summary)
4896 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
4897 Scroll to the beginning of the article
4898 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
4903 @kindex A > (Summary)
4904 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
4905 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
4909 @kindex A s (Summary)
4911 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
4912 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
4913 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
4917 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
4918 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
4923 @node Reply Followup and Post
4924 @section Reply, Followup and Post
4927 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
4928 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
4929 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
4930 * Canceling and Superseding::
4934 @node Summary Mail Commands
4935 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
4937 @cindex composing mail
4939 Commands for composing a mail message:
4945 @kindex S r (Summary)
4947 @findex gnus-summary-reply
4948 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
4949 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
4950 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
4951 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
4956 @kindex S R (Summary)
4957 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
4958 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
4959 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
4960 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
4961 command uses the process/prefix convention.
4964 @kindex S w (Summary)
4965 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
4966 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
4967 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
4968 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4969 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
4972 @kindex S W (Summary)
4973 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
4974 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
4975 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
4976 the process/prefix convention.
4979 @kindex S v (Summary)
4980 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply
4981 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article
4982 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{very wide reply} is a reply
4983 that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4984 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers in all the process/prefixed
4985 articles. This command uses the process/prefix convention.
4989 @kindex S o m (Summary)
4990 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
4991 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
4992 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
4993 Forward the current article to some other person
4994 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If no prefix is given, the message
4995 is forwarded according to the value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime})
4996 and (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
4997 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
4998 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
4999 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
5000 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
5001 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
5002 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
5007 @kindex S m (Summary)
5008 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
5009 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
5010 Prepare a mail (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}). By default, use
5011 the posting style of the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5012 If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
5017 @kindex S i (Summary)
5018 @findex gnus-summary-news-other-window
5019 Prepare a news (@code{gnus-summary-news-other-window}). By default,
5020 post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that. If the
5021 prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
5023 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
5024 This is useful for "posting" messages to mail groups without actually
5025 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
5026 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
5027 for this to work though.
5030 @kindex S D b (Summary)
5031 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
5032 @cindex bouncing mail
5033 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
5034 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
5035 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
5036 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
5037 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
5038 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
5039 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
5040 very well fail, though.
5043 @kindex S D r (Summary)
5044 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
5045 Not to be confused with the previous command,
5046 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
5047 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
5048 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
5049 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
5050 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
5051 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
5052 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
5054 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
5055 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
5056 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
5057 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
5058 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
5060 This command understands the process/prefix convention
5061 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5064 @kindex S O m (Summary)
5065 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
5066 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
5067 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
5068 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5071 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
5072 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
5073 @cindex crossposting
5074 @cindex excessive crossposting
5075 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
5076 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
5078 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
5079 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
5080 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
5081 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
5082 command understands the process/prefix convention
5083 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
5087 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5088 Manual}, for more information.
5091 @node Summary Post Commands
5092 @subsection Summary Post Commands
5094 @cindex composing news
5096 Commands for posting a news article:
5102 @kindex S p (Summary)
5103 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
5104 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
5105 Prepare for posting an article (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}). By
5106 default, post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5107 If the prefix is 1, prompt for another group instead.
5112 @kindex S f (Summary)
5113 @findex gnus-summary-followup
5114 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
5115 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
5119 @kindex S F (Summary)
5121 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
5122 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
5123 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
5124 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
5125 process/prefix convention.
5128 @kindex S n (Summary)
5129 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
5130 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5131 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
5134 @kindex S N (Summary)
5135 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
5136 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5137 message through mail and include the original message
5138 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
5139 the process/prefix convention.
5142 @kindex S o p (Summary)
5143 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
5144 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
5145 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}).
5146 If no prefix is given, the message is forwarded according to the value
5147 of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}) and
5148 (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
5149 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
5150 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
5151 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
5152 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
5153 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
5154 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
5157 @kindex S O p (Summary)
5158 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
5160 @cindex making digests
5161 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
5162 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
5163 process/prefix convention.
5166 @kindex S u (Summary)
5167 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
5168 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
5169 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
5170 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
5173 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5174 Manual}, for more information.
5177 @node Summary Message Commands
5178 @subsection Summary Message Commands
5182 @kindex S y (Summary)
5183 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
5184 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
5185 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
5186 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
5187 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5192 @node Canceling and Superseding
5193 @subsection Canceling Articles
5194 @cindex canceling articles
5195 @cindex superseding articles
5197 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
5198 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
5200 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
5202 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
5204 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
5205 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
5206 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
5207 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
5208 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
5209 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5211 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
5212 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
5215 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
5216 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
5217 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
5219 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
5220 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
5221 your original article.
5223 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
5225 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
5226 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
5227 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
5230 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
5231 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
5232 have posted almost the same article twice.
5234 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
5235 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
5236 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
5237 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
5238 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
5239 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
5240 header by substituting one of those words for the word
5241 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
5242 you would do normally. The previous article will be
5243 canceled/superseded.
5245 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
5247 @node Delayed Articles
5248 @section Delayed Articles
5249 @cindex delayed sending
5250 @cindex send delayed
5252 Sometimes, you might wish to delay the sending of a message. For
5253 example, you might wish to arrange for a message to turn up just in time
5254 to remind your about the birthday of your Significant Other. For this,
5255 there is the @code{gnus-delay} package. Setup is simple:
5258 (gnus-delay-initialize)
5261 @findex gnus-delay-article
5262 Normally, to send a message you use the @kbd{C-c C-c} command from
5263 Message mode. To delay a message, use @kbd{C-c C-j}
5264 (@code{gnus-delay-article}) instead. This will ask you for how long the
5265 message should be delayed. Possible answers are:
5269 A time span. Consists of an integer and a letter. For example,
5270 @code{42d} means to delay for 42 days. Available letters are @code{m}
5271 (minutes), @code{h} (hours), @code{d} (days), @code{w} (weeks), @code{M}
5272 (months) and @code{Y} (years).
5275 A specific date. Looks like @code{YYYYY-MM-DD}. The message will be
5276 delayed until that day, at a specific time (eight o'clock by default).
5277 See also @code{gnus-delay-default-hour}.
5280 A specific time of day. Given in @code{hh:mm} format, 24h, no am/pm
5281 stuff. The deadline will be at that time today, except if that time has
5282 already passed, then it's at the given time tomorrow. So if it's ten
5283 o'clock in the morning and you specify @code{11:15}, then the deadline
5284 is one hour and fifteen minutes hence. But if you specify @code{9:20},
5285 that means a time tomorrow.
5288 The action of the @code{gnus-delay-article} command is influenced by a
5289 couple of variables:
5292 @item gnus-delay-default-hour
5293 @vindex gnus-delay-default-hour
5294 When you specify a specific date, the message will be due on that hour
5295 on the given date. Possible values are integers 0 through 23.
5297 @item gnus-delay-default-delay
5298 @vindex gnus-delay-default-delay
5299 This is a string and gives the default delay. It can be of any of the
5300 formats described above.
5302 @item gnus-delay-group
5303 @vindex gnus-delay-group
5304 Delayed articles will be kept in this group on the drafts server until
5305 they are due. You probably don't need to change this. The default
5306 value is @code{"delayed"}.
5308 @item gnus-delay-header
5309 @vindex gnus-delay-header
5310 The deadline for each article will be stored in a header. This variable
5311 is a string and gives the header name. You probably don't need to
5312 change this. The default value is @code{"X-Gnus-Delayed"}.
5315 The way delaying works is like this: when you use the
5316 @code{gnus-delay-article} command, you give a certain delay. Gnus
5317 calculates the deadline of the message and stores it in the
5318 @code{X-Gnus-Delayed} header and puts the message in the
5319 @code{nndraft:delayed} group.
5321 And whenever you get new news, Gnus looks through the group for articles
5322 which are due and sends them. It uses the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue}
5323 function for this. By default, this function is added to the hook
5324 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But of course, you can change this.
5325 Maybe you want to use the demon to send drafts? Just tell the demon to
5326 execute the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} function.
5329 @item gnus-delay-initialize
5330 @findex gnus-delay-initialize
5331 By default, this function installs the @kbd{C-c C-j} key binding in
5332 Message mode and @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} in
5333 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But it accepts two optional arguments,
5334 @code{no-keymap} and @code{no-check}. If @code{no-keymap} is non-nil,
5335 the @kbd{C-c C-j} binding is not intalled. If @code{no-check} is
5336 non-nil, @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is not changed.
5338 For example, @code{(gnus-delay-initialize nil t)} means to change the
5339 keymap but not to change @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. Presumably, you
5340 want to use the demon for sending due delayed articles. Just don't
5341 forget to set that up :-)
5345 @node Marking Articles
5346 @section Marking Articles
5347 @cindex article marking
5348 @cindex article ticking
5351 There are several marks you can set on an article.
5353 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
5354 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
5355 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
5357 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
5360 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
5361 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
5362 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
5366 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
5370 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
5371 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
5372 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
5376 @node Unread Articles
5377 @subsection Unread Articles
5379 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
5384 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
5385 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
5387 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
5388 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
5389 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
5390 tick it. However, articles can be expired (from news servers by the
5391 news server software, Gnus itself never expires ticked messages), so if
5392 you want to keep an article forever, you'll have to make it persistent
5393 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
5396 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
5397 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
5399 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
5400 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
5401 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
5402 Otherwise (except for the visibility issue), they are just like ticked
5406 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
5407 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
5409 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
5414 @subsection Read Articles
5415 @cindex expirable mark
5417 All the following marks mark articles as read.
5422 @vindex gnus-del-mark
5423 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
5424 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
5427 @vindex gnus-read-mark
5428 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
5431 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
5432 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
5433 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
5436 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
5437 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
5440 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
5441 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
5444 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
5445 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
5448 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
5449 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
5452 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
5453 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
5456 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
5457 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
5460 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
5461 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
5465 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
5466 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
5467 (@code{gnus-duplicate-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
5471 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
5472 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
5474 One more special mark, though:
5478 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
5479 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
5481 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
5482 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
5483 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
5484 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
5490 @subsection Other Marks
5491 @cindex process mark
5494 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
5500 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
5501 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
5502 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
5503 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
5504 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
5507 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
5508 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
5509 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
5510 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
5512 @vindex gnus-forwarded-mark
5513 All articles that you have forwarded will be marked with an @samp{F} in
5514 the second column (@code{gnus-forwarded-mark}).
5516 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5517 Articles that are ``recently'' arrived in the group will be marked
5518 with an @samp{N} in the second column (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Most
5519 back end doesn't support the mark, in which case it's not shown.
5522 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
5523 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
5524 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5527 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
5528 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
5529 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
5530 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
5533 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5534 Articles that according to the back end haven't been seen by the user
5535 before are marked with a @samp{N} in the second column
5536 (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Note that not all back ends support this
5537 mark, in which case it simply never appear.
5540 @vindex gnus-unseen-mark
5541 Articles that haven't been seen by the user before are marked with a
5542 @samp{.} in the second column (@code{gnus-unseen-mark}).
5545 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
5546 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
5547 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
5548 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
5549 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
5552 @vindex gnus-process-mark
5553 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
5554 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
5555 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
5556 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
5557 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
5561 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
5562 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
5563 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
5565 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
5566 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
5567 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
5571 @subsection Setting Marks
5572 @cindex setting marks
5574 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
5579 @kindex M c (Summary)
5580 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5581 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5582 @cindex mark as unread
5583 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5584 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5590 @kindex M t (Summary)
5591 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5592 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5593 @xref{Article Caching}.
5598 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5599 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5600 Mark the current article as dormant
5601 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5605 @kindex M d (Summary)
5607 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5608 Mark the current article as read
5609 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5613 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5614 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5615 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5620 @kindex M k (Summary)
5621 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5622 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5623 and then select the next unread article
5624 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5628 @kindex M K (Summary)
5629 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5630 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5631 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5632 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5635 @kindex M C (Summary)
5636 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5637 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5638 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5641 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5642 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5643 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5644 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5647 @kindex M H (Summary)
5648 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5649 Catchup the current group to point (before the point)
5650 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5653 @kindex M h (Summary)
5654 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-from-here
5655 Catchup the current group from point (after the point)
5656 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-from-here}).
5659 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5660 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5661 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5662 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5665 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5666 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5667 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5668 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5672 @kindex M e (Summary)
5674 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5675 Mark the current article as expirable
5676 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5679 @kindex M b (Summary)
5680 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5681 Set a bookmark in the current article
5682 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5685 @kindex M B (Summary)
5686 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5687 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5688 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5691 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5692 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5693 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5694 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5697 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5698 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5699 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5700 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5703 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5704 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5705 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5706 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5707 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5710 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
5711 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
5712 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
5713 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
5714 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
5715 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
5716 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
5717 The default is @code{t}.
5720 @node Generic Marking Commands
5721 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
5723 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
5724 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
5725 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
5726 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
5727 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
5730 Multiply these five behaviors with five different marking commands, and
5731 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
5734 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
5735 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
5736 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
5737 to list in this manual.
5739 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
5740 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
5741 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
5742 article, you could say something like:
5745 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
5746 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5747 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
5753 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5754 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
5758 @node Setting Process Marks
5759 @subsection Setting Process Marks
5760 @cindex setting process marks
5767 @kindex M P p (Summary)
5768 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
5769 Mark the current article with the process mark
5770 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
5771 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
5775 @kindex M P u (Summary)
5776 @kindex M-# (Summary)
5777 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
5778 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
5781 @kindex M P U (Summary)
5782 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
5783 Remove the process mark from all articles
5784 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
5787 @kindex M P i (Summary)
5788 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
5789 Invert the list of process marked articles
5790 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
5793 @kindex M P R (Summary)
5794 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
5795 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5796 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
5799 @kindex M P G (Summary)
5800 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
5801 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5802 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
5805 @kindex M P r (Summary)
5806 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
5807 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
5810 @kindex M P t (Summary)
5811 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5812 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5813 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5816 @kindex M P T (Summary)
5817 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5818 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5819 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5822 @kindex M P v (Summary)
5823 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
5824 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
5825 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
5828 @kindex M P s (Summary)
5829 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
5830 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5833 @kindex M P S (Summary)
5834 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
5835 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
5836 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
5839 @kindex M P a (Summary)
5840 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
5841 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5844 @kindex M P b (Summary)
5845 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
5846 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
5847 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
5850 @kindex M P k (Summary)
5851 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
5852 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
5853 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
5856 @kindex M P y (Summary)
5857 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
5858 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
5859 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
5862 @kindex M P w (Summary)
5863 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
5864 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
5865 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
5869 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
5870 set process marks based on article body contents.
5877 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
5878 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
5879 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
5882 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
5883 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
5884 additional articles.
5890 @kindex / / (Summary)
5891 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
5892 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
5893 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}). If given a prefix, exclude
5897 @kindex / a (Summary)
5898 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
5899 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
5900 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}). If given a prefix, exclude
5904 @kindex / x (Summary)
5905 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
5906 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
5907 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
5908 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}). If given a prefix, exclude
5913 @kindex / u (Summary)
5915 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
5916 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
5917 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
5918 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
5919 dormant articles will also be excluded.
5922 @kindex / m (Summary)
5923 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
5924 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
5925 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
5928 @kindex / t (Summary)
5929 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
5930 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
5931 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
5932 articles younger than that number of days.
5935 @kindex / n (Summary)
5936 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
5937 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
5938 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
5939 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5942 @kindex / w (Summary)
5943 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
5944 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
5945 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
5949 @kindex / v (Summary)
5950 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
5951 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
5952 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
5955 @kindex / p (Summary)
5956 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-display-parameter
5957 Limit the summary buffer to articles that satisfy the @code{display}
5958 group parameter predicate
5959 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-display-parameter}). See @pxref{Group
5960 Parameters} for more on this predicate.
5964 @kindex M S (Summary)
5965 @kindex / E (Summary)
5966 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
5967 Include all expunged articles in the limit
5968 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
5971 @kindex / D (Summary)
5972 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
5973 Include all dormant articles in the limit
5974 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
5977 @kindex / * (Summary)
5978 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
5979 Include all cached articles in the limit
5980 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
5983 @kindex / d (Summary)
5984 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
5985 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
5986 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
5989 @kindex / M (Summary)
5990 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
5991 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
5994 @kindex / T (Summary)
5995 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
5996 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
5999 @kindex / c (Summary)
6000 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
6001 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
6002 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
6005 @kindex / C (Summary)
6006 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
6007 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
6008 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
6009 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
6012 @kindex / N (Summary)
6013 @findex gnus-summary-insert-new-articles
6014 Insert all new articles in the summary buffer. It scans for new emails
6015 if @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} is non-@code{nil}.
6018 @kindex / o (Summary)
6019 @findex gnus-summary-insert-old-articles
6020 Insert all old articles in the summary buffer. If given a numbered
6021 prefix, fetch this number of articles.
6029 @cindex article threading
6031 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
6032 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
6033 hierarchical fashion.
6035 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
6036 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
6037 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
6038 or simply missing. Weird news propagation exacerbates the problem,
6039 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
6040 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
6041 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
6043 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
6047 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
6050 A tree-like article structure.
6053 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
6056 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
6057 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
6058 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
6059 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
6060 called loose threads.
6062 @item thread gathering
6063 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
6065 @item sparse threads
6066 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
6067 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
6073 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
6074 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
6078 @node Customizing Threading
6079 @subsection Customizing Threading
6080 @cindex customizing threading
6083 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
6084 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
6085 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
6086 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
6091 @subsubsection Loose Threads
6094 @cindex loose threads
6097 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
6098 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
6099 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
6100 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
6101 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
6102 read or killed the root in a previous session.
6104 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
6105 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
6106 There are four possible values:
6110 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
6111 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-adopt,width=7.5cm}}
6112 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-empty,width=7.5cm}}}
6113 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-none,width=7.5cm}}}
6114 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-dummy,width=7.5cm}}}
6119 @cindex adopting articles
6124 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
6125 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
6126 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
6127 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
6130 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
6131 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
6132 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
6133 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
6134 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
6135 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
6136 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
6139 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
6140 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
6141 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
6145 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
6146 display them after one another.
6149 Don't gather loose threads.
6152 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6153 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6154 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
6155 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
6156 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
6157 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
6158 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
6159 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
6160 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
6161 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
6162 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
6164 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
6165 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
6166 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
6169 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6170 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6171 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
6172 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
6173 simplification is used.
6175 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6176 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6177 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
6178 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
6180 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
6182 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6188 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
6189 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
6190 "answer" "reference" "announce"
6191 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
6196 (mapconcat 'identity
6197 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
6199 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
6202 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
6205 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6206 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6207 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
6208 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
6209 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
6210 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
6212 Useful functions to put in this list include:
6215 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
6216 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
6217 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
6219 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6220 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6223 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
6224 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
6225 Remove excessive whitespace.
6228 You may also write your own functions, of course.
6231 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6232 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6233 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
6234 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
6235 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
6236 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
6237 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
6238 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
6240 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6241 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6242 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
6243 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
6244 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
6245 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
6246 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
6247 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
6248 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
6252 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6253 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6254 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
6255 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
6257 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6258 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6259 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
6262 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
6266 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6267 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
6273 @node Filling In Threads
6274 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
6277 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
6278 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
6279 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
6280 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
6281 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
6282 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
6283 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
6284 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
6285 fetching old headers only works if the back end you are using carries
6286 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
6287 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
6288 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
6290 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
6291 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
6292 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
6294 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
6295 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
6296 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
6297 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
6298 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
6299 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
6300 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
6301 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
6302 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
6303 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
6304 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
6305 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
6306 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
6307 @code{nil} by default.
6309 @item gnus-read-all-available-headers
6310 @vindex gnus-read-all-available-headers
6311 This is a rather obscure variable that few will find useful. It's
6312 intended for those non-news newsgroups where the back end has to fetch
6313 quite a lot to present the summary buffer, and where it's impossible to
6314 go back to parents of articles. This is mostly the case in the
6315 web-based groups, like the @code{nnultimate} groups.
6317 If you don't use those, then it's safe to leave this as the default
6318 @code{nil}. If you want to use this variable, it should be a regexp
6319 that matches the group name, or @code{t} for all groups.
6324 @node More Threading
6325 @subsubsection More Threading
6328 @item gnus-show-threads
6329 @vindex gnus-show-threads
6330 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
6331 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
6332 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
6333 slower and more awkward.
6335 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6336 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6337 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
6340 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
6341 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
6342 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
6343 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
6344 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
6345 threads are expunged.
6347 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
6348 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
6349 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
6352 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6353 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6354 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
6355 this variable is non-@code{nil}, which is the default, the subject
6356 change is ignored. If it is @code{nil}, a change in the subject will
6357 result in a new thread.
6359 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
6360 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
6361 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
6364 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6365 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6366 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
6367 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
6368 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
6369 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
6370 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
6371 Setting this variable to an alternate value
6372 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
6373 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
6374 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
6379 @node Low-Level Threading
6380 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
6384 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
6385 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
6386 Hook run before parsing any headers.
6388 @item gnus-alter-header-function
6389 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
6390 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
6391 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
6392 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
6393 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
6394 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
6395 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
6396 meaningful. Here's one example:
6399 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
6401 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
6402 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
6404 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
6406 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
6413 @node Thread Commands
6414 @subsection Thread Commands
6415 @cindex thread commands
6421 @kindex T k (Summary)
6422 @kindex C-M-k (Summary)
6423 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
6424 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
6425 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
6426 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
6431 @kindex T l (Summary)
6432 @kindex C-M-l (Summary)
6433 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
6434 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
6435 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
6438 @kindex T i (Summary)
6439 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
6440 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
6441 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
6444 @kindex T # (Summary)
6445 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6446 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
6447 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6450 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
6451 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6452 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
6453 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6456 @kindex T T (Summary)
6457 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
6458 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
6461 @kindex T s (Summary)
6462 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
6463 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
6464 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
6467 @kindex T h (Summary)
6468 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
6469 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
6472 @kindex T S (Summary)
6473 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
6474 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
6477 @kindex T H (Summary)
6478 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
6479 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
6482 @kindex T t (Summary)
6483 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
6484 Re-thread the current article's thread
6485 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
6486 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
6489 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
6490 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
6491 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
6492 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
6496 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
6497 understand the numeric prefix.
6502 @kindex T n (Summary)
6504 @kindex C-M-n (Summary)
6506 @kindex M-down (Summary)
6507 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
6508 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
6511 @kindex T p (Summary)
6513 @kindex C-M-p (Summary)
6515 @kindex M-up (Summary)
6516 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
6517 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
6520 @kindex T d (Summary)
6521 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
6522 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
6525 @kindex T u (Summary)
6526 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
6527 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
6530 @kindex T o (Summary)
6531 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
6532 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
6535 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
6536 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
6537 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
6538 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
6539 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
6540 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
6541 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
6542 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
6543 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
6544 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
6545 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
6546 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
6550 @node Sorting the Summary Buffer
6551 @section Sorting the Summary Buffer
6553 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
6554 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
6555 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
6556 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6557 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
6558 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6559 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
6560 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
6561 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
6562 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
6563 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
6565 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
6566 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
6567 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
6568 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
6569 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
6571 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
6572 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
6573 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
6575 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
6576 last function in the list. You should probably always include
6577 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
6578 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
6579 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
6580 ascending article order.
6582 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
6583 by number, you could do something like:
6586 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6587 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6588 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6589 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
6592 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
6593 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
6594 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
6595 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
6596 which the articles arrived.
6598 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
6602 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6604 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
6605 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
6608 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
6609 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
6610 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
6611 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
6614 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
6615 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
6616 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
6617 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6618 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6619 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6620 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
6621 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
6622 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
6623 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
6624 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6625 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
6626 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6628 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6632 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6633 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6634 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6639 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6640 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6641 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6642 @cindex article pre-fetch
6645 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
6646 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6647 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6648 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6649 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6651 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6652 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
6654 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
6655 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
6656 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
6657 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
6658 connection is blocked.
6660 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
6661 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
6662 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
6663 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
6665 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
6666 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
6667 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
6668 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
6671 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
6674 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
6675 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
6676 happen automatically.
6678 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
6679 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
6680 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
6681 that when you read an article in the group, the back end will pre-fetch
6682 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the back end will
6683 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
6684 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
6686 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
6687 @findex gnus-async-read-p
6688 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
6689 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
6690 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
6691 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
6692 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
6693 data structure as the only parameter.
6695 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
6698 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
6699 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
6700 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
6701 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
6704 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
6707 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
6708 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
6709 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
6711 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
6712 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
6713 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
6714 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
6718 Remove articles when they are read.
6721 Remove articles when exiting the group.
6724 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
6726 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
6727 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
6728 @c from the next group.
6731 @node Article Caching
6732 @section Article Caching
6733 @cindex article caching
6736 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
6737 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
6738 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
6739 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
6740 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
6742 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
6744 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6745 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
6746 @vindex gnus-use-cache
6747 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
6748 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
6749 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
6750 cache is flat or hierarchical is controlled by the
6751 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
6753 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
6754 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
6755 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
6756 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
6757 as dormant, and don't worry.
6759 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
6761 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
6762 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
6763 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
6764 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
6765 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
6766 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
6767 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
6768 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
6769 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
6770 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
6772 @findex gnus-jog-cache
6773 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
6774 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
6775 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
6776 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
6777 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
6778 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
6779 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
6780 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
6781 not then be downloaded by this command.
6783 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
6784 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
6785 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
6786 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
6787 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
6788 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
6790 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
6791 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
6792 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
6793 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
6794 variables, the group is not cached.
6796 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
6797 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
6798 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
6799 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
6800 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
6801 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
6802 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
6803 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
6804 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
6808 @node Persistent Articles
6809 @section Persistent Articles
6810 @cindex persistent articles
6812 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
6813 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
6814 useful in my opinion.
6816 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
6817 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
6818 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
6819 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
6820 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
6821 the expiry going on at the news server.
6823 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
6824 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
6825 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
6831 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
6832 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
6835 @kindex M-* (Summary)
6836 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
6837 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
6838 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
6842 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
6844 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
6845 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
6846 interested in persistent articles:
6849 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
6853 @node Article Backlog
6854 @section Article Backlog
6856 @cindex article backlog
6858 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
6859 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
6860 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
6861 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
6862 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
6863 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
6864 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
6865 increase memory usage some.
6867 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
6868 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
6869 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
6870 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
6871 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
6872 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
6873 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
6875 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
6878 @node Saving Articles
6879 @section Saving Articles
6880 @cindex saving articles
6882 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
6883 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
6884 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
6885 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
6886 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
6888 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
6889 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
6890 unwanted headers before saving the article.
6892 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
6893 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
6894 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
6895 deleted before saving.
6901 @kindex O o (Summary)
6903 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
6904 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
6905 Save the current article using the default article saver
6906 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
6909 @kindex O m (Summary)
6910 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
6911 Save the current article in mail format
6912 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
6915 @kindex O r (Summary)
6916 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
6917 Save the current article in rmail format
6918 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
6921 @kindex O f (Summary)
6922 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
6923 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
6924 Save the current article in plain file format
6925 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
6928 @kindex O F (Summary)
6929 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
6930 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
6931 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
6934 @kindex O b (Summary)
6935 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
6936 Save the current article body in plain file format
6937 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
6940 @kindex O h (Summary)
6941 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
6942 Save the current article in mh folder format
6943 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
6946 @kindex O v (Summary)
6947 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
6948 Save the current article in a VM folder
6949 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
6953 @kindex O p (Summary)
6955 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
6956 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
6957 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
6960 @kindex O P (Summary)
6961 @findex gnus-summary-muttprint
6962 @vindex gnus-summary-muttprint-program
6963 Save the current article into muttprint. That is, print it using the
6964 external program Muttprint (see
6965 @uref{http://muttprint.sourceforge.net/}). The program name and
6966 options to use is controlled by the variable
6967 @code{gnus-summary-muttprint-program}. (@code{gnus-summary-muttprint}).
6971 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
6972 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
6973 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
6974 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
6975 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
6976 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
6977 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
6978 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
6979 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
6980 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
6981 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
6982 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
6986 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
6987 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
6988 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
6989 functions below, or you can create your own.
6993 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6994 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6995 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
6996 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
6997 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
6998 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6999 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7001 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7002 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7003 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
7004 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
7005 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7006 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7008 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
7009 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
7010 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
7011 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7012 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
7013 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7014 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7016 @item gnus-summary-write-to-file
7017 @findex gnus-summary-write-to-file
7018 Write the article straight to an ordinary file. The file is
7019 overwritten if it exists. Uses the function in the
7020 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7021 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7023 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7024 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7025 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
7026 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7027 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7029 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7030 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7031 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
7032 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
7033 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
7036 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
7037 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
7038 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
7039 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
7040 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
7042 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7043 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7044 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
7045 reader to use this setting.
7048 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
7049 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
7050 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
7051 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
7054 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
7055 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
7056 available functions that generate names:
7060 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
7061 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
7062 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7064 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
7065 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7066 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7068 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
7069 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
7070 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7072 @item gnus-plain-save-name
7073 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7074 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7076 @item gnus-sender-save-name
7077 @findex gnus-sender-save-name
7078 File names like @file{~/News/larsi}.
7081 @vindex gnus-split-methods
7082 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
7083 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
7084 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
7085 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
7089 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
7090 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
7091 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
7092 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
7095 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
7096 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
7097 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
7098 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
7099 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
7100 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
7101 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
7102 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
7103 called returns a string or a list of strings.
7105 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
7106 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
7107 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
7108 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
7110 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
7111 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
7112 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
7115 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
7116 lots of mail groups called things like
7117 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
7118 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
7119 following will do just that:
7122 (defun my-save-name (group)
7123 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
7124 (substring group (match-end 0))))
7126 (setq gnus-split-methods
7127 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
7132 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
7133 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
7134 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
7135 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
7136 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
7137 all the files in the top level directory
7138 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
7139 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
7140 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
7141 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
7143 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
7144 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
7145 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
7146 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
7147 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
7150 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
7154 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
7155 (setq gnus-default-article-saver
7156 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
7159 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
7160 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
7161 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
7162 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
7165 @node Decoding Articles
7166 @section Decoding Articles
7167 @cindex decoding articles
7169 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
7170 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
7173 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
7174 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
7175 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
7176 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
7177 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
7178 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
7182 @cindex article series
7183 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
7184 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
7185 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
7186 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
7187 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
7189 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
7190 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
7191 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
7193 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
7194 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
7195 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
7197 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
7198 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
7199 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
7202 @node Uuencoded Articles
7203 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
7205 @cindex uuencoded articles
7210 @kindex X u (Summary)
7211 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
7212 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
7213 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
7216 @kindex X U (Summary)
7217 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
7218 Uudecodes and saves the current series
7219 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7222 @kindex X v u (Summary)
7223 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
7224 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
7227 @kindex X v U (Summary)
7228 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
7229 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
7230 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
7234 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
7235 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
7236 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
7237 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
7238 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7240 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
7241 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
7242 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
7243 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
7246 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
7247 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
7248 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
7249 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
7250 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
7251 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
7255 @node Shell Archives
7256 @subsection Shell Archives
7258 @cindex shell archives
7259 @cindex shared articles
7261 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
7262 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
7263 some commands to deal with these:
7268 @kindex X s (Summary)
7269 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
7270 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
7273 @kindex X S (Summary)
7274 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
7275 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
7278 @kindex X v s (Summary)
7279 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
7280 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
7283 @kindex X v S (Summary)
7284 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
7285 Unshars, views and saves the current series
7286 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
7290 @node PostScript Files
7291 @subsection PostScript Files
7297 @kindex X p (Summary)
7298 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
7299 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
7302 @kindex X P (Summary)
7303 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
7304 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
7305 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
7308 @kindex X v p (Summary)
7309 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
7310 View the current PostScript series
7311 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
7314 @kindex X v P (Summary)
7315 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
7316 View and save the current PostScript series
7317 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
7322 @subsection Other Files
7326 @kindex X o (Summary)
7327 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
7328 Save the current series
7329 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
7332 @kindex X b (Summary)
7333 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
7334 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
7335 doesn't really work yet.
7339 @node Decoding Variables
7340 @subsection Decoding Variables
7342 Adjective, not verb.
7345 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
7346 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
7347 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
7351 @node Rule Variables
7352 @subsubsection Rule Variables
7353 @cindex rule variables
7355 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
7356 variables are of the form
7359 (list '(regexp1 command2)
7366 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7367 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7369 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
7370 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
7373 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7374 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
7377 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7378 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7379 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
7380 user and default view rules.
7382 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7383 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7384 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
7389 @node Other Decode Variables
7390 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
7393 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7395 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7396 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
7397 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
7398 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
7399 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
7403 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
7404 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
7407 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
7408 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
7409 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
7412 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7413 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7414 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
7415 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
7416 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
7419 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7420 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7421 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
7423 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7424 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7425 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
7426 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
7427 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
7430 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7431 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7432 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
7434 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7435 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7436 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
7437 looking for files to display.
7439 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
7440 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
7441 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
7444 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7445 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7446 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
7449 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7450 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7451 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
7454 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7455 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7456 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
7459 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7460 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7461 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
7462 decoded articles as unread.
7464 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7465 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7466 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
7467 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
7469 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7470 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7471 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
7473 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7474 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7476 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
7477 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
7478 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
7479 @code{metamail} for viewing.
7481 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7482 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7483 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
7484 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
7485 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
7486 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
7487 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
7488 simply dropped them.
7493 @node Uuencoding and Posting
7494 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
7498 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7499 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7500 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
7501 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
7502 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
7503 for you when you post the article.
7505 @item gnus-uu-post-length
7506 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
7507 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
7508 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
7510 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
7511 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
7512 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
7513 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
7514 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
7515 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
7516 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
7518 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7519 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7520 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
7521 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
7522 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
7523 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
7524 Default is @code{t}.
7530 @subsection Viewing Files
7531 @cindex viewing files
7532 @cindex pseudo-articles
7534 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
7535 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
7536 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
7537 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
7538 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
7539 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
7540 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
7542 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
7543 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
7544 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
7545 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
7547 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
7548 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
7549 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
7551 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
7552 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
7553 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
7554 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
7555 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
7557 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
7558 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
7559 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
7560 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
7561 a list of parameters to that command.
7563 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
7564 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
7565 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
7567 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
7568 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
7569 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
7572 @node Article Treatment
7573 @section Article Treatment
7575 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
7576 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
7577 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
7578 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
7579 these articles easier.
7582 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
7583 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
7584 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
7585 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
7586 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
7587 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
7588 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
7589 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
7590 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
7591 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
7595 @node Article Highlighting
7596 @subsection Article Highlighting
7597 @cindex highlighting
7599 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
7600 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
7605 @kindex W H a (Summary)
7606 @findex gnus-article-highlight
7607 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7608 Do much highlighting of the current article
7609 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
7610 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
7613 @kindex W H h (Summary)
7614 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
7615 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
7616 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
7617 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
7618 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
7619 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
7620 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
7621 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
7622 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
7623 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
7624 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
7627 @kindex W H c (Summary)
7628 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
7629 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
7631 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
7634 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7636 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7637 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
7638 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
7640 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7641 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
7642 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
7644 @item gnus-cite-face-list
7645 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
7646 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
7647 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
7648 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
7649 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
7651 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
7652 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
7653 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
7655 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7656 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7657 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
7659 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7660 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7661 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
7662 that it's a citation.
7664 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7665 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7666 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
7668 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7669 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7670 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
7672 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
7673 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
7674 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
7675 cited text belonging to the attribution.
7681 @kindex W H s (Summary)
7682 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7683 @vindex gnus-signature-face
7684 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
7685 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
7686 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
7687 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
7688 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
7693 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
7696 @node Article Fontisizing
7697 @subsection Article Fontisizing
7699 @cindex article emphasis
7701 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
7702 @kindex W e (Summary)
7703 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
7704 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
7705 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
7706 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
7708 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
7709 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
7710 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
7711 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
7712 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
7713 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
7714 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
7715 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
7719 (setq gnus-emphasis-alist
7720 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
7721 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
7730 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
7731 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
7732 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
7733 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
7734 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
7735 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
7736 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
7737 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
7738 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
7739 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
7740 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
7741 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
7742 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
7744 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
7745 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
7746 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
7750 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
7753 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
7755 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
7756 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
7757 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
7758 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
7760 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
7763 @node Article Hiding
7764 @subsection Article Hiding
7765 @cindex article hiding
7767 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
7768 too much cruft in most articles.
7773 @kindex W W a (Summary)
7774 @findex gnus-article-hide
7775 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
7776 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
7777 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
7780 @kindex W W h (Summary)
7781 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
7782 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
7786 @kindex W W b (Summary)
7787 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7788 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
7789 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
7792 @kindex W W s (Summary)
7793 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
7794 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
7798 @kindex W W l (Summary)
7799 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
7800 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7801 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
7802 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
7803 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
7804 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
7805 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
7809 @item gnus-list-identifiers
7810 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7811 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
7812 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
7817 @kindex W W p (Summary)
7818 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
7819 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7820 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
7821 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
7822 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
7823 articles that have signatures in them do:
7825 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
7827 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
7829 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
7830 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
7832 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7835 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
7840 @kindex W W P (Summary)
7841 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
7842 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
7843 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
7846 @kindex W W B (Summary)
7847 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
7850 @cindex stripping advertisements
7851 @cindex advertisements
7852 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
7853 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
7854 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
7855 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
7856 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
7857 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
7858 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
7859 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
7860 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
7861 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
7865 @kindex W W c (Summary)
7866 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
7867 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
7868 customizing the hiding:
7872 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7873 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7874 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7875 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7876 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
7877 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
7878 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
7883 Starting point of the hidden text.
7885 Ending point of the hidden text.
7887 Number of characters in the hidden region.
7889 Number of lines of hidden text.
7892 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
7893 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
7894 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
7895 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
7896 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
7901 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
7902 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
7904 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
7905 following two variables:
7908 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7909 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7910 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
7911 50), hide the cited text.
7913 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7914 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7915 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
7920 @kindex W W C (Summary)
7921 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
7922 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
7923 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
7924 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
7925 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
7929 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
7930 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
7931 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
7933 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
7934 citation customization.
7936 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
7940 @node Article Washing
7941 @subsection Article Washing
7943 @cindex article washing
7945 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
7946 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
7948 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
7949 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
7952 @xref{Customizing Articles}, if you want to change how Gnus displays
7953 articles by default.
7958 This is not really washing, it's sort of the opposite of washing. If
7959 you type this, you see the article exactly as it exists on disk or on
7963 @kindex W l (Summary)
7964 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
7965 Remove page breaks from the current article
7966 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
7970 @kindex W r (Summary)
7971 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
7972 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
7973 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
7974 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
7975 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
7976 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
7978 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
7979 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
7980 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
7981 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
7985 @kindex W t (Summary)
7987 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
7988 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
7989 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
7992 @kindex W v (Summary)
7993 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
7994 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
7995 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
7998 @kindex W o (Summary)
7999 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
8000 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
8003 @kindex W d (Summary)
8004 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
8005 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
8007 @cindex M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s
8009 Treat M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s according to
8010 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
8011 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
8012 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
8015 Sm*rtq**t*s are M****s***'s unilateral extension to the character map in
8016 an attempt to provide more quoting characters. If you see something
8017 like @code{\222} or @code{\264} where you're expecting some kind of
8018 apostrophe or quotation mark, then try this wash.
8021 @kindex W w (Summary)
8022 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
8023 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
8025 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
8029 @kindex W Q (Summary)
8030 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
8031 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
8034 @kindex W C (Summary)
8035 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
8036 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
8037 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
8040 @kindex W c (Summary)
8041 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
8042 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
8043 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
8044 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
8045 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
8048 @kindex W q (Summary)
8049 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
8050 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
8051 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
8052 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
8053 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
8054 readable to me. Note that the this is usually done automatically by
8055 Gnus if the message in question has a @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding}
8056 header that says that this encoding has been done.
8057 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8060 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
8061 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
8062 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}).
8063 Base64 is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending non-ASCII
8064 (i. e., 8-bit) articles. Note that the this is usually done
8065 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8066 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding has
8068 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8071 @kindex W Z (Summary)
8072 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
8073 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
8074 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
8075 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
8078 @kindex W h (Summary)
8079 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
8080 Treat HTML (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}).
8081 Note that the this is usually done automatically by Gnus if the message
8082 in question has a @code{Content-Type} header that says that this type
8084 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8087 @kindex W b (Summary)
8088 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
8089 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
8090 @xref{Article Buttons}.
8093 @kindex W B (Summary)
8094 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
8095 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
8096 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
8099 @kindex W p (Summary)
8100 @findex gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig
8101 Verify a signed control message (@code{gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig}).
8102 Control messages such as @code{newgroup} and @code{checkgroups} are
8103 usually signed by the hierarchy maintainer. You need to add the PGP
8104 public key of the maintainer to your keyring to verify the
8105 message.@footnote{PGP keys for many hierarchies are available at
8106 @uref{ftp://ftp.isc.org/pub/pgpcontrol/README.html}}
8109 @kindex W s (Summary)
8110 @findex gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt
8111 Verify a signed (PGP, PGP/MIME or S/MIME) message
8112 (@code{gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt}). @xref{Security}.
8115 @kindex W W H (Summary)
8116 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body
8117 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
8118 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body}).
8121 @kindex W E l (Summary)
8122 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
8123 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
8124 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
8127 @kindex W E m (Summary)
8128 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
8129 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
8130 lines with a single empty line.
8131 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
8134 @kindex W E t (Summary)
8135 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
8136 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
8137 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
8140 @kindex W E a (Summary)
8141 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
8142 Do all the three commands above
8143 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
8146 @kindex W E A (Summary)
8147 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
8148 Remove all blank lines
8149 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
8152 @kindex W E s (Summary)
8153 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
8154 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
8155 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
8158 @kindex W E e (Summary)
8159 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
8160 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
8161 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
8165 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
8168 @node Article Header
8169 @subsection Article Header
8171 These commands perform various transformations of article header.
8176 @kindex W G u (Summary)
8177 @findex gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers
8178 Unfold folded header lines (@code{gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers}).
8181 @kindex W G n (Summary)
8182 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups
8183 Fold the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-To} headers
8184 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups}).
8187 @kindex W G f (Summary)
8188 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-header
8189 Fold all the message headers
8190 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-headers}).
8195 @node Article Buttons
8196 @subsection Article Buttons
8199 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
8200 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
8201 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
8202 button on these references.
8204 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
8205 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
8206 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
8211 @item gnus-button-alist
8212 @vindex gnus-button-alist
8213 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
8216 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8222 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
8223 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
8224 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
8227 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
8228 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
8229 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
8232 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
8233 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
8234 avoid false matches.
8237 This function will be called when you click on this button.
8240 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
8241 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
8245 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
8248 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
8251 @item gnus-header-button-alist
8252 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
8253 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
8254 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
8255 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
8258 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8261 @var{header} is a regular expression.
8263 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
8264 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
8265 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
8266 default values of the variables above.
8268 @item gnus-article-button-face
8269 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
8270 Face used on buttons.
8272 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
8273 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
8274 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
8278 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
8282 @subsection Article Date
8284 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
8285 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
8286 when the article was sent.
8291 @kindex W T u (Summary)
8292 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
8293 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
8294 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
8297 @kindex W T i (Summary)
8298 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
8300 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
8301 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
8304 @kindex W T l (Summary)
8305 @findex gnus-article-date-local
8306 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
8309 @kindex W T p (Summary)
8310 @findex gnus-article-date-english
8311 Display the date in a format that's easily pronounceable in English
8312 (@code{gnus-article-date-english}).
8315 @kindex W T s (Summary)
8316 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
8317 @findex gnus-article-date-user
8318 @findex format-time-string
8319 Display the date using a user-defined format
8320 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
8321 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
8322 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
8323 for a list of possible format specs.
8326 @kindex W T e (Summary)
8327 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
8328 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
8329 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
8330 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
8331 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
8334 X-Sent: 6 weeks, 4 days, 1 hour, 3 minutes, 8 seconds ago
8337 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
8338 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
8341 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
8342 into wonderful absurdities.
8344 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
8347 (gnus-start-date-timer)
8350 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
8351 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
8355 @kindex W T o (Summary)
8356 @findex gnus-article-date-original
8357 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
8358 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
8359 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
8360 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
8361 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
8365 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
8366 preferred format automatically.
8369 @node Article Display
8370 @subsection Article Display
8375 These commands add various frivolous display gimmics to the article
8376 buffer in Emacs versions that support them.
8378 @code{X-Face} headers are small black-and-white images supplied by the
8379 message headers (@pxref{X-Face}).
8381 Picons, on the other hand, reside on your own system, and Gnus will
8382 try to match the headers to what you have (@pxref{Picons}).
8384 Smileys are those little @samp{:-)} symbols that people like to litter
8385 their messages with (@pxref{Smileys}).
8387 All these functions are toggles--if the elements already exist,
8392 @kindex W D x (Summary)
8393 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
8394 Display an @code{X-Face} in the @code{From} header.
8395 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}).
8398 @kindex W D s (Summary)
8399 @findex gnus-smiley-smiley
8400 Display smileys (@code{gnus-treat-smiley}).
8403 @kindex W D f (Summary)
8404 @findex gnus-treat-from-picon
8405 Piconify the @code{From} header (@code{gnus-treat-from-picon}).
8408 @kindex W D m (Summary)
8409 @findex gnus-treat-mail-picon
8410 Piconify all mail headers (i. e., @code{Cc}, @code{To})
8411 (@code{gnus-treat-mail-picon}).
8414 @kindex W D n (Summary)
8415 @findex gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon
8416 Piconify all news headers (i. e., @code{Newsgroups} and
8417 @code{Followup-To}) (@code{gnus-treat-from-picon}).
8420 @kindex W D D (Summary)
8421 @findex gnus-article-remove-images
8422 Remove all images from the article buffer
8423 (@code{gnus-article-remove-images}).
8429 @node Article Signature
8430 @subsection Article Signature
8432 @cindex article signature
8434 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
8435 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
8436 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
8437 that says what is to be considered a signature is
8438 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
8439 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
8440 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
8441 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
8442 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
8445 (setq gnus-signature-separator
8446 '("^-- $" ; The standard
8447 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
8448 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
8449 ; line of dashes. Shame!
8450 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
8451 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
8452 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
8455 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
8458 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
8459 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
8460 signature when displaying articles.
8464 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
8467 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
8470 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
8471 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
8473 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
8474 in question is not a signature.
8477 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
8478 listed above. Here's an example:
8481 (setq gnus-signature-limit
8482 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
8485 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
8486 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
8487 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
8488 signature after all.
8491 @node Article Miscellania
8492 @subsection Article Miscellania
8496 @kindex A t (Summary)
8497 @findex gnus-article-babel
8498 Translate the article from one language to another
8499 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
8505 @section @sc{mime} Commands
8506 @cindex MIME decoding
8508 @cindex viewing attachments
8510 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
8511 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @sc{mime} part''.
8517 @kindex K v (Summary)
8518 View the @sc{mime} part.
8521 @kindex K o (Summary)
8522 Save the @sc{mime} part.
8525 @kindex K c (Summary)
8526 Copy the @sc{mime} part.
8529 @kindex K e (Summary)
8530 View the @sc{mime} part externally.
8533 @kindex K i (Summary)
8534 View the @sc{mime} part internally.
8537 @kindex K | (Summary)
8538 Pipe the @sc{mime} part to an external command.
8541 The rest of these @sc{mime} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
8546 @kindex K b (Summary)
8547 Make all the @sc{mime} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
8548 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
8552 @kindex K m (Summary)
8553 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
8554 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
8555 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
8556 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
8557 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
8560 @kindex X m (Summary)
8561 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
8562 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
8563 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
8564 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8567 @kindex M-t (Summary)
8568 @findex gnus-summary-display-buttonized
8569 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
8570 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
8573 @kindex W M w (Summary)
8574 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
8575 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
8578 @kindex W M c (Summary)
8579 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
8580 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
8582 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
8583 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
8584 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
8585 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not include
8586 MIME headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic parameter to
8587 the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
8590 @kindex W M v (Summary)
8591 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
8592 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
8599 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
8600 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
8601 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8602 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
8605 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
8608 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
8612 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8613 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8614 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8615 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8616 displayed or this variable is overriden by
8617 @code{gnus-buttonized-mime-types}. The default value is
8620 @item gnus-buttonized-mime-types
8621 @vindex gnus-buttonized-mime-types
8622 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8623 this list will have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8624 displayed. This variable overrides
8625 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types}. The default value is @code{nil}.
8627 To see e.g. security buttons but no other buttons, you could set this
8628 variable to @code{("multipart/signed")} and leave
8629 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types} to the default value.
8631 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
8632 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
8633 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
8634 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
8635 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
8636 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
8637 save all jpegs into some directory).
8639 Here's an example function the does the latter:
8642 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
8643 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
8645 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
8646 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
8647 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
8648 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
8649 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
8652 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8653 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8654 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
8656 @vindex mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8657 @item mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8658 List of functions used for rewriting file names of @sc{mime} parts.
8659 Each function takes a file name as input and returns a file name.
8661 Ready-made functions include@*
8662 @code{mm-file-name-delete-whitespace},
8663 @code{mm-file-name-trim-whitespace},
8664 @code{mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace}, and
8665 @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace}. The later uses the value of
8666 the variable @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace} to replace each
8667 whitespace character in a file name with that string; default value
8668 is @code{"_"} (a single underscore).
8669 @findex mm-file-name-delete-whitespace
8670 @findex mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8671 @findex mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8672 @findex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8673 @vindex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8675 The standard functions @code{capitalize}, @code{downcase},
8676 @code{upcase}, and @code{upcase-initials} may be useful, too.
8678 Everybody knows that whitespace characters in file names are evil,
8679 except those who don't know. If you receive lots of attachments from
8680 such unenlightened users, you can make live easier by adding
8683 (setq mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8684 '(mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8685 mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8686 mm-file-name-replace-whitespace))
8690 to your @file{.gnus} file.
8699 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
8700 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
8701 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
8702 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
8703 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
8704 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
8705 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
8707 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
8708 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
8709 variable, which is an alist of regexps (use the first item to match full
8710 group names) and default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
8712 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
8713 aren't. These blithely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1}
8714 even if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
8715 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
8716 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be
8717 set on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
8718 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit x-unknown)},
8719 which includes values some agents insist on having in there.
8721 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
8722 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
8723 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @sc{mime}
8724 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
8725 quoted-printable header encoding.
8727 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
8728 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
8729 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
8733 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
8736 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
8737 means encode all charsets),
8739 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
8740 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
8741 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
8748 @cindex coding system aliases
8749 @cindex preferred charset
8751 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
8753 If there are several @sc{mime} charsets that encode the same Emacs
8754 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
8757 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
8758 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
8761 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
8762 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @sc{mime} charset.
8764 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
8767 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
8770 This will almost do the right thing.
8772 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
8776 (codepage-setup 1251)
8777 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
8781 @node Article Commands
8782 @section Article Commands
8789 @kindex A P (Summary)
8790 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
8791 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
8792 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
8793 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will
8794 be run just before printing the buffer. An alternative way to print
8795 article is to use Muttprint (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
8800 @node Summary Sorting
8801 @section Summary Sorting
8802 @cindex summary sorting
8804 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
8805 can't really see why you'd want that.
8810 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
8811 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
8812 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
8815 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
8816 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
8817 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
8820 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
8821 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
8822 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
8825 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
8826 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
8827 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
8830 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
8831 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
8832 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
8835 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
8836 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
8837 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
8840 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
8841 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
8842 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
8845 @kindex C-c C-s C-o (Summary)
8846 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-original
8847 Sort using the default sorting method
8848 (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-original}).
8851 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
8852 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
8853 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
8854 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
8855 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
8859 @node Finding the Parent
8860 @section Finding the Parent
8861 @cindex parent articles
8862 @cindex referring articles
8867 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
8868 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
8869 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
8870 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
8871 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
8872 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
8873 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
8874 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
8875 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
8877 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
8878 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
8879 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
8880 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
8881 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
8885 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
8886 @kindex A R (Summary)
8887 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
8888 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
8891 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
8892 @kindex A T (Summary)
8893 Display the full thread where the current article appears
8894 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
8895 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
8896 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
8897 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
8898 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
8899 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
8901 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
8902 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
8903 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
8904 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
8905 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
8906 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
8909 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
8910 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
8912 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
8913 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
8914 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
8915 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
8916 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
8917 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
8918 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
8921 The current select method will be used when fetching by
8922 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
8923 by giving this command a prefix.
8925 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
8926 If the group you are reading is located on a back end that does not
8927 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
8928 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
8929 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
8930 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
8933 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
8934 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
8935 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
8938 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
8939 then ask Deja if that fails:
8942 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
8944 (nnweb "refer" (nnweb-type dejanews))))
8947 Most of the mail back ends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but
8948 do not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox}
8949 and @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
8950 @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder} and @code{nnimap}1 are only able to locate
8951 articles that have been posted to the current group. (Anything else
8952 would be too time consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at
8956 @node Alternative Approaches
8957 @section Alternative Approaches
8959 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
8960 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
8963 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
8964 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
8969 @subsection Pick and Read
8970 @cindex pick and read
8972 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
8973 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
8974 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
8975 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
8977 @findex gnus-pick-mode
8978 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
8979 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
8980 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
8981 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
8982 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
8984 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
8989 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
8990 Pick the article or thread on the current line
8991 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
8992 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
8993 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
8994 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
8995 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
8996 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
8999 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
9000 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
9001 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
9002 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
9006 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
9007 Unpick the thread or article
9008 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9009 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
9010 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
9011 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
9012 the thread or article at that line.
9016 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
9017 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
9018 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
9019 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
9020 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
9021 will still be visible when you are reading.
9025 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
9026 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
9027 which is mapped to the same function
9028 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
9030 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
9033 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
9036 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
9037 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
9039 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
9040 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
9041 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
9043 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
9044 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
9045 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
9046 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
9047 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
9048 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
9049 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
9053 @subsection Binary Groups
9054 @cindex binary groups
9056 @findex gnus-binary-mode
9057 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
9058 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
9059 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
9060 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
9061 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
9062 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
9065 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
9066 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
9067 command, when you have turned on this mode
9068 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
9070 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
9071 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
9075 @section Tree Display
9078 @vindex gnus-use-trees
9079 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
9080 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
9081 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
9084 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
9087 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
9088 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
9089 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
9091 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9092 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9093 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
9094 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
9095 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
9097 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
9098 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
9099 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
9100 default is @code{modeline}.
9102 @item gnus-tree-line-format
9103 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
9104 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
9105 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
9106 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
9107 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
9108 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
9114 The name of the poster.
9116 The @code{From} header.
9118 The number of the article.
9120 The opening bracket.
9122 The closing bracket.
9127 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
9129 Variables related to the display are:
9132 @item gnus-tree-brackets
9133 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
9134 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
9135 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
9136 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
9137 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
9139 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9140 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9141 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
9142 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
9146 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
9147 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
9148 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
9149 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
9150 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
9151 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
9152 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
9153 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
9154 other windows displayed next to it.
9156 You may also wish to add the following hook to keep the window minimized
9160 (add-hook 'gnus-configure-windows-hook
9161 'gnus-tree-perhaps-minimize)
9164 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
9165 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
9166 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9167 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
9168 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
9169 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
9170 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
9174 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
9177 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
9187 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
9191 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
9192 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
9194 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
9196 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
9201 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
9202 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
9203 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
9206 (setq gnus-use-trees t
9207 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9208 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
9209 (gnus-add-configuration
9213 (summary 0.75 point)
9218 @xref{Window Layout}.
9221 @node Mail Group Commands
9222 @section Mail Group Commands
9223 @cindex mail group commands
9225 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
9226 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
9228 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
9229 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9234 @kindex B e (Summary)
9235 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
9236 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
9237 process (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}). That is, delete all
9238 expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
9239 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
9242 @kindex B C-M-e (Summary)
9243 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
9244 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
9245 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
9246 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
9247 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
9250 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
9251 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
9252 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
9253 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
9254 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
9255 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
9258 @kindex B m (Summary)
9260 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
9261 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
9262 Move the article from one mail group to another
9263 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9264 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9267 @kindex B c (Summary)
9269 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
9270 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
9271 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
9272 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9273 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9276 @kindex B B (Summary)
9277 @cindex crosspost mail
9278 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
9279 Crosspost the current article to some other group
9280 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
9281 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
9282 be properly updated.
9285 @kindex B i (Summary)
9286 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
9287 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
9288 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
9289 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9292 @kindex B r (Summary)
9293 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
9294 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
9295 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
9296 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
9297 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
9298 Marks will be preserved if @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
9299 (which is the default).
9303 @kindex B w (Summary)
9305 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
9306 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
9307 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
9308 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
9309 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
9310 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
9313 @kindex B q (Summary)
9314 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
9315 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
9316 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
9317 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
9320 @kindex B t (Summary)
9321 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
9322 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
9323 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
9326 @kindex B p (Summary)
9327 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
9328 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
9329 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
9330 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
9331 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
9332 article from your news server (or rather, from
9333 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
9334 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
9335 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
9336 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
9337 just not have arrived yet.
9341 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
9342 @cindex moving articles
9343 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
9344 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
9345 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
9346 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
9347 suggestions you find reasonable. (Note that
9348 @code{gnus-move-split-methods} uses group names where
9349 @code{gnus-split-methods} uses file names.)
9352 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
9353 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
9354 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
9355 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
9359 @node Various Summary Stuff
9360 @section Various Summary Stuff
9363 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
9364 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
9365 * Summary Generation Commands::
9366 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
9370 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
9371 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
9372 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
9374 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
9375 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
9376 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
9377 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
9378 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
9379 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
9382 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9383 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9384 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
9385 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
9386 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
9388 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
9389 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
9390 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
9393 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
9394 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
9395 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
9396 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
9397 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
9398 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
9399 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
9400 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
9401 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
9402 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
9404 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
9405 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
9406 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
9407 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
9408 list of articles to be selected.
9410 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
9411 the list in one particular group:
9414 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
9415 (if (string= group "some.group")
9416 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
9420 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-variables
9421 @item gnus-newsgroup-variables
9422 A list of newsgroup (summary buffer) local variables, or cons of
9423 variables and their default values (when the default values are not
9424 nil), that should be made global while the summary buffer is active.
9425 These variables can be used to set variables in the group parameters
9426 while still allowing them to affect operations done in other
9427 buffers. For example:
9430 (setq gnus-newsgroup-variables
9431 '(message-use-followup-to
9432 (gnus-visible-headers .
9433 "^From:\\|^Newsgroups:\\|^Subject:\\|^Date:\\|^To:")))
9439 @node Summary Group Information
9440 @subsection Summary Group Information
9445 @kindex H f (Summary)
9446 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
9447 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
9448 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
9449 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
9450 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
9451 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
9452 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
9453 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
9454 be used for fetching the file.
9457 @kindex H d (Summary)
9458 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
9459 Give a brief description of the current group
9460 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
9461 rereading the description from the server.
9464 @kindex H h (Summary)
9465 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
9466 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
9467 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
9470 @kindex H i (Summary)
9471 @findex gnus-info-find-node
9472 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
9476 @node Searching for Articles
9477 @subsection Searching for Articles
9482 @kindex M-s (Summary)
9483 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
9484 Search through all subsequent (raw) articles for a regexp
9485 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
9488 @kindex M-r (Summary)
9489 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
9490 Search through all previous (raw) articles for a regexp
9491 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
9495 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
9496 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
9497 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
9498 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
9499 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
9500 search backward instead.
9502 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
9503 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
9506 @kindex M-& (Summary)
9507 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
9508 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
9509 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
9512 @node Summary Generation Commands
9513 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
9518 @kindex Y g (Summary)
9519 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
9520 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
9523 @kindex Y c (Summary)
9524 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
9525 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
9526 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
9531 @node Really Various Summary Commands
9532 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
9538 @kindex C-d (Summary)
9539 @kindex A D (Summary)
9540 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
9541 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
9542 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
9543 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
9544 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
9545 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
9546 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
9547 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
9551 @kindex C-M-d (Summary)
9552 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
9553 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
9554 several documents into one biiig group
9555 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
9556 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
9557 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
9558 command understands the process/prefix convention
9559 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9562 @kindex C-t (Summary)
9563 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
9564 Toggle truncation of summary lines
9565 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
9566 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
9567 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
9571 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
9572 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
9573 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
9576 @kindex C-M-e (Summary)
9577 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
9578 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9579 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
9582 @kindex C-M-a (Summary)
9583 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
9584 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9585 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
9590 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
9591 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
9592 @cindex summary exit
9593 @cindex exiting groups
9595 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
9596 group and return you to the group buffer.
9602 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
9604 @findex gnus-summary-exit
9605 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
9606 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
9607 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
9608 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
9609 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
9610 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
9611 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
9612 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
9613 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
9614 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
9618 @kindex Z E (Summary)
9620 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
9621 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
9622 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
9626 @kindex Z c (Summary)
9628 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
9629 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
9630 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
9631 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
9634 @kindex Z C (Summary)
9635 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
9636 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
9637 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
9640 @kindex Z n (Summary)
9641 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
9642 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
9643 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
9646 @kindex Z R (Summary)
9647 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
9648 Exit this group, and then enter it again
9649 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
9650 all articles, both read and unread.
9654 @kindex Z G (Summary)
9655 @kindex M-g (Summary)
9656 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
9657 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
9658 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
9659 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
9660 articles, both read and unread.
9663 @kindex Z N (Summary)
9664 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
9665 Exit the group and go to the next group
9666 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
9669 @kindex Z P (Summary)
9670 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
9671 Exit the group and go to the previous group
9672 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
9675 @kindex Z s (Summary)
9676 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
9677 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
9678 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
9679 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
9680 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
9683 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
9684 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
9685 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
9686 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
9688 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
9689 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
9690 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
9691 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
9692 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
9693 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
9694 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
9695 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
9696 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
9697 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
9698 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
9699 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
9701 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
9703 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
9704 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
9705 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
9706 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
9707 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
9708 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
9709 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
9710 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
9711 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
9714 @node Crosspost Handling
9715 @section Crosspost Handling
9719 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
9720 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
9721 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
9722 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
9723 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
9724 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
9727 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
9728 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
9729 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
9730 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
9731 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
9733 @cindex cross-posting
9736 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
9737 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
9738 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
9739 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
9740 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
9741 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
9742 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
9743 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
9744 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
9745 the cross reference mechanism.
9747 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
9748 @cindex overview.fmt
9749 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
9750 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
9751 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
9752 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
9753 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
9754 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
9757 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
9758 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
9759 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
9764 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
9767 @node Duplicate Suppression
9768 @section Duplicate Suppression
9770 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
9771 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
9772 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
9773 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
9778 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
9779 is evil and not very common.
9782 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
9783 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
9786 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
9787 different @sc{nntp} servers.
9790 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
9793 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
9794 well, but these four are the most common situations.
9796 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
9797 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
9798 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
9799 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
9800 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
9801 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
9802 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
9805 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
9806 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
9807 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
9808 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
9809 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
9813 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
9814 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
9815 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
9817 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
9818 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
9819 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
9820 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
9821 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
9822 session are suppressed.
9824 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
9825 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
9826 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
9827 suppression list. The default is 10000.
9829 @item gnus-duplicate-file
9830 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
9831 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
9832 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
9835 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
9836 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
9837 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
9838 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
9839 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
9840 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
9841 to you to figure out, I think.
9846 Gnus is able to verify signed messages or decrypt encrypted messages.
9847 The formats that are supported are PGP, PGP/MIME and S/MIME, however
9848 you need some external programs to get things to work:
9852 To handle PGP messages, you have to install mailcrypt or gpg.el as
9853 well as a OpenPGP implementation (such as GnuPG).
9856 To handle S/MIME message, you need to install OpenSSL. OpenSSL 0.9.6
9857 or newer is recommended.
9861 More information on how to set things up can be found in the message
9862 manual (@pxref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}).
9865 @item mm-verify-option
9866 @vindex mm-verify-option
9867 Option of verifying signed parts. @code{never}, not verify;
9868 @code{always}, always verify; @code{known}, only verify known
9869 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9871 @item mm-decrypt-option
9872 @vindex mm-decrypt-option
9873 Option of decrypting encrypted parts. @code{never}, no decryption;
9874 @code{always}, always decrypt; @code{known}, only decrypt known
9875 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9880 @section Mailing List
9882 Gnus understands some mailing list fields of RFC 2369. To enable it,
9883 either add a `to-list' group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}),
9884 possibly using @kbd{A M} in the summary buffer, or say:
9887 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'turn-on-gnus-mailing-list-mode)
9890 That enables the following commands to the summary buffer:
9895 @kindex C-c C-n h (Summary)
9896 @findex gnus-mailing-list-help
9897 Send a message to fetch mailing list help, if List-Help field exists.
9900 @kindex C-c C-n s (Summary)
9901 @findex gnus-mailing-list-subscribe
9902 Send a message to subscribe the mailing list, if List-Subscribe field exists.
9905 @kindex C-c C-n u (Summary)
9906 @findex gnus-mailing-list-unsubscribe
9907 Send a message to unsubscribe the mailing list, if List-Unsubscribe
9911 @kindex C-c C-n p (Summary)
9912 @findex gnus-mailing-list-post
9913 Post to the mailing list, if List-Post field exists.
9916 @kindex C-c C-n o (Summary)
9917 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
9918 Send a message to the mailing list owner, if List-Owner field exists.
9921 @kindex C-c C-n a (Summary)
9922 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
9923 Browse the mailing list archive, if List-Archive field exists.
9927 @node Article Buffer
9928 @chapter Article Buffer
9929 @cindex article buffer
9931 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
9932 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
9933 tell Gnus otherwise.
9936 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
9937 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
9938 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
9939 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
9940 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
9944 @node Hiding Headers
9945 @section Hiding Headers
9946 @cindex hiding headers
9947 @cindex deleting headers
9949 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
9950 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
9952 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
9953 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
9954 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
9955 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
9956 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
9957 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
9958 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
9959 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
9960 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
9962 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
9966 @item gnus-visible-headers
9967 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
9968 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
9969 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
9970 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
9972 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
9973 the article and the subject, you'd say:
9976 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
9979 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9982 @item gnus-ignored-headers
9983 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
9984 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
9985 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
9986 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
9987 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
9989 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
9990 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
9993 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
9996 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9999 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
10000 variable will have no effect.
10004 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
10005 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
10006 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
10007 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
10008 the headers are to be displayed.
10010 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
10011 and then the subject, you might say something like:
10014 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
10017 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
10018 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
10020 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
10021 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
10022 You can hide further boring headers by setting
10023 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
10024 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
10025 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
10026 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
10029 These conditions are:
10032 Remove all empty headers.
10034 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
10035 @code{Newsgroups} header.
10037 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
10038 @code{From} header.
10040 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
10043 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
10044 the current groups's @code{to-address} parameter.
10046 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
10049 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
10051 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
10054 To include these three elements, you could say something like;
10057 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
10058 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
10061 This is also the default value for this variable.
10065 @section Using MIME
10068 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
10069 while people stand around yawning.
10071 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
10072 while all newsreaders die of fear.
10074 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
10075 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
10076 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
10078 @vindex gnus-display-mime-function
10079 @findex gnus-display-mime
10080 Gnus pushes @sc{mime} articles through @code{gnus-display-mime-function}
10081 to display the @sc{mime} parts. This is @code{gnus-display-mime} by
10082 default, which creates a bundle of clickable buttons that can be used to
10083 display, save and manipulate the @sc{mime} objects.
10085 The following commands are available when you have placed point over a
10089 @findex gnus-article-press-button
10090 @item RET (Article)
10091 @kindex RET (Article)
10092 @itemx BUTTON-2 (Article)
10093 Toggle displaying of the @sc{mime} object
10094 (@code{gnus-article-press-button}).
10096 @findex gnus-mime-view-part
10097 @item M-RET (Article)
10098 @kindex M-RET (Article)
10100 Prompt for a method, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
10101 method (@code{gnus-mime-view-part}).
10103 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-type
10105 @kindex t (Article)
10106 View the @sc{mime} object as if it were a different @sc{mime} media type
10107 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-type}).
10109 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset
10111 @kindex C (Article)
10112 Prompt for a charset, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
10113 charset (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset}).
10115 @findex gnus-mime-save-part
10117 @kindex o (Article)
10118 Prompt for a file name, and then save the @sc{mime} object
10119 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part}).
10121 @findex gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip
10122 @item C-o (Article)
10123 @kindex C-o (Article)
10124 Prompt for a file name, then save the @sc{mime} object and strip it from
10125 the article. Then proceed to article editing, where a reasonable
10126 suggestion is being made on how the altered article should look
10127 like. The stripped @sc{mime} object will be referred via the
10128 message/external-body @sc{mime} type.
10129 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip}).
10131 @findex gnus-mime-copy-part
10133 @kindex c (Article)
10134 Copy the @sc{mime} object to a fresh buffer and display this buffer
10135 (@code{gnus-mime-copy-part}).
10137 @findex gnus-mime-print-part
10139 @kindex p (Article)
10140 Print the @sc{mime} object (@code{gnus-mime-print-part}). This
10141 command respects the @samp{print=} specifications in the
10142 @file{.mailcap} file.
10144 @findex gnus-mime-inline-part
10146 @kindex i (Article)
10147 Insert the contents of the @sc{mime} object into the buffer
10148 (@code{gnus-mime-inline-part}) as text/plain. If given a prefix, insert
10149 the raw contents without decoding. If given a numerical prefix, you can
10150 do semi-manual charset stuff (see
10151 @code{gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist} in @pxref{Paging the
10154 @findex gnus-mime-internalize-part
10156 @kindex E (Article)
10157 View the @sc{mime} object with an internal viewer. If no internal
10158 viewer is available, use an external viewer
10159 (@code{gnus-mime-internalize-part}).
10161 @findex gnus-mime-externalize-part
10163 @kindex e (Article)
10164 View the @sc{mime} object with an external viewer.
10165 (@code{gnus-mime-externalize-part}).
10167 @findex gnus-mime-pipe-part
10169 @kindex | (Article)
10170 Output the @sc{mime} object to a process (@code{gnus-mime-pipe-part}).
10172 @findex gnus-mime-action-on-part
10174 @kindex . (Article)
10175 Interactively run an action on the @sc{mime} object
10176 (@code{gnus-mime-action-on-part}).
10180 Gnus will display some @sc{mime} objects automatically. The way Gnus
10181 determines which parts to do this with is described in the Emacs MIME
10184 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the article
10185 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
10186 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
10187 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
10188 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume button,
10189 because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you, and you
10190 try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the program
10191 to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly decides
10192 to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
10194 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
10196 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
10199 @node Customizing Articles
10200 @section Customizing Articles
10201 @cindex article customization
10203 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
10204 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
10205 called automatically when you select the articles.
10207 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
10208 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
10209 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
10210 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
10212 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
10213 for sensible values.
10217 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
10220 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
10223 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
10226 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
10229 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
10233 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
10234 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
10235 regexps in the list.
10238 A list where the first element is not a string:
10240 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
10241 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
10242 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
10246 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
10251 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
10252 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
10253 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
10254 considered to contain just a single part.
10256 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
10257 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
10258 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
10259 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
10260 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
10261 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
10262 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
10264 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
10265 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
10266 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
10267 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
10270 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
10271 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
10273 @xref{Article Buttons}.
10275 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
10276 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
10277 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
10278 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
10279 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
10280 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
10281 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
10282 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp (t, last, integer)
10283 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
10285 @xref{Article Washing}.
10287 @item gnus-treat-date-english (head)
10288 @item gnus-treat-date-iso8601 (head)
10289 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
10290 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
10291 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
10292 @item gnus-treat-date-user-defined (head)
10293 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
10295 @xref{Article Date}.
10297 @item gnus-treat-from-picon (head)
10298 @item gnus-treat-mail-picon (head)
10299 @item gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon (head)
10303 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
10305 @item gnus-treat-body-boundary (head)
10307 @vindex gnus-body-boundary-delimiter
10308 Adds a delimiter between header and body, the string used as delimiter
10309 is controlled by @code{gnus-body-boundary-delimiter}.
10313 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
10317 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
10318 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
10319 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
10320 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
10321 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
10322 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation-maybe (t, integer)
10323 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
10324 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
10326 @xref{Article Hiding}.
10328 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
10329 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
10330 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
10332 @xref{Article Highlighting}.
10334 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
10335 @item gnus-treat-translate
10336 @item gnus-treat-x-pgp-sig (head)
10338 @item gnus-treat-unfold-headers (head)
10339 @item gnus-treat-fold-headers (head)
10340 @item gnus-treat-fold-newsgroups (head)
10346 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
10347 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
10348 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
10349 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
10350 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
10354 @node Article Keymap
10355 @section Article Keymap
10357 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
10358 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
10359 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
10360 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
10363 A few additional keystrokes are available:
10368 @kindex SPACE (Article)
10369 @findex gnus-article-next-page
10370 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
10373 @kindex DEL (Article)
10374 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
10375 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
10378 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
10379 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
10380 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
10381 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
10382 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
10385 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
10386 @findex gnus-article-mail
10387 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
10388 given a prefix, include the mail.
10391 @kindex s (Article)
10392 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
10393 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
10394 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
10397 @kindex ? (Article)
10398 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
10399 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
10400 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
10403 @kindex TAB (Article)
10404 @findex gnus-article-next-button
10405 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
10406 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
10409 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
10410 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
10411 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
10417 @section Misc Article
10421 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
10422 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
10423 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
10424 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
10427 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
10428 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
10430 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
10431 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
10433 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
10434 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
10435 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
10436 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
10437 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
10438 the contents of the article buffer.
10440 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
10441 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
10442 Hook called in article mode buffers.
10444 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
10445 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
10446 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
10447 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
10449 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
10450 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
10451 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
10452 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
10453 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
10459 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
10460 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
10461 performed. The characters and their meaning:
10466 Displayed when cited text may be hidden in the article buffer.
10469 Displayed when headers are hidden in the article buffer.
10472 Displayed when article is digitally signed or encrypted, and Gnus has
10473 hidden the security headers. (N.B. does not tell anything about
10474 security status, i.e. good or bad signature.)
10477 Displayed when the signature has been hidden in the Article buffer.
10480 Displayed when Gnus has treated overstrike characters in the article buffer.
10483 Displayed when Gnus has treated emphasised strings in the article buffer.
10488 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
10492 @vindex gnus-break-pages
10494 @item gnus-break-pages
10495 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
10496 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
10497 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
10498 paging will not be done.
10500 @item gnus-page-delimiter
10501 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
10502 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
10507 @node Composing Messages
10508 @chapter Composing Messages
10509 @cindex composing messages
10512 @cindex sending mail
10517 @cindex using s/mime
10518 @cindex using smime
10520 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
10521 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
10522 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
10523 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Overview, message,
10524 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
10525 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
10528 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
10529 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
10530 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
10531 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
10532 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
10533 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
10534 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
10535 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
10538 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
10539 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
10545 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
10548 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
10549 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
10550 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
10551 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
10553 @item gnus-add-to-list
10554 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
10555 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
10556 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
10561 @node Posting Server
10562 @section Posting Server
10564 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
10565 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
10567 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
10569 @vindex gnus-post-method
10571 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will post using the same
10572 select method as you're reading from (which might be convenient if
10573 you're reading lots of groups from different private servers).
10574 However. If the server you're reading from doesn't allow posting,
10575 just reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
10576 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
10577 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
10580 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
10583 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
10584 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
10585 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
10586 the ``current'' server, to get back the default behavior, for posting.
10588 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
10589 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
10591 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
10592 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
10595 Finally, if you want to always post using the native select method,
10596 you can set this variable to @code{native}.
10599 @node Mail and Post
10600 @section Mail and Post
10602 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
10606 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
10607 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
10608 @cindex mailing lists
10610 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
10611 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
10612 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
10613 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
10614 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
10615 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
10616 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
10617 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
10618 still a pain, though.
10622 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
10623 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
10624 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
10627 @findex ispell-message
10629 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
10632 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
10633 you're in, you could say something like the following:
10636 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
10640 "^de\\." (gnus-group-real-name gnus-newsgroup-name))
10641 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
10643 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
10646 Modify to suit your needs.
10649 @node Archived Messages
10650 @section Archived Messages
10651 @cindex archived messages
10652 @cindex sent messages
10654 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
10655 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
10656 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
10657 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
10660 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
10661 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
10662 use to store sent messages. The default is:
10665 (nnfolder "archive"
10666 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
10667 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
10668 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
10669 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
10672 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
10673 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likable select method
10674 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
10675 directory chosen, you could say something like:
10678 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
10679 '(nnfolder "archive"
10680 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
10681 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
10682 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
10685 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
10687 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
10688 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
10689 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
10691 This variable can be used to do the following:
10696 Messages will be saved in that group.
10698 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
10699 message will not be stored in the select method given by
10700 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
10701 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
10702 has the default value shown above. Then setting
10703 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
10704 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
10705 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
10709 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
10711 an alist of regexps, functions and forms
10712 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
10715 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
10720 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
10722 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
10725 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
10727 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
10730 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
10732 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10733 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
10734 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
10735 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
10738 More complex stuff:
10740 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10741 '((if (message-news-p)
10746 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
10747 messages in one file per month:
10750 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10751 '((if (message-news-p)
10753 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
10756 @c (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
10757 @c use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
10759 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
10760 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
10761 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
10762 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
10763 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
10764 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
10765 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
10766 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
10767 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
10768 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
10770 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
10771 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
10772 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
10773 this will disable archiving.
10776 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
10777 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
10778 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
10779 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
10780 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
10783 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
10784 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
10785 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
10788 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
10789 but the latter is the preferred method.
10791 @item gnus-inews-mark-gcc-as-read
10792 @vindex gnus-inews-mark-gcc-as-read
10793 If non-@code{nil}, automatically mark @code{Gcc} articles as read.
10798 @node Posting Styles
10799 @section Posting Styles
10800 @cindex posting styles
10803 All them variables, they make my head swim.
10805 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
10806 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
10807 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
10810 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
10811 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
10812 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
10813 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
10814 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
10819 (signature "Peace and happiness")
10820 (organization "What me?"))
10822 (signature "Death to everybody"))
10823 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
10824 (organization "Emacs is it")))
10827 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
10828 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
10829 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
10830 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
10831 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
10832 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
10833 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
10834 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
10836 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
10837 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
10838 If it is the symbol @code{header}, then Gnus will look for header (the
10839 next element in the match) in the original article , and compare that to
10840 the last regexp in the match. If it's a function symbol, that function
10841 will be called with no arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the
10842 variable will be referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be
10843 @code{eval}ed. In any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value,
10844 then the style is said to @dfn{match}.
10846 Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
10847 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} @var{value})} pair. The
10848 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
10849 @code{organization}, @code{address}, @code{name} or @code{body}. The
10850 attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
10851 a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
10852 article; if the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed.
10853 If the attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the
10854 result is thrown away.
10856 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
10857 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
10858 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
10859 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
10860 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
10861 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable.
10863 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
10864 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
10865 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
10867 @findex message-mail-p
10868 @findex message-news-p
10870 So here's a new example:
10873 (setq gnus-posting-styles
10875 (signature-file "~/.signature")
10877 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
10878 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
10880 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
10881 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
10882 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
10884 (signature my-news-signature))
10885 (header "to" "larsi.*org"
10886 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
10887 ((posting-from-work-p)
10888 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
10889 (address "user@@bar.foo")
10890 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
10891 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
10893 (From (save-excursion
10894 (set-buffer gnus-article-buffer)
10895 (message-fetch-field "to"))))
10897 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
10900 The @samp{nnml:.*} rule means that you use the @code{To} address as the
10901 @code{From} address in all your outgoing replies, which might be handy
10902 if you fill many roles.
10909 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
10910 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
10911 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
10912 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
10913 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
10915 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
10916 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
10917 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
10918 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
10919 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
10923 @vindex nndraft-directory
10924 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
10925 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
10926 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
10927 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
10928 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
10929 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
10931 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
10932 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
10935 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
10936 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
10937 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
10938 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
10939 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
10940 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
10941 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
10942 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
10943 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
10944 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
10945 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
10946 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
10947 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
10948 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
10950 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
10951 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
10952 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
10954 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
10955 @kindex D e (Draft)
10956 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
10957 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
10958 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
10960 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
10963 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
10964 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
10965 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
10966 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
10967 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
10968 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
10969 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
10972 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
10973 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
10974 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
10977 @node Rejected Articles
10978 @section Rejected Articles
10979 @cindex rejected articles
10981 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
10982 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
10983 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
10984 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
10986 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
10987 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
10988 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
10989 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
10990 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
10992 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
10993 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
10994 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
10996 @node Signing and encrypting
10997 @section Signing and encrypting
10999 @cindex using s/mime
11000 @cindex using smime
11002 Gnus can digitally sign and encrypt your messages, using vanilla PGP
11003 format or PGP/MIME or S/MIME. For decoding such messages, see the
11004 @code{mm-verify-option} and @code{mm-decrypt-option} options
11005 (@pxref{Security}).
11007 For PGP, Gnus supports two external libraries, @sc{gpg.el} and
11008 @sc{Mailcrypt}, you need to install at least one of them. The S/MIME
11009 support in Gnus requires the external program OpenSSL.
11011 Instructing MML to perform security operations on a MIME part is done
11012 using the @code{C-c C-m s} key map for signing and the @code{C-c C-m
11013 c} key map for encryption, as follows.
11018 @kindex C-c C-m s s
11019 @findex mml-secure-sign-smime
11021 Digitally sign current MIME part using S/MIME.
11024 @kindex C-c C-m s o
11025 @findex mml-secure-sign-pgp
11027 Digitally sign current MIME part using PGP.
11030 @kindex C-c C-m s p
11031 @findex mml-secure-sign-pgp
11033 Digitally sign current MIME part using PGP/MIME.
11036 @kindex C-c C-m c s
11037 @findex mml-secure-encrypt-smime
11039 Digitally encrypt current MIME part using S/MIME.
11042 @kindex C-c C-m c o
11043 @findex mml-secure-encrypt-pgp
11045 Digitally encrypt current MIME part using PGP.
11048 @kindex C-c C-m c p
11049 @findex mml-secure-encrypt-pgpmime
11051 Digitally encrypt current MIME part using PGP/MIME.
11055 Also @xref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}.
11057 @node Select Methods
11058 @chapter Select Methods
11059 @cindex foreign groups
11060 @cindex select methods
11062 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
11063 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
11064 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
11065 personal mail group.
11067 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
11068 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
11069 list where the first element says what back end to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
11070 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
11071 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
11072 value may have special meaning for the back end in question.
11074 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
11075 we do just that (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
11077 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the back end will recognize the
11080 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
11081 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
11082 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
11083 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
11084 back end just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
11086 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
11089 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
11090 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
11091 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
11092 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
11093 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
11094 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
11095 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
11096 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
11100 @node Server Buffer
11101 @section Server Buffer
11103 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
11104 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
11105 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
11106 one back end or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
11107 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
11108 back end represents a virtual server.
11110 For instance, the @code{nntp} back end may be used to connect to several
11111 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
11112 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which back end to
11113 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
11115 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
11116 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
11117 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
11118 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
11119 Anyway, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
11120 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
11121 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
11123 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
11124 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
11127 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
11128 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
11129 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
11130 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
11131 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
11132 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
11133 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
11136 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
11137 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
11140 @node Server Buffer Format
11141 @subsection Server Buffer Format
11142 @cindex server buffer format
11144 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
11145 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
11146 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
11147 variable, with some simple extensions:
11152 How the news is fetched---the back end name.
11155 The name of this server.
11158 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
11161 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
11164 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
11165 The mode line can also be customized by using the
11166 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
11167 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
11177 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
11180 @node Server Commands
11181 @subsection Server Commands
11182 @cindex server commands
11188 @findex gnus-server-add-server
11189 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
11193 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
11194 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
11197 @kindex SPACE (Server)
11198 @findex gnus-server-read-server
11199 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
11203 @findex gnus-server-exit
11204 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
11208 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
11209 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
11213 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
11214 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
11218 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
11219 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
11223 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
11224 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
11228 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
11229 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
11230 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
11235 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
11236 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
11237 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
11238 a mail back end that has gotten out of sync.
11243 @node Example Methods
11244 @subsection Example Methods
11246 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
11249 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
11252 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
11258 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
11259 back end, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
11262 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
11263 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
11265 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
11266 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
11270 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
11273 You should read the documentation to each back end to find out what
11274 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
11276 @code{nnmh} is a mail back end that reads a spool-like structure. Say
11277 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
11278 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
11282 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
11285 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
11288 Here's the method for a public spool:
11292 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
11293 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
11299 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
11300 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
11301 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
11302 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
11303 should probably look something like this:
11307 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet)
11308 (nntp-via-address "the.firewall.machine")
11309 (nntp-address "the.real.nntp.host")
11310 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
11313 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
11314 compressed connection over the modem line, you could add the following
11315 configuration to the example above:
11318 (nntp-via-rlogin-command "ssh")
11321 If you're behind a firewall, but have direct access to the outside world
11322 through a wrapper command like "runsocks", you could open a socksified
11323 telnet connection to the news server as follows:
11327 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
11328 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-telnet)
11329 (nntp-address "the.news.server")
11330 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
11333 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
11334 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
11335 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
11336 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
11339 @node Creating a Virtual Server
11340 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
11342 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
11343 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
11345 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
11346 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
11347 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
11349 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
11351 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
11352 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
11353 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
11354 will contain the following:
11364 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
11365 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
11366 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
11369 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
11370 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
11371 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
11374 @node Server Variables
11375 @subsection Server Variables
11377 One sticky point when defining variables (both on back ends and in Emacs
11378 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
11379 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
11380 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
11381 won't change the "derived" variables.
11383 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
11384 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
11385 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
11386 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
11387 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
11388 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
11389 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
11390 variables for each back end, see each back end's section later in this
11391 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
11395 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
11396 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
11397 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
11401 @node Servers and Methods
11402 @subsection Servers and Methods
11404 Wherever you would normally use a select method
11405 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
11406 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
11407 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
11411 @node Unavailable Servers
11412 @subsection Unavailable Servers
11414 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
11415 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
11416 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
11417 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
11418 actually the case or not.
11420 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
11421 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
11422 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
11423 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
11424 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
11425 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
11426 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
11427 it will regard that server as ``down''.
11429 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
11430 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
11432 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{Server Buffer}) and poke it
11433 with the following commands:
11439 @findex gnus-server-open-server
11440 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
11441 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
11445 @findex gnus-server-close-server
11446 Close the connection (if any) to the server
11447 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
11451 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
11452 Mark the current server as unreachable
11453 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
11456 @kindex M-o (Server)
11457 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
11458 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
11459 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
11462 @kindex M-c (Server)
11463 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
11464 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
11465 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
11469 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
11470 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
11471 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
11477 @section Getting News
11478 @cindex reading news
11479 @cindex news back ends
11481 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
11482 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
11483 or it can read from a local spool.
11486 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
11487 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
11492 @subsection @sc{nntp}
11495 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
11496 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
11497 server as the, uhm, address.
11499 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
11500 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
11501 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
11502 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
11504 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
11505 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
11506 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
11508 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
11513 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
11514 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
11515 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
11517 @cindex authentification
11518 @cindex nntp authentification
11519 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
11520 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
11521 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
11522 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
11523 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
11524 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
11525 present in this hook.
11527 @item nntp-authinfo-function
11528 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
11529 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
11530 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
11531 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
11532 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
11533 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
11534 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
11535 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
11536 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
11537 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
11538 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
11542 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
11545 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
11547 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
11548 @samp{default}. In addition Gnus introduces two new tokens, not present
11549 in the original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
11550 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
11551 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
11552 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to and
11553 @samp{force} is explained below.
11557 Here's an example file:
11560 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
11561 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
11564 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
11565 have to be first, for instance.
11567 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
11568 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
11569 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
11570 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
11571 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
11572 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
11573 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
11575 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
11576 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
11582 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
11583 previously mentioned.
11585 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
11587 @item nntp-server-action-alist
11588 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
11589 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
11590 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
11591 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
11594 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
11595 '(("innd" (ding))))
11598 You probably don't want to do that, though.
11600 The default value is
11603 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
11604 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook
11605 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
11608 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
11609 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
11611 @item nntp-maximum-request
11612 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
11613 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this back end
11614 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
11615 speed things up, the back end sends lots of these commands without
11616 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
11617 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
11618 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
11620 @item nntp-connection-timeout
11621 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
11622 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
11623 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
11624 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
11625 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
11626 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
11627 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} back end should wait for a
11628 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
11629 no timeouts are done.
11631 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
11632 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
11633 @c @cindex PPP connections
11634 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
11635 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
11636 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
11637 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
11638 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
11639 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
11640 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
11641 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
11642 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
11643 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
11645 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
11646 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
11647 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
11648 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
11649 @c described above.
11651 @item nntp-server-hook
11652 @vindex nntp-server-hook
11653 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
11656 @item nntp-buggy-select
11657 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
11658 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
11660 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
11661 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
11662 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
11663 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
11666 @item nntp-xover-commands
11667 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
11670 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
11671 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
11675 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
11676 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
11677 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
11678 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
11679 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
11680 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
11681 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
11682 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
11683 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
11684 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
11685 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
11687 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
11688 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
11689 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
11691 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
11692 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
11693 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
11694 server closes connection.
11696 @item nntp-record-commands
11697 @vindex nntp-record-commands
11698 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
11699 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestamp) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
11700 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
11701 that doesn't seem to work.
11703 @item nntp-open-connection-function
11704 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
11705 It is possible to customize how the connection to the nntp server will
11706 be opened. If you specify an @code{nntp-open-connection-function}
11707 parameter, Gnus will use that function to establish the connection.
11708 Five pre-made functions are supplied. These functions can be grouped in
11709 two categories: direct connection functions (three pre-made), and
11710 indirect ones (two pre-made).
11712 @item nntp-prepare-post-hook
11713 @vindex nntp-prepare-post-hook
11714 A hook run just before posting an article. If there is no
11715 @code{Message-ID} header in the article and the news server provides the
11716 recommended ID, it will be added to the article before running this
11717 hook. It is useful to make @code{Cancel-Lock} headers even if you
11718 inhibit Gnus to add a @code{Message-ID} header, you could say:
11721 (add-hook 'nntp-prepare-post-hook 'canlock-insert-header)
11724 Note that not all servers support the recommended ID. This works for
11725 INN versions 2.3.0 and later, for instance.
11729 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
11730 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
11731 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
11735 @node Direct Functions
11736 @subsubsection Direct Functions
11737 @cindex direct connection functions
11739 These functions are called direct because they open a direct connection
11740 between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server. The behavior of these
11741 functions is also affected by commonly understood variables
11742 (@pxref{Common Variables}).
11745 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
11746 @item nntp-open-network-stream
11747 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
11750 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
11751 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
11752 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use
11753 this you must have OpenSSL (@uref{http://www.openssl.org}) or SSLeay
11754 installed (@uref{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also
11755 need @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distribution, for instance). You then
11756 define a server as follows:
11759 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
11761 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
11763 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
11764 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
11765 (nntp-port-number "snews")
11766 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
11769 @findex nntp-open-telnet-stream
11770 @item nntp-open-telnet-stream
11771 Opens a connection to an @sc{nntp} server by simply @samp{telnet}'ing
11772 it. You might wonder why this function exists, since we have the
11773 default @code{nntp-open-network-stream} which would do the job. (One
11774 of) the reason(s) is that if you are behind a firewall but have direct
11775 connections to the outside world thanks to a command wrapper like
11776 @code{runsocks}, you can use it like this:
11780 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
11781 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-telnet-stream)
11782 (nntp-address "the.news.server"))
11785 With the default method, you would need to wrap your whole Emacs
11786 session, which is not a good idea.
11790 @node Indirect Functions
11791 @subsubsection Indirect Functions
11792 @cindex indirect connection functions
11794 These functions are called indirect because they connect to an
11795 intermediate host before actually connecting to the @sc{nntp} server.
11796 All of these functions and related variables are also said to belong to
11797 the "via" family of connection: they're all prefixed with "via" to make
11798 things cleaner. The behavior of these functions is also affected by
11799 commonly understood variables (@pxref{Common Variables}).
11802 @item nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
11803 @findex nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
11804 Does an @samp{rlogin} on a remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet}
11805 to the real @sc{nntp} server from there. This is useful for instance if
11806 you need to connect to a firewall machine first.
11808 @code{nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet}-specific variables:
11811 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command
11812 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command
11813 Command used to log in on the intermediate host. The default is
11814 @samp{rsh}, but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
11817 @item nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
11818 @findex nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
11819 Does essentially the same, but uses @samp{telnet} instead of
11820 @samp{rlogin} to connect to the intermediate host.
11822 @code{nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet}-specific variables:
11825 @item nntp-via-telnet-command
11826 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-command
11827 Command used to @code{telnet} the intermediate host. The default is
11830 @item nntp-via-telnet-switches
11831 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-switches
11832 List of strings to be used as the switches to the
11833 @code{nntp-via-telnet-command} command. The default is @samp{("-8")}.
11835 @item nntp-via-user-password
11836 @vindex nntp-via-user-password
11837 Password to use when logging in on the intermediate host.
11839 @item nntp-via-envuser
11840 @vindex nntp-via-envuser
11841 If non-@code{nil}, the intermediate @code{telnet} session (client and
11842 server both) will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for
11843 login name. This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
11845 @item nntp-via-shell-prompt
11846 @vindex nntp-via-shell-prompt
11847 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the intermediate host. The default
11848 is @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
11855 Here are some additional variables that are understood by all the above
11860 @item nntp-via-user-name
11861 @vindex nntp-via-user-name
11862 User name to use when connecting to the intermediate host.
11864 @item nntp-via-address
11865 @vindex nntp-via-address
11866 Address of the intermediate host to connect to.
11871 @node Common Variables
11872 @subsubsection Common Variables
11874 The following variables affect the behavior of all, or several of the
11875 pre-made connection functions. When not specified, all functions are
11880 @item nntp-pre-command
11881 @vindex nntp-pre-command
11882 A command wrapper to use when connecting through a non native connection
11883 function (all except @code{nntp-open-network-stream} and
11884 @code{nntp-open-ssl-stream}. This is where you would put a @samp{SOCKS}
11885 wrapper for instance.
11888 @vindex nntp-address
11889 The address of the @sc{nntp} server.
11891 @item nntp-port-number
11892 @vindex nntp-port-number
11893 Port number to connect to the @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{nntp}.
11895 @item nntp-end-of-line
11896 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
11897 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
11898 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
11899 using a non native connection function.
11901 @item nntp-telnet-command
11902 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
11903 Command to use when connecting to the @sc{nntp} server through
11904 @samp{telnet}. This is NOT for an intermediate host. This is just for
11905 the real @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{telnet}.
11907 @item nntp-telnet-switches
11908 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
11909 A list of switches to pass to @code{nntp-telnet-command}. The default
11916 @subsection News Spool
11920 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
11921 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
11922 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
11925 Anyway, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
11926 anything else) as the address.
11928 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
11929 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
11930 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
11931 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
11935 @item nnspool-inews-program
11936 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
11937 Program used to post an article.
11939 @item nnspool-inews-switches
11940 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
11941 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
11943 @item nnspool-spool-directory
11944 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
11945 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
11946 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
11948 @item nnspool-nov-directory
11949 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
11950 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
11951 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
11953 @item nnspool-lib-dir
11954 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
11955 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
11957 @item nnspool-active-file
11958 @vindex nnspool-active-file
11959 The path to the active file.
11961 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
11962 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
11963 The path to the group descriptions file.
11965 @item nnspool-history-file
11966 @vindex nnspool-history-file
11967 The path to the news history file.
11969 @item nnspool-active-times-file
11970 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
11971 The path to the active date file.
11973 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
11974 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
11975 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
11978 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
11979 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
11981 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
11982 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
11983 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
11989 @section Getting Mail
11990 @cindex reading mail
11993 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
11997 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
11998 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
11999 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
12000 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
12001 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
12002 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
12003 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
12004 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
12005 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
12006 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
12007 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
12008 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
12009 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
12013 @node Mail in a Newsreader
12014 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
12016 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
12017 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
12018 of a culture shock.
12020 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
12021 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
12023 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
12024 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
12025 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
12026 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
12028 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
12030 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
12031 deleted? How awful!
12033 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
12034 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
12035 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
12036 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
12039 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
12040 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
12041 they want to treat a message.
12043 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
12044 via SMTP, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
12045 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
12046 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
12047 archived somewhere else.
12049 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
12050 These are transported via @sc{nntp}, and are therefore news. But we may need
12051 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
12052 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
12053 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
12055 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
12056 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
12057 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
12059 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
12060 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
12063 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
12064 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
12065 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
12066 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
12067 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
12069 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
12070 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
12071 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
12072 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
12073 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
12074 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
12078 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
12079 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
12081 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
12082 mail back end of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
12083 and things will happen automatically.
12085 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
12086 mail" back end), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
12089 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
12092 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this back end will be queried for new
12093 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
12094 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
12095 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
12096 like any other group.
12098 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
12101 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12102 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12103 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12107 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
12108 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
12109 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
12112 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
12113 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
12114 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Back End} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
12117 @node Splitting Mail
12118 @subsection Splitting Mail
12119 @cindex splitting mail
12120 @cindex mail splitting
12122 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
12123 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
12124 to be split into groups.
12127 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12128 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12129 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12130 ("mail.other" "")))
12133 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
12134 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
12135 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
12136 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
12137 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
12138 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
12139 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
12142 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
12145 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
12146 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
12147 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
12148 mail belongs in that group.
12150 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
12151 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
12152 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
12153 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
12154 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
12155 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
12157 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
12158 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
12159 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
12160 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
12161 thinks should carry this mail message.
12163 Note that the mail back ends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
12164 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
12165 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
12166 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
12168 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
12169 The mail back ends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
12170 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
12171 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
12172 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
12174 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
12177 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
12178 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
12179 links. If that's the case for you, set
12180 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
12181 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
12183 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
12184 @kindex nnmail-split-history
12185 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
12186 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
12187 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
12188 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
12191 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
12192 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
12193 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
12194 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
12195 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
12196 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
12197 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
12198 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
12199 month's rent money.
12203 @subsection Mail Sources
12205 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
12206 POP mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a maildir, for
12210 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
12211 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
12212 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
12216 @node Mail Source Specifiers
12217 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
12219 @cindex mail server
12222 @cindex mail source
12224 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
12225 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
12230 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
12233 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
12234 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
12235 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
12238 The following mail source types are available:
12242 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
12248 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
12249 environment variable or @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}.
12252 An example file mail source:
12255 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
12258 Or using the default path:
12264 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best to
12265 use POP or @sc{imap} or the like to fetch the mail. You can not use ange-ftp
12266 file names here---it has no way to lock the mail spool while moving the
12269 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
12273 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
12276 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
12280 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
12283 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
12285 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
12288 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
12292 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used
12293 when you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files.
12294 That is, mail from the file @file{foo.bar.spool} will be put in the
12295 group @code{foo.bar}. (You can change the suffix to be used instead
12296 of @code{.spool}.) Setting
12297 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-nil forces Gnus
12298 to scan the mail source only once. This is particularly useful if you
12299 want to scan mail groups at a specified level.
12305 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
12309 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
12313 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
12314 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
12315 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
12316 predicate are considered.
12320 Script run before/after fetching mail.
12324 An example directory mail source:
12327 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
12332 Get mail from a POP server.
12338 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
12339 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
12342 The port number of the POP server. This can be a number (eg,
12343 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
12344 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
12345 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}. On some systems you might
12346 need to specify it as @samp{"pop-3"} instead.
12349 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
12353 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
12357 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This should be
12358 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
12361 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
12364 The valid format specifier characters are:
12368 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
12369 included in this string.
12372 The name of the server.
12375 The port number of the server.
12378 The user name to use.
12381 The password to use.
12384 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
12385 corresponding keywords.
12388 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
12389 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
12392 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
12393 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
12396 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
12397 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
12400 @item :authentication
12401 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
12402 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
12407 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
12408 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
12410 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
12411 default user name, and default fetcher:
12417 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
12420 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
12421 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
12424 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
12427 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
12431 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
12432 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
12433 contains exactly one mail.
12439 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
12440 taken from the @code{MAILDIR} environment variable or
12443 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
12444 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
12446 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
12447 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
12448 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
12451 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
12452 from locking problems).
12456 Two example maildir mail sources:
12459 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/"
12460 :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
12464 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/"
12469 Get mail from a @sc{imap} server. If you don't want to use @sc{imap}
12470 as intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie with nnimap), for
12471 some reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar to a POP server
12472 and fetches articles from a given @sc{imap} mailbox. @xref{IMAP}, for
12475 Note that for the Kerberos, GSSAPI, SSL/TLS and STARTTLS support you
12476 may need external programs and libraries, @xref{IMAP}.
12482 The name of the @sc{imap} server. The default is taken from the
12483 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
12486 The port number of the @sc{imap} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
12487 @samp{993} for SSL/TLS connections.
12490 The user name to give to the @sc{imap} server. The default is the login
12494 The password to give to the @sc{imap} server. If not specified, the user is
12498 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
12499 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
12500 @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{starttls}, @samp{ssl},
12501 @samp{shell} or the default @samp{network}.
12503 @item :authentication
12504 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is
12505 one of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now,
12506 this means @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{digest-md5},
12507 @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default @samp{login}.
12510 When using the `shell' :stream, the contents of this variable is
12511 mapped into the `imap-shell-program' variable. This should be a
12512 @code{format}-like string (or list of strings). Here's an example:
12518 The valid format specifier characters are:
12522 The name of the server.
12525 User name from `imap-default-user'.
12528 The port number of the server.
12531 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
12532 corresponding keywords.
12535 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
12536 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
12539 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
12540 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
12541 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @sc{imap} client and mark some
12542 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{nil}.
12543 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
12544 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 §6.4.4.
12547 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
12548 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
12549 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
12550 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 §2.3.2.
12553 If non-nil, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the mailbox
12554 after finishing the fetch.
12558 An example @sc{imap} mail source:
12561 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com"
12563 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
12567 Get mail from a webmail server, such as www.hotmail.com,
12568 webmail.netscape.com, www.netaddress.com, www.my-deja.com.
12570 NOTE: Now mail.yahoo.com provides POP3 service, so @sc{pop} mail source
12573 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
12574 required for url "4.0pre.46".
12576 WARNING: Mails may lost. NO WARRANTY.
12582 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
12583 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
12586 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
12590 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
12594 If non-nil, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to trash
12595 folder after finishing the fetch.
12599 An example webmail source:
12602 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail
12604 :password "secret")
12609 @item Common Keywords
12610 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
12616 If non-nil, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you use
12617 directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this example:
12621 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
12626 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
12627 useful when you use local mail and news.
12632 @subsubsection Function Interface
12634 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
12635 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
12636 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
12637 consider the following mail-source setting:
12640 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
12641 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
12644 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
12645 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
12646 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
12647 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
12648 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
12650 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
12653 @node Mail Source Customization
12654 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
12656 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
12657 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
12661 @item mail-source-crash-box
12662 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
12663 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
12664 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
12666 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
12667 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
12668 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
12670 @item mail-source-directory
12671 @vindex mail-source-directory
12672 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
12673 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
12674 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
12677 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
12678 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
12679 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
12680 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
12681 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
12682 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
12684 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
12685 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
12686 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
12688 @item mail-source-movemail-program
12689 @vindex mail-source-movemail-program
12690 If non-nil, name of program for fetching new mail. If nil,
12691 @code{movemail} in @var{exec-directory}.
12696 @node Fetching Mail
12697 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
12699 @vindex mail-sources
12700 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
12701 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
12702 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
12703 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
12705 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
12706 @code{nil}, the mail back ends will never attempt to fetch mail by
12709 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
12710 mail server, you'd say something like:
12715 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
12716 :password "secret")))
12719 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
12723 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
12724 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
12727 :password "secret")))
12731 When you use a mail back end, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
12732 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
12733 mail if you're not using a mail back end---you have to do a lot of magic
12734 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
12735 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
12736 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
12740 @node Mail Back End Variables
12741 @subsection Mail Back End Variables
12743 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
12747 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
12748 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
12749 The mail back ends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
12750 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
12752 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
12753 @item nnmail-split-hook
12754 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
12755 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
12756 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
12757 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
12758 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
12759 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
12760 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
12761 in the buffer will show up in any files.
12762 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
12765 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12766 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12767 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12768 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12769 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
12770 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
12771 starting to handle the new mail) and
12772 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
12773 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
12774 default file modes the new mail files get:
12777 (add-hook 'nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12778 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
12780 (add-hook 'nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12781 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
12784 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
12785 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
12786 If non-@code{nil}, the mail back ends will use long file and directory
12787 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
12788 (assuming use of @code{nnml} back end) or files (assuming use of
12789 @code{nnfolder} back end) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
12790 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
12792 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
12793 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
12794 @findex delete-file
12795 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
12797 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12798 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12799 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
12800 the back end (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
12801 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
12806 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
12807 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
12808 @cindex mail splitting
12809 @cindex fancy mail splitting
12811 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
12812 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
12813 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
12814 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
12815 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
12816 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
12818 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
12821 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
12822 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
12823 ;; from real errors.
12824 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
12826 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
12827 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
12828 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
12829 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
12830 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
12831 ;; Other mailing lists...
12832 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
12833 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
12834 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
12835 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
12836 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
12837 ;; message was really cross-posted.
12838 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
12839 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
12841 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
12842 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
12846 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
12847 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
12848 the five possible split syntaxes:
12853 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
12854 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
12858 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
12859 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
12860 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
12861 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
12862 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
12863 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
12864 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
12865 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
12868 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12869 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
12870 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
12871 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
12874 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12875 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
12878 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
12879 (i.e., delete) this message. Use with extreme caution.
12882 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
12883 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
12884 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
12885 function should return a @var{split}.
12888 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
12889 body of the messages:
12892 (defun split-on-body ()
12894 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
12895 (goto-char (point-min))
12896 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
12900 The @samp{" *nnmail incoming*"} is narrowed to the message in question
12901 when the @code{:} function is run.
12904 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12905 element is @code{!}, then SPLIT will be processed, and FUNC will be
12906 called as a function with the result of SPLIT as argument. FUNC should
12910 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
12914 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
12915 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
12916 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
12917 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
12918 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
12920 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
12921 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
12922 are expanded as specified by the variable
12923 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
12924 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
12927 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
12928 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
12929 when all this splitting is performed.
12931 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
12932 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
12933 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
12936 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
12939 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
12940 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
12942 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
12943 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
12944 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
12945 groupings 1 through 9.
12947 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
12948 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
12949 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
12950 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
12951 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
12952 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
12953 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
12954 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
12955 it once per thread.
12957 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} and
12958 @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} to a non-nil value. And then
12959 you can include @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} using the colon
12962 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
12963 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
12964 ;; other splits go here
12968 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
12969 non-nil, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees in the
12970 file specified by the variable @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file},
12971 together with the group it is in (the group is omitted for non-mail
12972 messages). When mail splitting is invoked, the function
12973 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks at the References (and
12974 In-Reply-To) header of each message to split and searches the file
12975 specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file} for the message ids.
12976 When it has found a parent, it returns the corresponding group name
12977 unless the group name matches the regexp
12978 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent-ignore-groups}. It is recommended
12979 that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a somewhat higher
12980 number than the default so that the message ids are still in the cache.
12981 (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some 300 kBytes in size.)
12982 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12983 When @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus
12984 also records the message ids of moved articles, so that the followup
12985 messages goes into the new group.
12988 @node Group Mail Splitting
12989 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
12990 @cindex mail splitting
12991 @cindex group mail splitting
12993 @findex gnus-group-split
12994 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
12995 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
12996 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
12997 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
12998 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
12999 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
13000 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
13001 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
13003 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
13004 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
13005 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
13006 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
13008 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
13009 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
13010 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
13011 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
13012 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
13013 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
13014 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
13016 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
13017 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
13018 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
13019 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
13020 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
13021 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
13022 @code{gnus-group-split}.
13024 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
13025 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
13026 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
13027 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
13028 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
13029 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
13030 that group is used as the catch-all group. Even though this variable is
13031 often used just to name a group, it may also be set to an arbitrarily
13032 complex fancy split (after all, a group name is a fancy split), and this
13033 may be useful to split mail that doesn't go to any mailing list to
13034 personal mail folders. Note that this fancy split is added as the last
13035 element of a @code{|} split list that also contains a @code{&} split
13036 with the rules extracted from group parameters.
13038 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
13043 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
13044 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
13046 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
13047 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
13048 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
13049 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
13051 ((split-spec . catch-all))
13054 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
13055 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
13056 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
13059 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
13060 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
13061 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
13065 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
13066 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
13067 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
13071 (: gnus-mlsplt-fancy GROUPS NO-CROSSPOST CATCH-ALL)
13074 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
13075 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
13076 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
13077 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} is the fallback
13078 fancy split, used like @var{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}.
13079 If @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
13080 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
13081 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
13082 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
13084 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
13085 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
13086 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
13087 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
13088 used to enable @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
13089 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
13090 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
13091 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
13092 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
13094 @findex gnus-group-split-update
13095 However, if you change group parameters, you'd have to update
13096 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
13097 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
13098 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
13099 you. For example, add to your @file{.gnus}:
13102 (gnus-group-split-setup AUTO-UPDATE CATCH-ALL)
13105 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
13106 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
13107 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
13108 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional, equivalent to @code{nil}),
13109 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
13112 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
13113 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
13114 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
13115 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
13117 @node Incorporating Old Mail
13118 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
13119 @cindex incorporating old mail
13120 @cindex import old mail
13122 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
13123 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
13124 back ends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
13127 Doing so can be quite easy.
13129 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
13130 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
13131 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
13132 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
13133 your @code{nnml} groups.
13139 Go to the group buffer.
13142 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
13143 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
13146 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
13149 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
13150 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
13153 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
13154 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
13157 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
13158 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
13159 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
13160 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
13161 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
13163 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
13164 back end to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
13165 using the new mail back end.
13168 @node Expiring Mail
13169 @subsection Expiring Mail
13170 @cindex article expiry
13172 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
13173 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
13174 different approach to mail reading.
13176 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
13177 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
13178 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
13179 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
13180 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
13181 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
13184 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
13185 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
13186 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
13187 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
13188 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
13189 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
13190 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
13191 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
13193 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
13194 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
13195 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
13196 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
13197 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
13198 column in the summary buffer.
13200 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
13201 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
13202 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
13203 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
13206 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
13208 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
13209 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
13210 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
13213 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
13214 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
13215 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
13216 articles expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
13217 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
13219 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
13220 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
13223 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
13224 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
13227 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
13228 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
13230 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
13231 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
13232 don't really mix very well.
13234 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
13235 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
13236 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
13237 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
13240 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
13241 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
13242 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
13243 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
13246 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
13248 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
13250 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
13252 ((string= group "mail.junk")
13254 ((string= group "important")
13260 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
13261 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
13263 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
13264 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
13265 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
13268 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
13269 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
13271 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
13272 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
13273 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them
13274 to other groups instead of deleting them. The variable
13275 @code{nnmail-expiry-target} (and the @code{expiry-target} group
13276 parameter) controls this. The variable supplies a default value for
13277 all groups, which can be overridden for specific groups by the group
13278 parameter. default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a
13279 string (which should be the name of the group the message should be
13280 moved to), or a function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to
13281 the message in question, and with the name of the group being moved
13282 from as its parameter) which should return a target -- either a group
13283 name or @code{delete}.
13285 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
13287 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
13290 @findex nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
13291 @vindex nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
13292 Gnus provides a function @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-target} which will
13293 expire mail to groups according to the variable
13294 @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets}. Here's an example:
13297 (setq nnmail-expiry-target 'nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
13298 nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
13299 '((to-from "boss" "nnfolder:Work")
13300 ("subject" "IMPORTANT" "nnfolder:IMPORTANT.%Y.%b")
13301 ("from" ".*" "nnfolder:Archive-%Y")))
13304 With this setup, any mail that has @code{IMPORTANT} in its Subject
13305 header and was sent in the year @code{YYYY} and month @code{MMM}, will
13306 get expired to the group @code{nnfolder:IMPORTANT.YYYY.MMM}. If its
13307 From or To header contains the string @code{boss}, it will get expired
13308 to @code{nnfolder:Work}. All other mail will get expired to
13309 @code{nnfolder:Archive-YYYY}.
13311 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
13312 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
13313 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
13314 easier for procmail users.
13316 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
13317 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
13318 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
13319 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
13320 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
13321 caution. Even more dangerous is the
13322 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
13323 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
13324 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
13325 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
13326 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
13327 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
13328 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
13331 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
13333 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
13334 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
13335 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
13336 auto-expire turned on.
13340 @subsection Washing Mail
13341 @cindex mail washing
13342 @cindex list server brain damage
13343 @cindex incoming mail treatment
13345 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
13346 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
13347 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
13348 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
13349 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
13350 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
13352 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
13353 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
13354 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
13357 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
13358 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
13359 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
13360 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
13363 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
13364 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
13365 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
13366 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
13367 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
13370 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
13371 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
13372 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
13373 Emacs running on MS machines.
13377 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
13378 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
13379 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
13380 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
13383 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
13384 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
13385 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
13386 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
13388 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
13389 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
13390 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
13391 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
13392 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
13393 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
13394 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
13397 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
13398 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
13401 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
13402 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
13405 This can also be done non-destructively with
13406 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
13408 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
13409 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
13410 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
13412 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
13413 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
13415 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
13416 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
13417 @code{References} headers.
13421 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
13422 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
13423 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
13427 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
13428 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
13429 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
13436 @subsection Duplicates
13438 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
13439 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
13440 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
13441 @cindex duplicate mails
13442 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
13443 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
13444 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
13445 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
13446 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
13447 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
13448 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
13449 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
13450 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
13451 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
13452 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
13453 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
13454 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
13456 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
13457 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
13458 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
13459 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
13461 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
13464 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
13465 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
13469 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
13470 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
13471 ("gnus-warning" "duplicat\\(e\\|ion\\) of message" "duplicate")
13472 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
13473 (any mail "mail.misc")
13480 (setq nnmail-split-methods
13481 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:.*duplicate")
13486 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
13487 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
13488 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
13489 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
13490 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
13493 @node Not Reading Mail
13494 @subsection Not Reading Mail
13496 If you start using any of the mail back ends, they have the annoying
13497 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
13498 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
13500 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
13501 @code{nil}, none of the back ends will ever attempt to read incoming
13502 mail, which should help.
13504 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13505 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
13506 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
13507 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
13508 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
13509 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
13510 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
13511 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All back ends have
13512 variables called back-end-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
13513 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
13514 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
13516 All the mail back ends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
13517 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
13521 @node Choosing a Mail Back End
13522 @subsection Choosing a Mail Back End
13524 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
13525 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
13526 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
13528 There are five different mail back ends in the standard Gnus, and more
13529 back ends are available separately. The mail back end most people use
13530 (because it is the fastest and most flexible) is @code{nnml}
13531 (@pxref{Mail Spool}).
13534 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
13535 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
13536 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
13537 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
13538 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
13539 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
13543 @node Unix Mail Box
13544 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
13546 @cindex unix mail box
13548 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
13549 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
13550 The @dfn{nnmbox} back end will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
13551 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
13552 which group it belongs in.
13554 Virtual server settings:
13557 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
13558 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
13559 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory. Default is
13562 @item nnmbox-active-file
13563 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
13564 The name of the active file for the mail box. Default is
13565 @file{~/.mbox-active}.
13567 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
13568 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
13569 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
13570 into groups. Default is @code{t}.
13575 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
13579 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
13580 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
13581 The @dfn{nnbabyl} back end will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
13582 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
13583 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
13585 Virtual server settings:
13588 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
13589 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
13590 The name of the rmail mbox file. The default is @file{~/RMAIL}
13592 @item nnbabyl-active-file
13593 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
13594 The name of the active file for the rmail box. The default is
13595 @file{~/.rmail-active}
13597 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13598 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13599 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail. Default is
13605 @subsubsection Mail Spool
13607 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
13609 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
13610 format. It should be used with some caution.
13612 @vindex nnml-directory
13613 If you use this back end, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
13614 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
13615 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
13616 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
13618 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
13621 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
13622 in your account, you should not use this back end. As each mail gets its
13623 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
13624 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
13625 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
13626 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
13627 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
13628 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
13630 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest back end when it comes to article
13631 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
13632 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
13633 back end when it comes to reading mail.
13635 @cindex self contained nnml servers
13636 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnml}
13637 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
13638 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
13639 proper @code{nnml} server) and have all your marks be preserved. Marks
13640 for a group is usually stored in the @code{.marks} file (but see
13641 @code{nnml-marks-file-name}) within each @code{nnml} group's directory.
13642 Individual @code{nnml} groups are also possible to backup, use @kbd{G m}
13643 to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the nnml
13646 Virtual server settings:
13649 @item nnml-directory
13650 @vindex nnml-directory
13651 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
13652 The default is the value of `message-directory' (whose default value is
13655 @item nnml-active-file
13656 @vindex nnml-active-file
13657 The active file for the @code{nnml} server. The default is
13658 @file{~/Mail/active"}.
13660 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
13661 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
13662 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
13663 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}.
13665 @item nnml-get-new-mail
13666 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
13667 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail. The default is
13670 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
13671 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
13672 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
13673 default is @code{nil}.
13675 @item nnml-nov-file-name
13676 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
13677 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
13679 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
13680 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
13681 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
13683 @item nnml-marks-is-evil
13684 @vindex nnml-marks-is-evil
13685 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
13686 default is @code{nil}.
13688 @item nnml-marks-file-name
13689 @vindex nnml-marks-file-name
13690 The name of the @sc{marks} files. The default is @file{.marks}.
13694 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
13695 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
13696 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
13697 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
13698 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
13699 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
13700 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
13705 @subsubsection MH Spool
13707 @cindex mh-e mail spool
13709 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
13710 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file or marks file.
13711 This makes @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower back end than @code{nnml},
13712 but it also makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
13714 Virtual server settings:
13717 @item nnmh-directory
13718 @vindex nnmh-directory
13719 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory. The
13720 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
13723 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
13724 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
13725 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail. The default is
13729 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
13730 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
13731 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
13732 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
13733 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
13734 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
13735 to set this variable to @code{t}. The default is @code{nil}.
13740 @subsubsection Mail Folders
13742 @cindex mbox folders
13743 @cindex mail folders
13745 @code{nnfolder} is a back end for storing each mail group in a separate
13746 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
13747 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
13750 @cindex self contained nnfolder servers
13751 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnfolder}
13752 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
13753 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
13754 proper @code{nnfolder} server) and have all your marks be preserved.
13755 Marks for a group is usually stored in a file named as the mbox file
13756 with @code{.mrk} concatenated to it (but see
13757 @code{nnfolder-marks-file-suffix}) within the @code{nnfolder} directory.
13758 Individual @code{nnfolder} groups are also possible to backup, use
13759 @kbd{G m} to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the
13760 @code{nnfolder} directory).
13762 Virtual server settings:
13765 @item nnfolder-directory
13766 @vindex nnfolder-directory
13767 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
13768 The default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
13771 @item nnfolder-active-file
13772 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
13773 The name of the active file. The default is @file{~/Mail/active}.
13775 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
13776 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
13777 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
13778 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}
13780 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
13781 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
13782 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail. The default
13785 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
13786 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
13787 @cindex backup files
13788 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
13789 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
13790 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
13791 your @file{.emacs} file:
13794 (defun turn-off-backup ()
13795 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
13797 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
13800 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
13801 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
13802 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
13803 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
13804 extract some information from it before removing it.
13806 @item nnfolder-nov-is-evil
13807 @vindex nnfolder-nov-is-evil
13808 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
13809 default is @code{nil}.
13811 @item nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
13812 @vindex nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
13813 The extension for @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.nov}.
13815 @item nnfolder-nov-directory
13816 @vindex nnfolder-nov-directory
13817 The directory where the @sc{nov} files should be stored. If nil,
13818 @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
13820 @item nnfolder-marks-is-evil
13821 @vindex nnfolder-marks-is-evil
13822 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
13823 default is @code{nil}.
13825 @item nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
13826 @vindex nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
13827 The extension for @sc{marks} files. The default is @file{.mrk}.
13829 @item nnfolder-marks-directory
13830 @vindex nnfolder-marks-directory
13831 The directory where the @sc{marks} files should be stored. If nil,
13832 @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
13837 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
13838 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
13839 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
13840 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
13841 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
13842 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
13845 @node Comparing Mail Back Ends
13846 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Back Ends
13848 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{back end} is the common word for a
13849 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
13850 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
13851 and so selection of a suitable back end is required in order to get that
13852 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
13854 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
13855 typically done by @sc{nntp} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
13856 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
13857 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @sc{nntp} server), and
13858 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
13859 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
13860 @code{nnspool} back ends, to select between these methods, if one happens
13861 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
13864 The goal in selecting a mail back end is to pick one which
13865 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
13866 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
13867 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
13872 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
13873 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
13874 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
13875 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
13876 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
13877 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
13878 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
13879 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
13880 this back end, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
13881 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
13882 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
13883 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
13884 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
13889 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
13890 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
13891 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
13892 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
13893 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
13894 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
13895 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
13896 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
13897 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
13898 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
13899 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
13900 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
13901 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
13902 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
13904 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
13905 filesystem, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
13910 @code{nnml} is the back end which smells the most as though you were
13911 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
13912 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
13913 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
13914 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
13915 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
13916 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
13917 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
13918 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
13919 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
13920 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
13921 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
13922 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
13923 provided by the active file and overviews.
13925 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
13926 resource which defines available places in the filesystem to put new
13927 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
13928 tight, shared filesystems. But if you live on a personal machine where
13929 the filesystem is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
13932 It is also problematic using this back end if you are living in a
13933 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
13938 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
13939 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
13940 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
13941 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
13942 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
13943 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
13944 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
13948 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
13949 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
13950 itself puts *all* one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
13951 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
13952 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
13953 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
13954 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
13955 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
13956 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
13958 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
13959 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
13960 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
13961 friendly mail back end all over.
13966 @node Browsing the Web
13967 @section Browsing the Web
13969 @cindex browsing the web
13973 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
13974 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
13975 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
13976 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
13977 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
13978 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
13979 even know what a news group is.
13981 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
13982 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
13983 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
13984 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
13985 you mad in the end.
13987 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
13990 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of back ends for providing
13991 interfaces to these sources.
13995 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
13996 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
13997 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
13998 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
13999 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
14000 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
14003 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
14005 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
14006 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @sc{html} data
14007 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus back end
14008 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these back ends,
14009 though, you should be ok.
14011 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
14012 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
14013 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
14014 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
14015 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
14017 @node Archiving Mail
14018 @subsection Archiving Mail
14019 @cindex archiving mail
14020 @cindex backup of mail
14022 Some of the back ends, notably nnml and nnfolder, now actually store
14023 the article marks with each group. For these servers, archiving and
14024 restoring a group while preserving marks is fairly simple.
14026 (Preserving the group level and group parameters as well still
14027 requires ritual dancing and sacrifices to the @code{.newsrc.eld} deity
14030 To archive an entire @code{nnml} or @code{nnfolder} server, take a
14031 recursive copy of the server directory. There is no need to shut down
14032 Gnus, so archiving may be invoked by @code{cron} or similar. You
14033 restore the data by restoring the directory tree, and adding a server
14034 definition pointing to that directory in Gnus. The @ref{Article
14035 Backlog}, @ref{Asynchronous Fetching} and other things might interfer
14036 with overwriting data, so you may want to shut down Gnus before you
14039 It is also possible to archive individual @code{nnml} or
14040 @code{nnfolder} groups, while preserving marks. For @code{nnml}, you
14041 copy all files in the group's directory. For @code{nnfolder} you need
14042 to copy both the base folder file itself (@code{FOO}, say), and the
14043 marks file (@code{FOO.mrk} in this example). Restoring the group is
14044 done with @kbd{G m} from the Group buffer. The last step makes Gnus
14045 notice the new directory.
14048 @subsection Web Searches
14052 @cindex InReference
14053 @cindex Usenet searches
14054 @cindex searching the Usenet
14056 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
14057 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
14058 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
14059 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
14060 searches without having to use a browser.
14062 The @code{nnweb} back end allows an easy interface to the mighty search
14063 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
14064 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
14065 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
14066 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
14068 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
14069 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
14070 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
14071 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
14072 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
14073 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
14074 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
14075 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
14076 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
14077 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
14080 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
14081 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
14082 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
14083 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
14084 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
14085 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
14087 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
14088 to use @code{nnweb}.
14090 Virtual server variables:
14095 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
14096 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
14100 @vindex nnweb-search
14101 The search string to feed to the search engine.
14103 @item nnweb-max-hits
14104 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
14105 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
14108 @item nnweb-type-definition
14109 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
14110 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
14111 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
14116 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
14120 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
14123 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
14126 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
14130 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
14137 @subsection Slashdot
14141 Slashdot (@uref{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
14142 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
14143 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
14145 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
14146 following in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
14149 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
14150 '((nnslashdot "")))
14153 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} back end for new comments
14154 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
14155 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
14156 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
14157 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
14160 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
14161 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
14163 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
14164 comments), some light @sc{html}izations will be performed. In
14165 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
14166 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
14167 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @sc{html}
14168 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
14171 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
14174 @item nnslashdot-threaded
14175 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
14176 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
14177 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
14178 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
14179 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
14180 but much, much slower than untreaded.
14182 @item nnslashdot-login-name
14183 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
14184 The login name to use when posting.
14186 @item nnslashdot-password
14187 @vindex nnslashdot-password
14188 The password to use when posting.
14190 @item nnslashdot-directory
14191 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
14192 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default is
14193 @samp{~/News/slashdot/}.
14195 @item nnslashdot-active-url
14196 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
14197 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
14198 news articles and comments. The default is
14199 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
14201 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
14202 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
14203 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
14205 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
14207 @item nnslashdot-article-url
14208 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
14209 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
14211 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
14213 @item nnslashdot-threshold
14214 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
14215 The score threshold. The default is -1.
14217 @item nnslashdot-group-number
14218 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
14219 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
14220 updated. The default is 0.
14227 @subsection Ultimate
14229 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
14231 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@uref{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
14232 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
14233 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
14234 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
14236 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
14237 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
14238 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
14239 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
14240 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
14241 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
14242 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
14244 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
14247 @item nnultimate-directory
14248 @vindex nnultimate-directory
14249 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
14250 @samp{~/News/ultimate/}.
14255 @subsection Web Archive
14257 @cindex Web Archive
14259 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
14260 @uref{http://www.egroups.com/} and
14261 @uref{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
14262 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
14265 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
14266 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
14267 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET an_egroup RET egroups RET
14268 www.egroups.com RET your@@email.address RET}. (Substitute the
14269 @sc{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
14270 @sc{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
14271 back end by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
14273 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
14276 @item nnwarchive-directory
14277 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
14278 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
14279 @samp{~/News/warchive/}.
14281 @item nnwarchive-login
14282 @vindex nnwarchive-login
14283 The account name on the web server.
14285 @item nnwarchive-passwd
14286 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
14287 The password for your account on the web server.
14295 Some sites have RDF site summary (RSS)
14296 @uref{http://purl.org/rss/1.0/spec}. It has a quite regular and nice
14297 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
14300 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something
14301 like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET RET}, then
14304 The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:
14307 @item nnrss-directory
14308 @vindex nnrss-directory
14309 The directory where @code{nnrss} stores its files. The default is
14310 @samp{~/News/rss/}.
14314 The following code may be helpful, if you want to show the description in
14315 the summary buffer.
14318 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-description-field)
14319 (setq gnus-summary-line-format "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-15,15f%]%) %s%uX\n")
14321 (defun gnus-user-format-function-X (header)
14323 (assq nnrss-description-field (mail-header-extra header))))
14324 (if descr (concat "\n\t" (cdr descr)) "")))
14327 The following code may be useful to open an nnrss url directly from the
14330 (require 'browse-url)
14332 (defun browse-nnrss-url( arg )
14334 (let ((url (assq nnrss-url-field
14337 (assq (gnus-summary-article-number)
14338 gnus-newsgroup-data))))))
14340 (browse-url (cdr url))
14341 (gnus-summary-scroll-up arg))))
14343 (eval-after-load "gnus"
14344 #'(define-key gnus-summary-mode-map
14345 (kbd "<RET>") 'browse-nnrss-url))
14346 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-url-field)
14349 @node Customizing w3
14350 @subsection Customizing w3
14356 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
14357 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
14358 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
14360 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
14361 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
14362 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
14365 (eval-after-load "w3"
14367 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
14368 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
14369 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
14370 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
14372 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
14375 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
14376 @sc{html} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
14385 @sc{imap} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or ...),
14386 think of it as a modernized @sc{nntp}. Connecting to a @sc{imap}
14387 server is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just
14388 specify the network address of the server.
14390 @sc{imap} has two properties. First, @sc{imap} can do everything that
14391 POP can, it can hence be viewed as a POP++. Secondly, @sc{imap} is a
14392 mail storage protocol, similar to @sc{nntp} being a news storage
14393 protocol -- however, @sc{imap} offers more features than @sc{nntp}
14394 because news is more or less read-only whereas mail is read-write.
14396 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a POP++, use an imap entry in
14397 @code{mail-sources}. With this, Gnus will fetch mails from the
14398 @sc{imap} server and store them on the local disk. This is not the
14399 usage described in this section--@xref{Mail Sources}.
14401 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a mail storage protocol, use an nnimap
14402 entry in @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods}. With this, Gnus will
14403 manipulate mails stored on the @sc{imap} server. This is the kind of
14404 usage explained in this section.
14406 A server configuration in @code{~/.gnus} with a few @sc{imap} servers
14407 might look something like the following. (Note that for SSL/TLS, you
14408 need external programs and libraries, see below.)
14411 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
14412 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; no special configuration
14413 ; perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:
14415 (nnimap-address "localhost")
14416 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
14417 ; a UW server running on localhost
14419 (nnimap-server-port 143)
14420 (nnimap-address "localhost")
14421 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
14422 ; anonymous public cyrus server:
14423 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
14424 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
14425 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
14426 (nnimap-stream network))
14427 ; a ssl server on a non-standard port:
14429 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
14430 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
14431 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
14434 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
14439 @item nnimap-address
14440 @vindex nnimap-address
14442 The address of the remote @sc{imap} server. Defaults to the virtual
14443 server name if not specified.
14445 @item nnimap-server-port
14446 @vindex nnimap-server-port
14447 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for SSL.
14449 Note that this should be an integer, example server specification:
14452 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14453 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
14456 @item nnimap-list-pattern
14457 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
14458 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
14459 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
14460 interested in a few -- some servers export your home directory via
14461 @sc{imap}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
14462 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
14464 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
14465 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
14466 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
14469 Example server specification:
14472 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14473 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
14474 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
14477 @item nnimap-stream
14478 @vindex nnimap-stream
14479 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
14480 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
14481 of SSL/TLS. (IMAP over SSL/TLS is being replaced by STARTTLS, which
14482 can be automatically detected, but it's not widely deployed yet.)
14484 Example server specification:
14487 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14488 (nnimap-stream ssl))
14491 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
14495 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually Kerberos 5). Requires the
14496 @samp{imtest} program.
14498 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with Kerberos 4. Requires the @samp{imtest} program.
14500 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
14501 SSL). Requires the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
14504 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL. Requires OpenSSL (the program
14505 @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}) as well as the external
14506 library @samp{ssl.el}.
14508 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start @sc{imap} connection.
14510 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
14513 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
14514 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD. If you're
14515 using @samp{imtest} from Cyrus IMAPD < 2.0.14 (which includes version
14516 1.5.x and 1.6.x) you need to frob @code{imap-process-connection-type}
14517 to make @code{imap.el} use a pty instead of a pipe when communicating
14518 with @samp{imtest}. You will then suffer from a line length
14519 restrictions on IMAP commands, which might make Gnus seem to hang
14520 indefinitely if you have many articles in a mailbox. The variable
14521 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
14524 @vindex imap-ssl-program
14525 For SSL connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
14526 @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
14527 and nnimap support it too - altough the most recent versions of
14528 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
14529 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
14530 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
14531 to OpenSSL/SSLeay. You also need @samp{ssl.el} (from the W3
14532 distribution, for instance).
14534 @vindex imap-shell-program
14535 @vindex imap-shell-host
14536 For @sc{imap} connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
14537 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
14539 @item nnimap-authenticator
14540 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
14542 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
14543 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
14545 Example server specification:
14548 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14549 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
14552 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
14556 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Requires
14557 external program @code{imtest}.
14559 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos 4 authentication. Requires external program
14562 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Requires
14563 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
14565 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
14567 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
14569 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your emailadress as password.
14572 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
14574 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
14575 Unlike Parmenides the @sc{imap} designers has decided that things that
14576 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @sc{imap} has
14577 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
14578 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
14579 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{G DEL} or
14582 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
14583 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
14584 running in circles yet?
14586 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
14587 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
14590 The possible options are:
14595 The default behavior, delete all articles marked as "Deleted" when
14598 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
14599 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @sc{imap} clients
14600 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
14601 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
14603 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
14608 @item nnimap-importantize-dormant
14609 @vindex nnimap-importantize-dormant
14611 If non-nil, marks dormant articles as ticked (as well), for other IMAP
14612 clients. Within Gnus, dormant articles will naturally still (only) be
14613 marked as ticked. This is to make dormant articles stand out, just
14614 like ticked articles, in other IMAP clients. (In other words, Gnus has
14615 two ``Tick'' marks and IMAP has only one.)
14617 Probably the only reason for frobing this would be if you're trying
14618 enable per-user persistant dormant flags, using something like:
14621 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-flag-alist)
14622 (format "gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
14623 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-predicate-alist)
14624 (format "KEYWORD gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
14627 In this case, you would not want the per-user dormant flag showing up
14628 as ticked for other users.
14630 @item nnimap-expunge-search-string
14632 @vindex nnimap-expunge-search-string
14634 This variable contain the IMAP search command sent to server when
14635 searching for articles eligible for expiring. The default is
14636 @code{"UID %s NOT SINCE %s"}, where the first @code{%s} is replaced by
14637 UID set and the second @code{%s} is replaced by a date.
14639 Probably the only useful value to change this to is
14640 @code{"UID %s NOT SENTSINCE %s"}, which makes nnimap use the Date: in
14641 messages instead of the internal article date. See section 6.4.4 of
14642 RFC 2060 for more information on valid strings.
14644 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
14645 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
14647 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
14648 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
14649 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
14655 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
14656 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
14657 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
14662 @node Splitting in IMAP
14663 @subsection Splitting in @sc{imap}
14664 @cindex splitting imap mail
14666 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
14667 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
14668 @sc{imap} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
14669 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @sc{imap}
14670 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
14674 Here are the variables of interest:
14678 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
14679 @cindex splitting, crosspost
14681 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
14683 If non-nil, do crossposting if several split methods match the mail. If
14684 nil, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule} found will be used.
14686 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
14688 @item nnimap-split-inbox
14689 @cindex splitting, inbox
14691 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
14693 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @sc{imap}
14694 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to nil, which means that splitting is
14698 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
14699 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
14702 No nnmail equivalent.
14704 @item nnimap-split-rule
14705 @cindex Splitting, rules
14706 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
14708 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
14711 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
14712 sublist gives the name of the @sc{imap} mailbox to move articles
14713 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
14714 Neither did I, we need examples.
14717 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14719 "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
14720 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
14721 ("INBOX.private" "")))
14724 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
14725 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
14726 into INBOX.junk and everything else in INBOX.private.
14728 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
14729 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
14733 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
14736 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
14737 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
14738 containing the headers of the article. It should return a non-nil value
14739 if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
14741 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
14742 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
14743 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
14744 of your inbox. (This might affect performance if you keep lots of
14745 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
14746 them every time you fetch new mail.)
14748 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
14749 end. The first rule to make a match will "win", unless you have
14750 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will "win".
14752 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
14753 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
14754 thinks the article should be split to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14756 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it needs to.
14758 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
14759 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
14760 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
14763 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14764 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
14765 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
14766 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
14767 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
14768 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
14771 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
14772 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
14773 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
14774 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
14775 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
14776 group/function elements.
14778 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
14780 @item nnimap-split-predicate
14782 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
14784 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
14785 split, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
14787 This might be useful if you use another @sc{imap} client to read mail in
14788 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
14789 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
14792 @item nnimap-split-fancy
14793 @cindex splitting, fancy
14794 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
14795 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
14797 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14798 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
14799 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
14801 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
14802 nnimap back ends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14803 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
14804 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14809 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
14810 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
14813 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
14817 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
14818 @subsection Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14819 @cindex editing imap acls
14820 @cindex Access Control Lists
14821 @cindex Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14823 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
14825 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @sc{imap} for
14826 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
14827 @sc{imap} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
14830 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
14831 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
14832 editing window with detailed instructions.
14834 Some possible uses:
14838 Giving "anyone" the "lrs" rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
14839 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
14840 follow the list without subscribing to it.
14842 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
14843 "anyone" posting ("p") capabilities to have "plussing" work (that is,
14844 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @sc{imap} mailbox
14848 @node Expunging mailboxes
14849 @subsection Expunging mailboxes
14853 @cindex Manual expunging
14855 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
14857 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-on-close},
14858 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
14859 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
14861 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
14866 @node Other Sources
14867 @section Other Sources
14869 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
14870 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
14874 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
14875 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
14876 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
14877 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
14878 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
14882 @node Directory Groups
14883 @subsection Directory Groups
14885 @cindex directory groups
14887 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
14888 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
14891 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
14892 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
14893 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
14894 back end to read directories. Big deal.
14896 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
14897 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
14898 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
14899 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
14900 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
14902 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
14904 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' back end---you can't delete or expire
14905 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
14906 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
14907 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
14910 @node Anything Groups
14911 @subsection Anything Groups
14914 From the @code{nndir} back end (which reads a single spool-like
14915 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
14916 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
14919 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
14920 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
14921 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
14922 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
14923 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
14924 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
14925 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
14926 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
14927 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
14928 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
14931 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
14932 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
14933 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
14934 in the article buffer, just as usual.
14936 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
14937 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
14938 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
14939 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
14941 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
14942 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
14943 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
14944 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
14945 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
14946 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
14947 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
14948 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
14953 @item nneething-map-file-directory
14954 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
14955 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
14956 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
14958 @item nneething-exclude-files
14959 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
14960 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
14961 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
14963 @item nneething-include-files
14964 @vindex nneething-include-files
14965 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
14966 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
14968 @item nneething-map-file
14969 @vindex nneething-map-file
14970 Name of the map files.
14974 @node Document Groups
14975 @subsection Document Groups
14977 @cindex documentation group
14980 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
14981 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
14988 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
14993 The standard Unix mbox file.
14995 @cindex MMDF mail box
14997 The MMDF mail box format.
15000 Several news articles appended into a file.
15003 @cindex rnews batch files
15004 The rnews batch transport format.
15005 @cindex forwarded messages
15008 Forwarded articles.
15011 Netscape mail boxes.
15014 MIME multipart messages.
15016 @item standard-digest
15017 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
15020 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
15023 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
15024 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
15025 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
15028 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
15029 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
15030 group. And that's it.
15032 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
15033 new & spiffy Gnus mail back end, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
15034 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
15035 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
15036 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
15037 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
15038 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
15039 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
15040 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
15041 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
15043 Virtual server variables:
15046 @item nndoc-article-type
15047 @vindex nndoc-article-type
15048 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
15049 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
15050 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
15051 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail},
15052 @code{outlook}, @code{oe-dbx}, and @code{mailman} or @code{guess}.
15054 @item nndoc-post-type
15055 @vindex nndoc-post-type
15056 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
15057 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
15062 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
15066 @node Document Server Internals
15067 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
15069 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
15070 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
15071 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
15072 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
15074 First, here's an example document type definition:
15078 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
15079 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
15082 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
15083 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
15084 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
15085 types can be defined with very few settings:
15088 @item first-article
15089 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
15090 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
15093 @item article-begin
15094 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
15095 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
15097 @item head-begin-function
15098 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
15101 @item nndoc-head-begin
15102 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
15105 @item nndoc-head-end
15106 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
15107 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
15109 @item body-begin-function
15110 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
15114 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
15117 @item body-end-function
15118 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
15122 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
15125 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
15126 regexp will be totally ignored.
15130 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
15131 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
15132 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
15133 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
15134 something that's palatable for Gnus:
15137 @item prepare-body-function
15138 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
15139 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
15140 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
15142 @item article-transform-function
15143 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
15144 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
15145 body of the article.
15147 @item generate-head-function
15148 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
15149 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
15150 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
15151 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
15155 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
15160 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
15161 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
15162 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
15163 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
15164 (head-end . "^ ?$")
15165 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
15166 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
15167 (subtype digest guess))
15170 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
15171 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
15172 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
15173 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
15174 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
15176 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
15177 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
15178 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
15179 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
15180 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
15181 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
15182 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
15183 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
15184 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
15185 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
15193 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
15194 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
15195 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
15197 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
15198 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
15199 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
15202 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
15203 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
15204 that interested in doing things properly.
15206 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
15207 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
15210 First some terminology:
15215 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
15216 get news and/or mail from.
15219 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
15220 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
15223 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
15227 @item message packets
15228 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
15229 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
15230 default, where @var{x} is a number.
15232 @item response packets
15233 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
15234 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
15235 default, where @var{x} is a number.
15245 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
15246 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
15247 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
15248 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
15251 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
15254 You put the packet in your home directory.
15257 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} back end as
15258 the native or secondary server.
15261 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
15262 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
15265 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
15269 You transfer this packet to the server.
15272 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
15275 You then repeat until you die.
15279 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
15280 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
15283 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
15284 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
15285 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
15289 @node SOUP Commands
15290 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
15292 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
15296 @kindex G s b (Group)
15297 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
15298 Pack all unread articles in the current group
15299 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
15300 process/prefix convention.
15303 @kindex G s w (Group)
15304 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
15305 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
15308 @kindex G s s (Group)
15309 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
15310 Send all replies from the replies packet
15311 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
15314 @kindex G s p (Group)
15315 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
15316 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
15319 @kindex G s r (Group)
15320 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
15321 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
15324 @kindex O s (Summary)
15325 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
15326 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
15327 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
15328 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15333 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
15338 @item gnus-soup-directory
15339 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
15340 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
15341 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
15343 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
15344 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
15345 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
15346 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
15348 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
15349 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
15350 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
15351 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
15353 @item gnus-soup-packer
15354 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
15355 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
15356 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
15358 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
15359 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
15360 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
15361 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
15363 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
15364 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
15365 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
15367 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
15368 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
15369 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
15370 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
15376 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
15379 @code{nnsoup} is the back end for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
15380 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
15381 you can read them at leisure.
15383 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
15387 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
15388 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
15389 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
15390 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
15392 @item nnsoup-directory
15393 @vindex nnsoup-directory
15394 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
15395 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
15397 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
15398 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
15399 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
15400 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
15402 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
15403 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
15404 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
15405 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
15406 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
15408 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
15409 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
15410 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
15411 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
15413 @item nnsoup-active-file
15414 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
15415 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
15416 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
15417 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
15418 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
15420 @item nnsoup-packer
15421 @vindex nnsoup-packer
15422 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
15423 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
15425 @item nnsoup-unpacker
15426 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
15427 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
15428 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
15430 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
15431 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
15432 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
15435 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
15436 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
15437 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
15440 @item nnsoup-always-save
15441 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
15442 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
15448 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
15450 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
15451 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
15452 more for that to happen.
15454 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
15455 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
15456 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
15459 In specific, this is what it does:
15462 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
15463 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
15466 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
15467 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
15468 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
15471 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
15472 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
15473 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
15476 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
15477 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
15478 The @code{nngateway} back end provides the interface.
15480 Note that you can't read anything from this back end---it can only be
15486 @item nngateway-address
15487 @vindex nngateway-address
15488 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
15490 @item nngateway-header-transformation
15491 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
15492 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
15493 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
15494 transformation should be called, and defaults to
15495 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
15496 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
15499 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
15500 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
15501 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
15504 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
15507 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
15510 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
15513 The following pre-defined functions exist:
15515 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
15518 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
15519 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
15520 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
15522 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
15524 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
15525 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
15526 @code{nngateway-address}.
15531 (setq gnus-post-method
15533 "mail2news@@replay.com"
15534 (nngateway-header-transformation
15535 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
15543 So, to use this, simply say something like:
15546 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
15551 @node Combined Groups
15552 @section Combined Groups
15554 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
15558 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
15559 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
15563 @node Virtual Groups
15564 @subsection Virtual Groups
15566 @cindex virtual groups
15567 @cindex merging groups
15569 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
15572 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
15573 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
15574 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
15576 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
15577 regexp to match component groups.
15579 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
15580 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
15581 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
15582 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
15583 the virtual group.)
15585 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
15586 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
15589 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
15592 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
15593 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
15595 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
15596 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
15597 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
15598 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
15601 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
15604 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
15605 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
15606 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
15608 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
15609 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
15610 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
15611 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
15612 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
15614 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
15615 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
15616 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
15618 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
15619 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
15620 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
15621 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
15622 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
15623 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
15624 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
15625 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
15626 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
15627 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
15628 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
15630 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
15631 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
15632 has to ask the back end of the component group the article comes from
15633 whether it is a news or mail back end. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
15634 there is typically no sure way for the component back end to know this,
15635 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
15636 not-news back end. (Just to be on the safe side.)
15638 @kbd{C-c C-n} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
15639 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
15643 @node Kibozed Groups
15644 @subsection Kibozed Groups
15648 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
15649 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a back end that will do this for
15650 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
15651 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
15653 @kindex G k (Group)
15654 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
15657 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
15658 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
15659 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
15660 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
15662 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
15663 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
15664 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
15666 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
15667 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
15668 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
15669 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
15670 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
15671 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
15672 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
15673 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
15675 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
15676 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
15677 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
15678 Stranger things have happened.
15680 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
15681 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
15683 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
15684 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
15685 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
15686 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
15687 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
15688 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
15690 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
15691 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
15694 @node Gnus Unplugged
15695 @section Gnus Unplugged
15700 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
15702 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
15703 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
15704 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
15705 read news. Believe it or not.
15707 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
15708 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
15709 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
15710 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
15711 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
15713 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
15714 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
15715 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
15716 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
15717 reading news on a machine.
15719 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
15723 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
15724 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
15728 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
15729 @file{.gnus.el} file:
15736 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
15738 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
15741 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
15742 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
15743 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
15744 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
15745 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
15746 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
15747 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
15748 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
15749 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
15750 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
15755 @subsection Agent Basics
15757 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
15759 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
15760 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
15761 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
15762 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
15764 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
15765 connected to the net continuously.
15767 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
15768 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
15770 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
15775 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
15776 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
15777 already fetched while in this mode.
15780 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
15781 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
15782 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
15783 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
15784 Source Specifiers}).
15787 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
15788 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
15789 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
15790 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
15791 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
15794 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
15795 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
15796 then you read the news offline.
15799 And then you go to step 2.
15802 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
15808 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
15809 back end, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
15810 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
15811 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
15812 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
15813 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
15816 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
15823 @node Agent Categories
15824 @subsection Agent Categories
15826 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
15827 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
15828 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
15829 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
15830 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
15831 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
15832 you're interested in the articles anyway.
15834 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
15835 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
15836 Groups that do not belong in any other category belong to the
15837 @code{default} category. Gnus has its own buffer for creating and
15838 managing categories.
15841 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
15842 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
15843 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
15847 @node Category Syntax
15848 @subsubsection Category Syntax
15850 A category consists of two things.
15854 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
15855 are eligible for downloading; and
15858 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
15859 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
15860 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
15863 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
15864 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
15865 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
15866 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
15868 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
15869 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
15870 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as described below.
15872 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
15873 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
15874 operators sprinkled in between.
15876 Perhaps some examples are in order.
15878 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
15879 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
15885 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
15886 short (for some value of ``short'').
15888 Here's a more complex predicate:
15897 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
15898 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
15901 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
15902 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
15903 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
15905 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
15906 you want to do, you can write your own.
15910 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
15911 lines; default 100.
15914 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
15915 lines; default 200.
15918 True iff the article has a download score less than
15919 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
15922 True iff the article has a download score greater than
15923 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
15926 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
15927 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
15928 checksum and sees whether articles match.
15937 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
15938 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
15939 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
15942 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
15943 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
15944 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
15945 something along the lines of the following:
15948 (defun my-article-old-p ()
15949 "Say whether an article is old."
15950 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
15951 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
15954 with the predicate then defined as:
15957 (not my-article-old-p)
15960 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
15961 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
15962 wherever. (Note: this would have to be at a point *after*
15963 @code{gnus-agent} has been loaded via @code{(gnus-agentize)})
15966 (setq gnus-category-predicate-alist
15967 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
15968 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
15971 and simply specify your predicate as:
15977 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
15978 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
15979 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
15980 just don't give a damn.
15982 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
15983 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
15984 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
15985 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
15986 parameters like so:
15989 (agent-predicate . short)
15992 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
15993 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
15994 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
15996 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
15999 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
16002 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
16003 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
16004 predicate is assumed to be a list.
16007 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
16008 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
16009 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
16010 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
16011 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
16012 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
16014 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
16015 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
16016 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
16017 if it's to be specific to that group.
16019 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
16026 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
16027 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
16033 Category specification
16037 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
16043 Group Parameter specification
16046 (agent-score ("from"
16047 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
16052 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
16058 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
16065 Category specification
16068 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
16074 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
16078 Group Parameter specification
16081 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
16084 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
16089 Use @code{normal} score files
16091 If you don't want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
16092 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
16093 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
16094 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
16096 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
16097 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
16098 files for a group, *filtering out* those sections that do not
16099 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
16103 Category Specification
16110 Group Parameter specification
16113 (agent-score . file)
16118 @node Category Buffer
16119 @subsubsection Category Buffer
16121 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
16122 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
16123 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
16125 The following commands are available in this buffer:
16129 @kindex q (Category)
16130 @findex gnus-category-exit
16131 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
16134 @kindex k (Category)
16135 @findex gnus-category-kill
16136 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
16139 @kindex c (Category)
16140 @findex gnus-category-copy
16141 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
16144 @kindex a (Category)
16145 @findex gnus-category-add
16146 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
16149 @kindex p (Category)
16150 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
16151 Edit the predicate of the current category
16152 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
16155 @kindex g (Category)
16156 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
16157 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
16158 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
16161 @kindex s (Category)
16162 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
16163 Edit the download score rule of the current category
16164 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
16167 @kindex l (Category)
16168 @findex gnus-category-list
16169 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
16173 @node Category Variables
16174 @subsubsection Category Variables
16177 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
16178 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
16179 Hook run in category buffers.
16181 @item gnus-category-line-format
16182 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
16183 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
16184 Variables}). Valid elements are:
16188 The name of the category.
16191 The number of groups in the category.
16194 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
16195 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
16196 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
16198 @item gnus-agent-short-article
16199 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
16200 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
16202 @item gnus-agent-long-article
16203 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
16204 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
16206 @item gnus-agent-low-score
16207 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
16208 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
16211 @item gnus-agent-high-score
16212 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
16213 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
16219 @node Agent Commands
16220 @subsection Agent Commands
16222 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
16223 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged}) command works in all modes, and
16224 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
16228 * Group Agent Commands::
16229 * Summary Agent Commands::
16230 * Server Agent Commands::
16233 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
16234 following incantation:
16236 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
16238 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
16243 @node Group Agent Commands
16244 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
16248 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
16249 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
16250 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
16251 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
16254 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
16255 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
16256 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
16259 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
16260 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
16261 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
16262 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
16265 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
16266 @findex gnus-group-send-queue
16267 Send all sendable messages in the queue group
16268 (@code{gnus-group-send-queue}). @xref{Drafts}.
16271 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
16272 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
16273 Add the current group to an Agent category
16274 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
16275 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16278 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
16279 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
16280 Remove the current group from its category, if any
16281 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
16282 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16285 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
16286 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
16287 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
16293 @node Summary Agent Commands
16294 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
16298 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
16299 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
16300 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
16303 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
16304 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
16305 Remove the downloading mark from the article
16306 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
16309 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
16310 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
16311 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
16314 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
16315 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
16316 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
16319 @kindex J u (Agent Summary)
16320 @findex gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group
16321 Download all downloadable articles in the current group
16322 (@code{gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group}).
16327 @node Server Agent Commands
16328 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
16332 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
16333 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
16334 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
16335 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
16338 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
16339 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
16340 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
16341 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
16347 @subsection Agent Expiry
16349 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
16350 @findex gnus-agent-expire
16351 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
16352 @cindex Agent expiry
16353 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
16356 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
16357 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
16358 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
16359 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
16360 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
16361 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
16363 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
16364 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
16365 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
16366 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
16367 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
16370 @node Agent and IMAP
16371 @subsection Agent and IMAP
16373 The Agent work with any Gnus back end, including nnimap. However,
16374 since there are some conceptual differences between @sc{nntp} and
16375 @sc{imap}, this section (should) provide you with some information to
16376 make Gnus Agent work smoother as a @sc{imap} Disconnected Mode client.
16378 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
16379 are kept on the @sc{imap} server, rather than in @code{.newsrc} as is the
16380 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
16381 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
16383 Gnus keep track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
16384 Agent by default. When you plug back in, by default Gnus will check if
16385 you have any changed any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize these
16386 with the server. This behavior is customizable with
16387 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
16389 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
16390 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
16391 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, the
16392 default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so ask if
16393 you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has any other
16394 value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
16396 If you do not wish to automatically synchronize flags when you
16397 re-connect, this can be done manually with the
16398 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
16399 in the group buffer by default.
16401 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
16402 expect from a disconnected @sc{imap} client, including:
16407 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
16410 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
16414 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by "pushing"
16415 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
16416 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
16417 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
16418 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
16419 removed from the server when you "synchronize". The queued flag
16420 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
16421 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
16424 @node Outgoing Messages
16425 @subsection Outgoing Messages
16427 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
16428 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
16429 after posting, and edit them at will.
16431 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
16432 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
16433 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
16434 messages in the draft group.
16438 @node Agent Variables
16439 @subsection Agent Variables
16442 @item gnus-agent-directory
16443 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
16444 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
16445 @file{~/News/agent/}.
16447 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
16448 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
16449 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
16450 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
16451 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
16454 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
16455 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
16456 Hook run when connecting to the network.
16458 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
16459 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
16460 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
16465 @node Example Setup
16466 @subsection Example Setup
16468 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
16469 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
16470 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
16473 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @sc{nntp}
16474 ;;; from your ISP's server.
16475 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
16477 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
16478 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
16479 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
16481 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
16482 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
16484 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
16488 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
16489 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
16492 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
16493 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
16494 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
16495 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
16496 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
16499 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
16500 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
16501 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
16502 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
16503 back all the killed groups.)
16505 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
16506 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
16507 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
16510 @node Batching Agents
16511 @subsection Batching Agents
16513 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
16514 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
16515 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
16519 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
16523 @node Agent Caveats
16524 @subsection Agent Caveats
16526 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
16527 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
16531 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the
16536 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists
16537 in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
16543 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
16544 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP.
16551 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
16552 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
16553 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
16556 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
16557 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
16558 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
16559 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
16560 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
16562 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
16563 before generating the summary buffer.
16565 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
16566 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
16567 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
16569 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
16570 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
16571 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
16572 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
16575 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
16576 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
16577 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
16578 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
16579 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
16580 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
16581 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
16582 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
16583 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
16584 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
16585 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
16586 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
16587 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
16588 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
16589 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
16590 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
16591 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
16595 @node Summary Score Commands
16596 @section Summary Score Commands
16597 @cindex score commands
16599 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
16600 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
16601 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
16602 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
16603 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
16605 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
16606 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
16607 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
16608 score file the current one.
16610 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
16615 @kindex V s (Summary)
16616 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
16617 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
16620 @kindex V S (Summary)
16621 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
16622 Display the score of the current article
16623 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
16626 @kindex V t (Summary)
16627 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
16628 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
16629 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
16632 @kindex V R (Summary)
16633 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
16634 Run the current summary through the scoring process
16635 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
16636 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
16637 effect you're having.
16640 @kindex V c (Summary)
16641 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
16642 Make a different score file the current
16643 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
16646 @kindex V e (Summary)
16647 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
16648 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
16649 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
16653 @kindex V f (Summary)
16654 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
16655 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
16656 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
16659 @kindex V F (Summary)
16660 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
16661 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
16662 after editing score files.
16665 @kindex V C (Summary)
16666 @findex gnus-score-customize
16667 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
16668 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
16672 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
16677 @kindex V m (Summary)
16678 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
16679 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
16680 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
16683 @kindex V x (Summary)
16684 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
16685 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
16686 expunge all articles below this score
16687 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
16690 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
16691 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
16694 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
16695 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
16699 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
16700 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
16702 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
16703 keys are available:
16707 Score on the author name.
16710 Score on the subject line.
16713 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
16716 Score on the @code{References} line.
16722 Score on the number of lines.
16725 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
16728 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
16729 the followups to this author. (Using this key leads to the creation of
16730 @file{ADAPT} files.)
16739 Score on thread. (Using this key leads to the creation of @file{ADAPT}
16745 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
16746 what headers you are scoring on.
16758 Substring matching.
16761 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
16790 Greater than number.
16795 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
16796 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
16797 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
16801 Temporary score entry.
16804 Permanent score entry.
16807 Immediately scoring.
16812 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
16813 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
16814 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
16815 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
16817 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
16818 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
16819 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
16820 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
16821 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
16823 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
16824 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
16825 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
16826 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
16827 current score file.
16829 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
16830 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
16831 pretend they are keymaps or not.
16834 @node Group Score Commands
16835 @section Group Score Commands
16836 @cindex group score commands
16838 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
16843 @kindex W f (Group)
16844 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
16845 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
16846 all the time. This command will flush the cache
16847 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
16851 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
16853 @findex gnus-batch-score
16854 @cindex batch scoring
16856 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
16860 @node Score Variables
16861 @section Score Variables
16862 @cindex score variables
16866 @item gnus-use-scoring
16867 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
16868 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
16869 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
16871 @item gnus-kill-killed
16872 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
16873 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
16874 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
16875 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
16876 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
16877 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
16878 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
16880 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
16881 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
16882 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
16883 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
16884 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
16886 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
16887 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
16888 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
16889 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
16891 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
16892 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
16893 @cindex score cache
16894 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
16895 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
16896 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
16897 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
16898 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
16899 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
16902 @item gnus-save-score
16903 @vindex gnus-save-score
16904 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
16905 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
16906 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
16908 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
16909 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
16910 across group visits.
16912 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
16913 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
16914 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
16915 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
16916 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
16917 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
16918 manually entered data.
16920 @item gnus-summary-default-score
16921 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
16922 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
16924 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
16925 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
16926 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
16927 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
16928 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
16929 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
16931 @item gnus-score-over-mark
16932 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
16933 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
16934 default. Default is @samp{+}.
16936 @item gnus-score-below-mark
16937 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
16938 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
16939 default. Default is @samp{-}.
16941 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
16942 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
16943 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
16944 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
16946 Predefined functions available are:
16949 @item gnus-score-find-single
16950 @findex gnus-score-find-single
16951 Only apply the group's own score file.
16953 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
16954 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
16955 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
16956 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
16957 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
16958 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
16959 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
16960 then a regexp match is done.
16962 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
16963 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
16965 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
16966 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
16967 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
16968 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
16970 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
16971 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
16972 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
16973 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
16974 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
16978 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all
16979 these functions will be called with the group name as argument, and
16980 all the returned lists of score files will be applied. These
16981 functions can also return lists of lists of score alists directly. In
16982 that case, the functions that return these non-file score alists
16983 should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file functions, to
16984 ensure that the last score file returned is the local score file.
16987 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
16988 overall score file, you could use the value
16990 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE"))
16991 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
16994 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
16995 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
16996 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
16997 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
16998 are expired. It's 7 by default.
17000 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
17001 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
17002 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
17003 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
17004 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
17005 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
17006 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
17009 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
17010 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
17011 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
17013 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
17014 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
17015 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
17016 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
17017 threading---according to the current value of
17018 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
17019 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
17020 simplified in this manner.
17025 @node Score File Format
17026 @section Score File Format
17027 @cindex score file format
17029 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
17030 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
17031 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
17033 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
17037 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
17039 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
17041 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
17043 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
17048 (mark-and-expunge -10)
17052 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
17053 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
17054 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
17055 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
17059 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
17060 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
17062 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
17063 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
17064 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
17066 Six keys are supported by this alist:
17071 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
17072 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
17073 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
17074 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
17075 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
17076 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
17077 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
17078 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
17079 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
17080 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
17081 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
17082 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
17083 to articles that matches these score entries.
17085 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
17086 score entry has one to four elements.
17090 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
17091 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
17095 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
17096 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
17097 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
17098 is successful. If this element is not present, the
17099 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
17100 instead. This is 1000 by default.
17103 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
17104 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
17105 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
17106 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
17107 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
17110 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
17111 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
17112 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
17113 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
17116 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
17117 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
17118 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
17119 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
17120 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
17121 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
17122 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
17123 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
17124 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
17125 instead, if you feel like.
17128 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
17129 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
17131 These predicates are true if
17134 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
17137 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
17138 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
17145 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
17146 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
17147 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
17148 it's not. I think.)
17150 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some back ends (like
17151 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
17152 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
17153 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
17156 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
17157 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
17158 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
17159 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
17160 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
17161 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
17162 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
17166 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
17167 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
17168 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
17169 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
17170 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
17171 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
17172 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
17173 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
17176 @item Head, Body, All
17177 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
17181 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
17182 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
17183 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
17184 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
17185 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
17186 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
17187 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
17191 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
17192 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
17193 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
17194 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
17195 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
17196 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
17197 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
17198 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
17199 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
17200 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
17201 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
17205 @cindex Score File Atoms
17207 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
17208 lower than this number will be marked as read.
17211 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
17212 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
17214 @item mark-and-expunge
17215 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
17216 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
17219 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
17220 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
17221 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
17222 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
17223 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
17226 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
17227 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
17230 @item exclude-files
17231 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
17232 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
17236 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
17237 ignored when handling global score files.
17240 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
17241 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
17242 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
17243 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
17246 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
17247 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
17248 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
17249 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
17251 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
17255 (mark-and-expunge -100)
17258 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
17259 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
17260 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
17261 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
17262 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
17264 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where a few
17265 interesting threads which can't be found automatically by ordinary
17266 scoring rules exist.
17269 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
17270 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
17271 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
17272 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
17273 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
17274 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
17275 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
17276 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
17277 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
17278 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
17279 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
17283 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
17284 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
17285 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
17286 file for a number of groups.
17289 @cindex local variables
17290 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
17291 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
17292 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
17293 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
17294 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
17298 @node Score File Editing
17299 @section Score File Editing
17301 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
17302 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
17303 with a mode for that.
17305 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
17306 additional commands:
17311 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
17312 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
17313 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
17314 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
17317 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
17318 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
17319 Insert the current date in numerical format
17320 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
17321 you were wondering.
17324 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
17325 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
17326 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
17327 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
17328 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
17333 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
17335 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
17336 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
17338 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
17339 e} to begin editing score files.
17342 @node Adaptive Scoring
17343 @section Adaptive Scoring
17344 @cindex adaptive scoring
17346 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
17347 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
17348 stupidity, to be precise.
17350 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
17351 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
17352 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
17353 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
17354 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
17355 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
17356 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
17357 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
17358 variable to @code{(word line)}.
17360 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
17361 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
17362 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
17363 might look something like this:
17366 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
17367 '((gnus-unread-mark)
17368 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
17369 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
17370 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
17371 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
17372 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
17373 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
17374 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
17375 (gnus-ancient-mark)
17376 (gnus-low-score-mark)
17377 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
17380 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
17381 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
17382 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
17383 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
17384 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
17385 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
17388 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
17389 will be applied to each article.
17391 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
17392 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
17393 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
17394 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
17396 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
17397 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
17398 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
17399 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
17401 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
17402 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
17403 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
17404 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
17406 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
17407 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
17408 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
17409 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
17410 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
17411 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
17413 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
17414 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
17415 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
17416 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
17417 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
17418 aspirins afterwards.)
17420 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
17421 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
17422 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
17424 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
17425 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
17426 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
17428 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
17429 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
17430 let you use different rules in different groups.
17432 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
17433 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
17434 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
17437 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
17438 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
17439 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
17440 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
17441 the length of the match is less than
17442 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
17443 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
17446 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
17447 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
17448 headers. If you adapt on words, the
17449 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
17450 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
17453 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
17454 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
17455 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
17456 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
17457 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
17460 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
17461 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
17462 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
17463 score with 30 points.
17465 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
17466 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
17467 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
17468 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
17469 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
17471 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit
17472 Some may feel that short words shouldn't count when doing adaptive
17473 scoring. If so, you may set @code{gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit} to
17474 an integer. Words shorter than this number will be ignored. This
17475 variable defaults til @code{nil}.
17477 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
17478 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
17479 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
17480 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
17482 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
17483 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
17484 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
17485 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
17487 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
17488 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
17489 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
17490 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
17491 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
17493 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
17494 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
17495 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
17497 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
17498 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
17499 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
17500 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
17503 @node Home Score File
17504 @section Home Score File
17506 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
17507 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
17508 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
17509 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
17511 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
17512 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
17513 could perhaps use the same home score file.
17515 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
17516 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
17521 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
17525 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
17526 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
17530 A list. The elements in this list can be:
17534 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
17535 group name, the @var{file-name} will be used as the home score file.
17538 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
17539 the home score file.
17542 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
17545 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
17550 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
17553 (setq gnus-home-score-file
17554 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
17557 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
17558 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
17560 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
17562 (setq gnus-home-score-file
17563 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
17566 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
17567 Other functions include
17570 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
17571 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
17572 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
17573 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
17577 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
17578 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
17579 their own home score files:
17582 (setq gnus-home-score-file
17583 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
17584 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
17585 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
17586 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
17589 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
17590 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
17591 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
17592 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
17593 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
17595 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
17596 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
17597 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
17598 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
17599 precedence over this variable.
17602 @node Followups To Yourself
17603 @section Followups To Yourself
17605 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
17606 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
17607 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
17608 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
17609 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
17610 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
17614 @item gnus-score-followup-article
17615 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
17616 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
17619 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
17620 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
17621 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
17625 @vindex message-sent-hook
17626 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
17627 @code{message-sent-hook}, like this:
17629 (add-hook 'message-sent-hook 'gnus-score-followup-thread)
17633 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
17634 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
17638 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
17639 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
17642 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
17643 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
17648 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore\\.no>"
17652 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
17653 is system-dependent.
17656 @node Scoring On Other Headers
17657 @section Scoring On Other Headers
17658 @cindex scoring on other headers
17660 Gnus is quite fast when scoring the ``traditional''
17661 headers---@samp{From}, @samp{Subject} and so on. However, scoring
17662 other headers requires writing a @code{head} scoring rule, which means
17663 that Gnus has to request every single article from the back end to find
17664 matches. This takes a long time in big groups.
17666 Now, there's not much you can do about this for news groups, but for
17667 mail groups, you have greater control. In the @pxref{To From
17668 Newsgroups} section of the manual, it's explained in greater detail what
17669 this mechanism does, but here's a cookbook example for @code{nnml} on
17670 how to allow scoring on the @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers.
17672 Put the following in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
17675 (setq gnus-extra-headers '(To Cc Newsgroups Keywords)
17676 nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
17679 Restart Gnus and rebuild your @code{nnml} overview files with the
17680 @kbd{M-x nnml-generate-nov-databases} command. This will take a long
17681 time if you have much mail.
17683 Now you can score on @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} as ``extra headers'' like
17684 so: @kbd{I e s p To RET <your name> RET}.
17690 @section Scoring Tips
17691 @cindex scoring tips
17697 @cindex scoring crossposts
17698 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
17699 the @code{Xref} header.
17701 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
17704 @item Multiple crossposts
17705 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
17706 more than, say, 3 groups:
17709 ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+"
17713 @item Matching on the body
17714 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
17715 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
17716 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
17717 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
17718 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
17719 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
17720 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
17723 @item Marking as read
17724 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
17725 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
17726 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
17730 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
17732 @item Negated character classes
17733 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
17734 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
17735 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
17739 @node Reverse Scoring
17740 @section Reverse Scoring
17741 @cindex reverse scoring
17743 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
17744 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
17745 like this in your score file:
17749 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
17754 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
17755 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
17758 @node Global Score Files
17759 @section Global Score Files
17760 @cindex global score files
17762 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
17763 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
17764 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
17766 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
17767 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
17768 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
17770 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
17771 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
17772 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
17773 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
17774 files are applicable to which group.
17776 To use the score file
17777 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
17778 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory,
17782 (setq gnus-global-score-files
17783 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
17784 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
17787 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
17789 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
17790 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
17791 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
17792 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
17794 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
17795 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
17797 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
17798 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
17799 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
17800 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
17801 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
17802 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
17804 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
17810 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
17812 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
17814 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
17816 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
17817 lowered out of existence.
17819 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
17820 articles completely.
17823 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
17824 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
17825 old articles for a long time.
17828 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
17829 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
17830 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
17831 holding our breath yet?
17835 @section Kill Files
17838 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
17839 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
17840 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
17842 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
17843 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
17844 files into score files.
17846 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
17847 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
17848 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
17849 that isn't a very good idea.
17851 Normal kill files look like this:
17854 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
17855 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
17859 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
17860 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
17862 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
17863 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
17866 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
17871 @kindex M-k (Summary)
17872 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
17873 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
17876 @kindex M-K (Summary)
17877 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
17878 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
17881 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
17886 @kindex M-k (Group)
17887 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
17888 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
17891 @kindex M-K (Group)
17892 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
17893 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
17896 Kill file variables:
17899 @item gnus-kill-file-name
17900 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
17901 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
17902 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
17903 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
17904 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
17905 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
17907 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
17908 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
17909 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
17910 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
17913 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
17914 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
17915 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
17916 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
17917 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
17918 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
17919 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
17920 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
17921 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
17923 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
17924 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
17925 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
17930 @node Converting Kill Files
17931 @section Converting Kill Files
17933 @cindex converting kill files
17935 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
17936 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
17937 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
17940 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
17941 You can fetch it from
17942 @uref{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
17944 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
17945 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
17946 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
17954 GroupLens (@uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/}) is a
17955 collaborative filtering system that helps you work together with other
17956 people to find the quality news articles out of the huge volume of
17957 news articles generated every day.
17959 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
17960 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
17961 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
17962 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
17963 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
17964 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
17965 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
17966 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
17969 @sc{Note:} Unfortunately the GroupLens system seems to have shut down,
17970 so this section is mostly of historical interest.
17973 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
17974 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
17975 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
17976 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
17980 @node Using GroupLens
17981 @subsection Using GroupLens
17983 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
17985 @uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
17986 better bit in town at the moment.
17988 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
17992 @item gnus-use-grouplens
17993 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
17994 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
17995 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
17997 @item grouplens-pseudonym
17998 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
17999 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
18000 with the Better Bit Bureau.
18002 @item grouplens-newsgroups
18003 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
18004 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
18008 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
18009 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
18010 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
18011 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
18012 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
18013 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
18016 @node Rating Articles
18017 @subsection Rating Articles
18019 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
18020 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
18021 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
18022 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
18025 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
18030 @kindex r (GroupLens)
18031 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
18032 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
18035 @kindex k (GroupLens)
18036 @findex grouplens-score-thread
18037 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
18038 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
18039 threads in rec.humor.
18043 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
18044 the score of the article you're reading.
18049 @kindex n (GroupLens)
18050 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
18051 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
18054 @kindex , (GroupLens)
18055 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
18056 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
18060 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
18061 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
18064 @node Displaying Predictions
18065 @subsection Displaying Predictions
18067 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
18068 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
18069 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
18070 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
18071 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
18073 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
18074 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
18075 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
18076 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
18077 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
18078 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
18079 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
18080 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
18081 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
18082 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
18083 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
18084 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
18085 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
18087 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
18088 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
18089 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
18090 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
18092 The following are valid values for that variable.
18095 @item prediction-spot
18096 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
18099 @item confidence-interval
18100 A numeric confidence interval.
18102 @item prediction-bar
18103 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
18105 @item confidence-bar
18106 Numerical confidence.
18108 @item confidence-spot
18109 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
18111 @item prediction-num
18112 Plain-old numeric value.
18114 @item confidence-plus-minus
18115 Prediction +/- confidence.
18120 @node GroupLens Variables
18121 @subsection GroupLens Variables
18125 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
18126 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
18127 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
18128 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%)
18131 @item grouplens-bbb-host
18132 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
18135 @item grouplens-bbb-port
18136 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
18138 @item grouplens-score-offset
18139 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
18140 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
18143 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
18144 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
18145 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
18150 @node Advanced Scoring
18151 @section Advanced Scoring
18153 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
18154 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
18155 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
18156 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
18157 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
18159 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
18163 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
18164 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
18165 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
18169 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
18170 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
18172 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
18173 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
18174 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
18175 non-@code{nil} value.
18177 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
18178 operator, and various match operators.
18185 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
18186 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
18187 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
18192 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
18193 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
18194 then this operator will return @code{false}.
18199 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
18200 logical negation of the value of its argument.
18204 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
18205 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
18206 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
18207 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
18208 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
18209 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
18210 the ancestry you want to go.
18212 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
18213 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
18214 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
18215 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
18216 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
18219 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
18220 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
18222 Please note that the following examples are score file rules. To
18223 make a complete score file from them, surround them with another pair
18226 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
18227 when he's talking about Gnus:
18231 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18232 ("subject" "Gnus"))
18238 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
18242 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18249 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
18250 really don't want to read what he's written:
18254 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18255 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
18259 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
18260 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
18261 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
18268 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
18269 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
18270 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
18271 ("body" "white.*socks"))
18275 The possibilities are endless.
18278 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
18279 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
18281 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
18282 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
18283 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
18284 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
18285 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
18286 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
18287 @samp{subject}) first.
18289 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
18290 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
18301 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
18302 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
18308 ("subject" "Gnus")))
18315 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
18316 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
18321 @section Score Decays
18322 @cindex score decays
18325 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
18326 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
18327 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
18328 use them in any sensible way.
18330 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
18331 @findex gnus-decay-score
18332 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
18333 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
18334 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
18335 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
18336 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
18337 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
18338 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
18339 definition of that function:
18342 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
18344 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
18345 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
18348 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
18350 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
18352 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
18355 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
18356 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
18357 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
18358 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
18362 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
18365 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
18368 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
18372 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
18373 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
18374 the new score, which should be an integer.
18376 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
18377 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
18382 @include message.texi
18383 @chapter Emacs MIME
18384 @include emacs-mime.texi
18386 @include sieve.texi
18394 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
18395 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
18396 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
18397 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
18398 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
18399 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
18400 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
18401 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
18402 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
18403 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
18404 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
18405 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
18406 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
18407 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
18408 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
18409 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
18410 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
18411 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
18412 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
18416 @node Process/Prefix
18417 @section Process/Prefix
18418 @cindex process/prefix convention
18420 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
18421 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
18423 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
18424 command to be performed on.
18428 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
18429 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
18430 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
18431 with the current one.
18433 @vindex transient-mark-mode
18434 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
18435 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
18437 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
18438 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
18441 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
18442 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
18444 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
18447 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
18448 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
18449 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
18450 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
18452 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
18453 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
18454 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
18455 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
18456 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
18457 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
18458 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
18459 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
18461 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
18462 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
18463 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
18464 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
18465 expirable, you could say `M P b M-& E'.
18469 @section Interactive
18470 @cindex interaction
18474 @item gnus-novice-user
18475 @vindex gnus-novice-user
18476 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
18477 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
18478 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
18479 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
18482 @item gnus-expert-user
18483 @vindex gnus-expert-user
18484 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
18485 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
18486 matter how strange.
18488 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
18489 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
18490 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
18491 is @code{t} by default.
18493 @item gnus-interactive-exit
18494 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
18495 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
18500 @node Symbolic Prefixes
18501 @section Symbolic Prefixes
18502 @cindex symbolic prefixes
18504 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
18505 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
18506 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
18507 rule of 900 to the current article.
18509 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
18510 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
18511 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
18512 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
18513 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
18514 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
18515 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
18517 @kindex M-i (Summary)
18518 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
18519 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
18520 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
18521 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
18522 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a C-M-u} means ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u}
18523 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b C-M-u} means
18524 ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
18525 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
18527 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
18528 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
18529 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
18531 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
18535 @node Formatting Variables
18536 @section Formatting Variables
18537 @cindex formatting variables
18539 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
18540 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
18541 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
18542 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
18543 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
18546 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
18547 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
18548 lots of percentages everywhere.
18551 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
18552 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
18553 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
18554 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
18555 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
18556 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
18557 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
18558 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
18561 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
18562 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
18563 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
18564 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
18565 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
18566 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
18567 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
18568 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
18570 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
18571 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
18573 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
18574 @findex gnus-update-format
18575 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
18576 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
18577 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
18578 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
18582 @node Formatting Basics
18583 @subsection Formatting Basics
18585 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
18586 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
18587 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
18589 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
18590 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
18591 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
18592 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
18593 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
18596 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
18597 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
18598 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
18599 less than 4 characters wide.
18601 Also Gnus supports some extended format specifications, such as
18602 @samp{%&user-date;}.
18605 @node Mode Line Formatting
18606 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
18608 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
18609 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
18610 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
18611 with the following two differences:
18616 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
18619 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
18620 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
18621 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
18622 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
18623 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
18624 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
18625 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
18630 @node Advanced Formatting
18631 @subsection Advanced Formatting
18633 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
18634 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
18635 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
18636 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
18638 These are the valid modifiers:
18643 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
18647 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
18652 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
18655 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
18660 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
18663 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
18666 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
18669 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
18675 "~(form (current-time-string))@"
18680 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
18681 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
18682 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
18683 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
18684 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
18685 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
18686 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
18688 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
18689 last operation, padding.
18691 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
18692 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
18693 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
18694 @xref{Compilation}.
18697 @node User-Defined Specs
18698 @subsection User-Defined Specs
18700 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
18701 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
18702 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
18703 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
18704 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
18705 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
18706 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
18707 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
18708 should protect against that.
18710 Also Gnus supports extended user-defined specs, such as @samp{%u&foo;}.
18711 Gnus will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{foo}.
18713 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
18714 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
18715 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
18716 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
18720 @node Formatting Fonts
18721 @subsection Formatting Fonts
18723 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
18724 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
18725 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
18726 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
18729 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
18730 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
18731 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
18732 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
18733 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
18734 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
18736 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
18737 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you
18738 say @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
18739 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or symbols
18740 naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
18741 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
18742 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
18743 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
18745 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
18748 ;; Create three face types.
18749 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
18750 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
18752 ;; We want the article count to be in
18753 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
18754 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
18755 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
18757 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
18758 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
18760 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
18761 (setq gnus-group-line-format
18762 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
18765 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
18766 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
18768 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
18769 mode-line variables.
18771 @node Positioning Point
18772 @subsection Positioning Point
18774 Gnus usually moves point to a pre-defined place on each line in most
18775 buffers. By default, point move to the first colon character on the
18776 line. You can customize this behaviour in three different ways.
18778 You can move the colon character to somewhere else on the line.
18780 @findex gnus-goto-colon
18781 You can redefine the function that moves the point to the colon. The
18782 function is called @code{gnus-goto-colon}.
18784 But perhaps the most convenient way to deal with this, if you don't want
18785 to have a colon in your line, is to use the @samp{%C} specifier. If you
18786 put a @samp{%C} somewhere in your format line definition, Gnus will
18791 @subsection Tabulation
18793 You can usually line up your displays by padding and cutting your
18794 strings. However, when combining various strings of different size, it
18795 can often be more convenient to just output the strings, and then worry
18796 about lining up the following text afterwards.
18798 To do that, Gnus supplies tabulator specs--@samp{%=}. There are two
18799 different types---@dfn{hard tabulators} and @dfn{soft tabulators}.
18801 @samp{%50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
18802 50. If the text is already past column 50, nothing will be inserted.
18803 This is the soft tabulator.
18805 @samp{%-50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
18806 50. If the text is already past column 50, the excess text past column
18807 50 will be removed. This is the hard tabulator.
18810 @node Wide Characters
18811 @subsection Wide Characters
18813 Proportional fonts in most countries have characters of the same width.
18814 Some countries, however, use Latin characters mixed with wider
18815 characters---most notable East Asian countries.
18817 The problem is that when formatting, Gnus assumes that if a string is 10
18818 characters wide, it'll be 10 Latin characters wide on the screen. In
18819 these coutries, that's not true.
18821 @vindex gnus-use-correct-string-widths
18822 To help fix this, you can set @code{gnus-use-correct-string-widths} to
18823 @code{t}. This makes buffer generation slower, but the results will be
18824 prettieer. The default value is @code{t}.
18828 @node Window Layout
18829 @section Window Layout
18830 @cindex window layout
18832 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
18834 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
18835 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
18836 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
18837 @code{t} by default.
18839 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
18840 glitches. Use at your own peril.
18842 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
18843 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
18844 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
18847 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
18848 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
18849 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
18853 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
18854 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
18855 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
18856 possible names is listed below.
18858 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
18859 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
18862 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
18866 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
18867 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
18868 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
18869 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
18870 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
18871 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
18872 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
18873 size spec per split.
18875 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
18876 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
18877 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
18878 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
18879 present) gets focus.
18881 Here's a more complicated example:
18884 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
18885 (summary 0.25 point)
18886 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
18890 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
18891 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
18892 occupy, not a percentage.
18894 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
18895 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
18896 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
18897 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
18898 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
18901 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
18904 (article (horizontal 1.0
18909 (summary 0.25 point)
18914 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
18915 @code{horizontal} thingie?
18917 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
18918 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
18919 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
18920 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
18921 the screen is to be given to this strip.
18923 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
18924 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
18925 lines from the splits.
18927 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
18931 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
18932 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
18933 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
18934 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
18935 buffer = "(" buf-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
18936 size = number | frame-params
18937 buf-name = group | article | summary ...
18940 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
18941 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
18942 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
18943 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
18945 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
18946 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
18947 @cindex window height
18948 @cindex window width
18949 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
18950 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
18951 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
18952 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
18953 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
18954 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
18956 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
18957 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
18958 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
18959 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
18961 @findex gnus-configure-frame
18962 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
18963 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
18964 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
18965 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
18966 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
18967 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
18968 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
18969 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
18970 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
18971 configuration list.
18974 (gnus-configure-frame
18978 (article 0.3 point))
18986 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
18987 @code{frame} split:
18990 (gnus-configure-frame
18993 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
18995 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
18996 (user-position . t)
18997 (left . -1) (top . 1))
19002 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
19003 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
19004 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
19005 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
19006 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
19007 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
19008 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
19009 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
19011 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
19012 be found in its default value.
19014 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
19015 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
19016 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
19020 (message (horizontal 1.0
19021 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
19023 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
19028 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
19029 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
19030 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
19035 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
19036 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
19037 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
19038 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
19039 (name . "Message"))
19040 (message 1.0 point))))
19043 @findex gnus-add-configuration
19044 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
19045 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
19046 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
19047 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
19050 (gnus-add-configuration
19051 '(article (vertical 1.0
19053 (summary .25 point)
19057 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
19058 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
19059 Gnus has been loaded.
19061 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
19062 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
19063 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
19064 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
19065 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
19067 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
19068 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
19069 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
19072 @subsection Example Window Configurations
19076 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
19077 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
19092 (gnus-add-configuration
19095 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
19097 (summary 0.16 point)
19100 (gnus-add-configuration
19103 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
19104 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
19110 @node Faces and Fonts
19111 @section Faces and Fonts
19116 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
19117 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
19118 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
19123 @section Compilation
19124 @cindex compilation
19125 @cindex byte-compilation
19127 @findex gnus-compile
19129 Remember all those line format specification variables?
19130 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
19131 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
19132 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
19133 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
19134 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
19137 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
19138 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
19139 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
19140 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
19141 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
19142 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
19143 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
19147 @section Mode Lines
19150 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
19151 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
19152 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
19153 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
19154 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
19155 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
19156 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
19159 @cindex display-time
19161 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
19162 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
19163 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
19164 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
19165 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
19166 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
19167 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
19168 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
19171 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
19173 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
19174 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
19176 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
19177 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
19178 (length display-time-string)))))
19181 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
19182 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
19183 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
19184 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
19185 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
19188 @node Highlighting and Menus
19189 @section Highlighting and Menus
19191 @cindex highlighting
19194 @vindex gnus-visual
19195 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
19196 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
19197 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
19200 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
19201 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
19204 @item group-highlight
19205 Do highlights in the group buffer.
19206 @item summary-highlight
19207 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
19208 @item article-highlight
19209 Do highlights in the article buffer.
19211 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
19213 Create menus in the group buffer.
19215 Create menus in the summary buffers.
19217 Create menus in the article buffer.
19219 Create menus in the browse buffer.
19221 Create menus in the server buffer.
19223 Create menus in the score buffers.
19225 Create menus in all buffers.
19228 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
19229 buffers, you could say something like:
19232 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
19235 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
19238 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
19241 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
19242 in all Gnus buffers.
19244 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
19247 @item gnus-mouse-face
19248 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
19249 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
19250 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
19254 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
19258 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
19259 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
19260 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
19262 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
19263 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
19264 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
19266 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
19267 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
19268 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
19270 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
19271 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
19272 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
19274 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
19275 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
19276 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
19278 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
19279 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
19280 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
19291 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
19292 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
19293 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
19294 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
19295 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
19299 @vindex gnus-carpal
19300 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
19301 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
19302 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
19307 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
19308 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
19309 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
19311 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
19312 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
19313 Face used on buttons.
19315 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
19316 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
19317 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
19319 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
19320 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
19321 Buttons in the group buffer.
19323 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
19324 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
19325 Buttons in the summary buffer.
19327 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
19328 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
19329 Buttons in the server buffer.
19331 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
19332 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
19333 Buttons in the browse buffer.
19336 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
19337 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
19338 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
19346 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
19347 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
19348 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
19349 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
19350 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
19352 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
19353 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
19354 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
19356 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
19357 been idle for thirty minutes:
19360 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
19363 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
19367 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
19370 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
19371 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
19372 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
19374 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
19375 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
19376 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
19377 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
19379 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
19380 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
19381 @var{idle} minutes.
19383 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
19384 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
19387 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
19388 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
19389 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
19391 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
19392 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
19393 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
19394 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
19396 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
19397 your @file{.gnus} file:
19399 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
19401 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
19404 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
19405 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
19406 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
19407 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
19408 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
19409 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
19410 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
19411 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
19412 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
19413 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
19414 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
19416 @findex gnus-demon-init
19417 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
19418 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
19419 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
19420 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
19421 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
19423 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
19424 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
19425 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
19434 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
19435 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
19437 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
19438 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
19439 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
19440 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
19443 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
19444 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
19445 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
19446 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
19448 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
19449 this will make spam disappear.
19451 There are some variables to customize, of course:
19454 @item gnus-use-nocem
19455 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
19456 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
19459 @item gnus-nocem-groups
19460 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
19461 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
19462 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
19463 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
19465 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
19466 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
19467 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
19468 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
19469 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
19470 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
19472 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
19473 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
19475 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
19476 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
19477 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
19478 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
19479 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
19480 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
19481 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
19482 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
19483 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
19484 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
19486 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
19487 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
19490 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
19493 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
19494 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
19497 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
19500 The specs are applied left-to-right.
19503 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
19504 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
19506 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
19507 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
19508 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
19509 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
19511 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
19512 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
19515 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
19517 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
19525 This might be dangerous, though.
19527 @item gnus-nocem-directory
19528 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
19529 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
19530 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
19532 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
19533 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
19534 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
19535 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
19536 might then see old spam.
19538 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
19539 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
19540 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
19541 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
19542 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
19545 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
19546 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
19547 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
19548 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
19552 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
19553 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
19554 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
19555 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
19562 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
19563 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
19564 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
19566 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
19567 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
19568 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
19569 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
19570 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
19571 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
19572 @code{undo} function.
19574 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
19575 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
19576 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
19577 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
19578 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
19579 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
19580 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
19581 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
19582 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
19583 never be totally undoable.
19585 @findex gnus-undo-mode
19586 @vindex gnus-use-undo
19588 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
19589 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
19590 default. The @kbd{C-M-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo}
19591 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
19595 @node Predicate Specifiers
19596 @section Predicate Specifiers
19597 @cindex predicate specifiers
19599 Some Gnus variables are @dfn{predicate specifiers}. This is a special
19600 form that allows flexible specification of predicates without having
19601 to type all that much.
19603 These specifiers are lists consisting of functions, symbols and lists.
19608 (or gnus-article-unseen-p
19609 gnus-article-unread-p)
19612 The available symbols are @code{or}, @code{and} and @code{not}. The
19613 functions all take one parameter.
19615 @findex gnus-make-predicate
19616 Internally, Gnus calls @code{gnus-make-predicate} on these specifiers
19617 to create a function that can be called. This input parameter to this
19618 function will be passed along to all the functions in the predicate
19623 @section Moderation
19626 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
19627 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
19628 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
19631 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
19635 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
19638 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
19640 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
19645 You split your incoming mail by matching on
19646 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
19647 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
19650 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
19651 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
19654 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
19655 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
19659 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
19662 (setq gnus-moderated-list
19663 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
19667 @node Image Enhancements
19668 @section Image Enhancements
19670 XEmacs, as well as Emacs 21, is able to display pictures and stuff, so
19671 Gnus has taken advantage of that.
19674 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
19675 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
19676 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
19677 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
19678 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
19691 So@dots{} You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
19692 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
19693 over your shoulder as you read news.
19696 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
19697 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
19698 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
19699 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
19700 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
19705 @subsubsection Picon Basics
19707 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
19716 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
19717 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
19718 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
19719 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
19720 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
19721 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
19722 @code{GIF} formats.
19725 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
19726 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
19727 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
19728 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
19729 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
19731 @vindex gnus-picons-database
19732 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
19733 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
19734 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
19735 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
19736 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
19738 If you are using Debian GNU/Linux, saying @samp{apt-get install
19739 picons.*} will install the picons where Gnus can find them.
19742 @node Picon Requirements
19743 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
19745 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must have @code{x} support
19746 compiled into XEmacs. To display color picons which are much nicer
19747 than the black & white one, you also need one of @code{xpm} or
19748 @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
19750 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
19751 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
19752 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
19753 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
19754 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
19755 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
19758 @subsubsection Easy Picons
19760 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
19761 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
19764 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
19765 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
19768 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
19769 containing the Picons databases.
19771 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
19774 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
19775 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
19780 @subsubsection Hard Picons
19788 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
19789 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
19790 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
19791 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
19792 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
19797 @item gnus-picons-database
19798 @vindex gnus-picons-database
19799 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
19800 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
19801 subdirectories. This is only useful if
19802 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
19803 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
19805 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
19806 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
19807 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
19808 engine is @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
19809 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
19810 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
19811 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
19813 @item gnus-picons-display-where
19814 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
19815 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
19816 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
19817 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
19818 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
19819 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
19820 routines---@pxref{Window Layout}.
19822 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
19823 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
19824 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
19829 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
19830 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
19832 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
19833 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
19836 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
19838 @item gnus-article-display-picons
19839 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
19840 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
19841 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
19843 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
19844 @findex gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
19845 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
19846 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the function name, not @code{xface})
19852 @node Picon Useless Configuration
19853 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
19861 The following variables offer further control over how things are
19862 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
19863 don't need to worry about.
19867 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
19868 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
19869 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
19870 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
19872 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
19873 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
19874 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
19875 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
19877 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
19878 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
19879 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
19880 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
19881 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
19883 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
19884 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
19885 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
19886 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
19887 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
19888 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
19889 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
19890 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
19892 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
19893 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
19894 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
19895 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
19896 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
19898 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
19899 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
19900 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
19901 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
19902 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
19903 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
19904 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
19906 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
19907 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
19908 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
19909 Defaults to @code{nil}.
19911 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
19912 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
19913 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
19914 Defaults to @code{t}.
19916 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
19917 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
19918 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
19919 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
19921 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
19922 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
19923 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
19925 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
19926 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
19927 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
19928 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
19930 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
19931 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the default.
19933 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
19934 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
19935 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
19936 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
19937 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
19938 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
19939 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
19940 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
19951 @subsection Smileys
19956 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/BigFace,height=20cm}}
19961 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
19962 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
19964 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
19965 @file{.gnus.el} file:
19968 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
19971 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
19972 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
19973 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
19974 text and maps that to file names.
19976 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
19977 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
19978 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
19979 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
19980 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
19981 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
19983 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
19984 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
19986 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
19987 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
19988 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
19990 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
19991 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
19995 @item smiley-data-directory
19996 @vindex smiley-data-directory
19997 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
19999 @item smiley-flesh-color
20000 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
20001 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
20003 @item smiley-features-color
20004 @vindex smiley-features-color
20005 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
20007 @item smiley-tongue-color
20008 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
20009 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
20011 @item smiley-circle-color
20012 @vindex smiley-circle-color
20013 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
20015 @item smiley-mouse-face
20016 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
20017 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
20026 @code{X-Face} headers describe a 48x48 pixel black-and-white (1 bit
20027 depth) image that's supposed to represent the author of the message.
20028 It seems to be supported by an ever-growing number of mail and news
20032 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
20033 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
20034 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
20035 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
20043 Decoding an @code{X-Face} header either requires an Emacs that has
20044 @samp{compface} support (which most XEmacs versions has), or that you
20045 have @samp{compface} installed on your system. If either is true,
20046 Gnus will default to displaying @code{X-Face} headers.
20048 The variable that controls this is the
20049 @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable. If this variable is a
20050 string, this string will be executed in a sub-shell. If it is a
20051 function, this function will be called with the face as the argument.
20052 If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which is a regexp) matches
20053 the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
20055 The default action under Emacs 20 is to fork off the @code{display}
20056 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For
20057 the @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
20058 like @code{compface} or @code{faces-xface} on a GNU/Linux system.} to
20061 Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image support, the default
20062 action is to display the face before the @code{From} header. (It's
20063 nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with @code{X-Face} support---that
20064 will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native @code{X-Face}
20065 support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
20066 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
20067 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
20068 like @code{netpbm}, @code{libgr-progs} and @code{compface}.})
20070 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable/function names, not
20073 Gnus provides a few convenience functions and variables to allow
20074 easier insertion of X-Face headers in outgoing messages.
20076 @findex gnus-random-x-face
20077 @code{gnus-random-x-face} goes through all the @samp{pbm} files
20078 in @code{gnus-x-face-directory} and picks one at random, and then
20079 converts it to the X-Face format by using the
20080 @code{gnus-convert-pbm-to-x-face-command} shell command. The
20081 @samp{pbm} files should be 48x48 pixels big.
20083 @code{gnus-x-face-from-file} takes a file as the parameter, and then
20084 converts the file to X-Face format by using the
20085 @code{gnus-convert-image-to-x-face-command} shell command.
20087 Here's how you would typically use the former function. Put something
20088 like the folllowing in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
20091 (setq message-required-news-headers
20092 (nconc message-required-news-headers
20093 (list '(X-Face . gnus-random-x-face))))
20096 Using the latter function would be something like this:
20099 (setq message-required-news-headers
20100 (nconc message-required-news-headers
20101 (list '(X-Face . (lambda ()
20102 (gnus-x-face-from-file
20103 "~/My-face.gif"))))))
20108 @subsection Toolbar
20118 @item gnus-use-toolbar
20119 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
20120 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
20121 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
20122 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
20124 @item gnus-group-toolbar
20125 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
20126 The toolbar in the group buffer.
20128 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
20129 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
20130 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
20132 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
20133 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
20134 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
20140 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
20143 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
20144 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
20145 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
20146 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
20147 unusual directory structure.
20149 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
20150 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
20151 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
20152 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
20154 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
20155 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
20156 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
20157 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
20158 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
20159 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
20161 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
20162 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
20163 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
20177 @node Fuzzy Matching
20178 @section Fuzzy Matching
20179 @cindex fuzzy matching
20181 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
20182 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
20184 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
20185 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
20186 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
20188 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
20189 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
20190 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
20191 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
20192 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
20195 @node Thwarting Email Spam
20196 @section Thwarting Email Spam
20200 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
20202 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
20203 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
20204 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
20205 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
20206 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
20207 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
20208 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
20209 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
20212 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
20213 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
20214 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
20215 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
20216 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
20217 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
20221 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
20222 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
20224 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
20225 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
20226 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
20227 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
20228 sysadmin whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
20229 part of the mail address.)
20232 (setq message-default-news-headers
20233 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
20236 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
20237 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
20242 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
20243 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
20244 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
20250 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
20251 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
20252 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
20253 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
20255 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
20256 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
20257 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
20258 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
20259 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
20260 your fancy split rule in this way:
20265 (to "larsi" "misc")
20269 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
20270 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
20271 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
20272 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
20273 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
20275 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
20276 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
20277 at @* @uref{http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html}.
20278 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
20279 cosmic balance somewhat.
20281 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
20282 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
20283 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
20284 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
20287 @node Various Various
20288 @section Various Various
20294 @item gnus-home-directory
20295 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
20296 defaults to @file{~/}.
20298 @item gnus-directory
20299 @vindex gnus-directory
20300 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
20301 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
20302 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
20304 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
20305 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
20306 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
20307 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
20309 @item gnus-default-directory
20310 @vindex gnus-default-directory
20311 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
20312 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
20313 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
20314 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
20315 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
20316 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
20319 @vindex gnus-verbose
20320 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
20321 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
20322 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
20323 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
20324 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
20326 @item gnus-verbose-backends
20327 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
20328 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
20329 to the Gnus back ends instead of Gnus proper.
20331 @item nnheader-max-head-length
20332 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
20333 When the back ends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
20334 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
20335 the absolute max length the back ends will try to read before giving up
20336 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
20337 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
20338 @code{t}, the back ends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
20339 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
20340 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
20342 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
20343 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
20344 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
20345 read when doing the operation described above.
20347 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
20348 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
20350 @cindex invalid characters in file names
20351 @cindex characters in file names
20352 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
20353 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
20354 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
20357 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
20361 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
20362 Windows (phooey) systems.
20364 @item gnus-hidden-properties
20365 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
20366 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
20367 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
20368 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
20370 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
20371 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
20372 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
20373 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
20374 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
20376 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
20377 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
20378 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
20380 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
20381 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
20383 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
20384 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
20385 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
20386 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
20389 @sc{imap} users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
20397 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
20398 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
20400 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
20402 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
20408 Not because of victories @*
20411 but for the common sunshine,@*
20413 the largess of the spring.
20417 but for the day's work done@*
20418 as well as I was able;@*
20419 not for a seat upon the dais@*
20420 but at the common table.@*
20425 @chapter Appendices
20428 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
20429 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
20430 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
20431 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
20432 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
20433 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
20434 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
20435 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
20436 * Frequently Asked Questions::
20443 @cindex Installing under XEmacs
20445 XEmacs is distributed as a collection of packages. You should install
20446 whatever packages the Gnus XEmacs package requires. The current
20447 requirements are @samp{gnus}, @samp{w3}, @samp{mh-e},
20448 @samp{mailcrypt}, @samp{rmail}, @samp{eterm}, @samp{mail-lib},
20449 @samp{xemacs-base}, and @samp{fsf-compat}.
20456 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
20457 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
20459 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
20460 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
20461 @uref{http://quimby.gnus.org/}. This is also the primary
20462 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
20463 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
20465 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
20466 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
20467 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
20468 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
20469 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
20470 appropriate name, don't you think?)
20472 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
20473 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
20474 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
20475 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
20478 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
20479 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
20480 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
20481 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
20482 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
20483 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
20484 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
20485 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
20486 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
20490 @node Gnus Versions
20491 @subsection Gnus Versions
20493 @cindex September Gnus
20495 @cindex Quassia Gnus
20496 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
20500 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
20501 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
20502 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
20504 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
20505 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
20507 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
20508 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
20510 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
20511 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
20513 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
20514 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
20517 On the 26th of October 2000, Oort Gnus was begun.
20519 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
20520 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'',
20521 ``Pterodactyl Gnus'', ``Oort Gnus'' -- don't panic. Don't let it know
20522 that you're frightened. Back away. Slowly. Whatever you do, don't
20523 run. Walk away, calmly, until you're out of its reach. Find a proper
20524 released version of Gnus and snuggle up to that instead.
20527 @node Other Gnus Versions
20528 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
20531 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
20532 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
20533 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
20534 @sc{mime} capabilities.
20536 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
20537 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
20538 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
20539 @sc{mime} and multilingualization things, especially important for
20546 What's the point of Gnus?
20548 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
20549 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
20550 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
20551 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
20552 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
20553 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
20554 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
20555 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
20556 keep track of millions of people who post?
20558 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
20559 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
20560 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
20561 to separate the newsreader from the back ends, Gnus now offers a simple
20562 interface for anybody who wants to write new back ends for fetching mail
20563 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
20564 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
20565 every one of you to explore and invent.
20567 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
20568 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
20571 @node Compatibility
20572 @subsection Compatibility
20574 @cindex compatibility
20575 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
20576 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
20577 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
20582 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
20586 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
20589 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
20592 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
20593 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
20594 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
20595 important variables have their values copied into their global
20596 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
20597 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
20599 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
20600 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
20601 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
20602 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
20603 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
20607 @cindex highlighting
20608 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
20609 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
20610 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
20611 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
20612 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
20613 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
20616 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
20617 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
20618 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
20619 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
20621 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
20622 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
20623 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
20624 to stop doing it the old way.
20626 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
20628 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
20630 @cindex reporting bugs
20632 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
20633 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
20634 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
20636 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
20637 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
20638 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
20639 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
20644 @subsection Conformity
20646 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
20647 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
20655 There are no known breaches of this standard.
20659 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
20661 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
20662 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
20663 We do have some breaches to this one.
20669 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
20670 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
20671 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
20672 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
20673 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
20678 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
20679 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
20680 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
20681 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
20683 @item PGP - RFC 1991 and RFC 2440
20687 RFC 1991 is the original PGP message specification, published as a
20688 Information RFC. RFC 2440 was the follow-up, now called Open PGP, and
20689 put on the Standards Track. Both document a non-MIME aware PGP
20690 format. Gnus supports both encoding (signing and encryption) and
20691 decoding (verification and decryption).
20693 @item PGP/MIME - RFC 2015/3156
20695 RFC 2015 (superceded by 3156 which references RFC 2440 instead of RFC
20696 1991) describes the MIME-wrapping around the RF 1991/2440 format.
20697 Gnus supports both encoding and decoding.
20699 @item S/MIME - RFC 2633
20701 RFC 2633 describes the S/MIME format.
20703 @item IMAP - RFC 1730/2060, RFC 2195, RFC 2086, RFC 2359, RFC 2595, RFC 1731
20705 RFC 1730 is IMAP version 4, updated somewhat by RFC 2060 (IMAP 4
20706 revision 1). RFC 2195 describes CRAM-MD5 authentication for IMAP. RFC
20707 2086 describes access control lists (ACLs) for IMAP. RFC 2359
20708 describes a IMAP protocol enhancement. RFC 2595 describes the proper
20709 TLS integration (STARTTLS) with IMAP. RFC 1731 describes the
20710 GSSAPI/Kerberos4 mechanisms for IMAP.
20714 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
20715 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
20720 @subsection Emacsen
20726 Gnus should work on :
20734 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
20738 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
20739 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
20742 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
20743 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
20744 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
20748 @node Gnus Development
20749 @subsection Gnus Development
20751 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
20752 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
20753 propose changes and new features, post patches and new back ends. This
20754 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
20755 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
20756 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
20757 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
20758 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
20760 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
20761 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
20762 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
20763 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
20764 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
20767 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
20768 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
20769 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
20770 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
20771 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
20773 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
20774 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
20775 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
20776 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
20777 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
20778 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
20779 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
20780 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
20781 usually keep up with these rapid changes, while people on the newsgroup
20782 can't be assumed to do so.
20787 @subsection Contributors
20788 @cindex contributors
20790 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
20791 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
20792 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
20793 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
20794 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
20795 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
20796 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
20797 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
20798 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
20799 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
20801 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
20807 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
20810 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
20811 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @sc{mime} and
20812 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
20813 functionality and stuff.
20816 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
20817 well as numerous other things).
20820 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
20823 Joe Reiss---creator of the smiley faces.
20826 Justin Sheehy--the FAQ maintainer.
20829 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
20832 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
20833 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
20836 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
20839 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
20840 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
20843 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
20846 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
20849 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
20852 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
20855 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
20856 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
20859 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
20862 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
20865 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
20868 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
20872 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
20875 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
20878 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
20881 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
20882 well as autoconf support.
20886 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
20887 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
20889 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
20898 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
20902 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
20912 Alexei V. Barantsev,
20927 Massimo Campostrini,
20932 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
20933 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
20937 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
20940 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
20946 Michael Welsh Duggan,
20951 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
20955 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
20963 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
20965 Michelangelo Grigni,
20969 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
20971 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
20973 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
20980 François Felix Ingrand,
20981 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c ?
20982 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
20984 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
20995 Peter Skov Knudsen,
20996 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
20998 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
20999 Thor Kristoffersen,
21002 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
21020 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
21021 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
21028 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
21033 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
21037 John McClary Prevost,
21043 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
21048 Christian von Roques,
21051 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
21058 Philippe Schnoebelen,
21060 Randal L. Schwartz,
21074 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
21079 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
21095 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
21100 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
21101 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
21102 (550kB and counting).
21104 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
21107 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
21108 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
21112 @subsection New Features
21113 @cindex new features
21116 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
21117 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
21118 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
21119 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
21120 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
21123 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
21124 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
21125 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
21128 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
21130 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
21135 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
21136 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
21139 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
21140 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
21143 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
21146 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
21147 All the mail back ends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
21148 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
21151 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
21152 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
21153 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
21154 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
21157 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
21158 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
21161 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
21162 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
21163 (@pxref{The Active File}).
21166 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
21167 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
21170 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
21171 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
21172 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
21175 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
21176 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
21177 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
21180 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
21181 the @file{.emacs} file.
21184 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
21185 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
21188 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
21189 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
21192 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
21193 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
21196 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
21197 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
21200 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
21201 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
21204 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
21207 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
21208 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
21211 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
21212 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
21215 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
21216 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
21219 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
21222 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
21223 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
21226 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
21230 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
21234 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
21235 configuration (@pxref{Window Layout}).
21238 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
21244 @node September Gnus
21245 @subsubsection September Gnus
21249 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/september,height=20cm}}
21253 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
21258 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
21259 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
21263 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
21264 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
21268 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
21272 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
21273 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
21276 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
21280 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
21283 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
21286 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
21289 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
21293 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
21294 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
21297 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
21301 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
21305 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
21309 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
21313 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
21316 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
21317 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
21320 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
21324 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
21325 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
21328 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
21331 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
21332 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
21333 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
21336 Gnus has a new back end (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
21340 The Gnus cache is much faster.
21343 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
21347 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
21348 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
21351 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
21352 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
21355 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
21356 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
21359 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
21360 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
21361 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
21364 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
21365 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
21368 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
21371 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
21374 All mail back ends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
21377 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
21380 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
21381 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
21384 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Window
21388 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
21391 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}}
21396 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
21399 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
21403 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
21406 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
21410 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
21413 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
21416 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
21417 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
21420 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
21421 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
21425 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
21426 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
21429 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
21433 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
21434 buffer to allow easier treatment.
21437 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
21440 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
21444 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
21448 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
21449 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
21452 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
21456 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
21457 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
21460 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
21461 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
21464 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
21468 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
21471 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
21474 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
21480 @subsubsection Red Gnus
21482 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
21486 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/red,height=20cm}}
21493 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
21496 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
21497 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
21500 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
21501 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
21505 Article washing status can be displayed in the
21506 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
21509 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
21512 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
21513 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
21516 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
21520 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
21521 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
21525 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
21526 Server Internals}).
21529 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
21533 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
21536 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
21537 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
21540 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
21541 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
21542 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
21545 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
21546 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
21549 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
21550 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
21553 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{C-M-_}
21557 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
21558 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
21561 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
21562 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
21565 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
21569 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
21572 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
21576 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
21577 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
21580 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
21581 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
21584 A new command for reading collections of documents
21585 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{C-M-d}
21586 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
21589 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
21593 A new mail-to-news back end makes it possible to post even when the @sc{nntp}
21594 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
21597 A new back end for reading searches from Web search engines
21598 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
21599 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
21602 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
21603 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
21607 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
21611 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
21615 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}}
21620 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
21624 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
21628 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
21629 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
21632 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
21638 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
21640 New features in Gnus 5.6:
21645 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
21646 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
21647 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
21650 The @code{nndraft} back end has returned, but works differently than
21651 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
21652 group, which is created automatically.
21655 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
21659 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
21662 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
21663 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
21666 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
21670 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
21673 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
21674 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
21677 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
21680 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
21681 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
21684 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
21685 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
21688 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
21689 control over simplification.
21692 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
21695 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
21699 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
21702 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
21705 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
21706 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
21707 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
21710 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
21711 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
21714 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
21718 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
21719 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
21722 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
21723 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
21726 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
21730 A history of where mails have been split is available.
21733 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
21736 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
21737 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
21740 A new function for citing in Message has been
21741 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
21744 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
21747 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
21751 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
21752 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
21755 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
21756 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
21759 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} back end.
21762 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
21766 @node Pterodactyl Gnus
21767 @subsubsection Pterodactyl Gnus
21769 New features in Gnus 5.8:
21774 The mail-fetching functions have changed. See the manual for the
21775 many details. In particular, all procmail fetching variables are gone.
21777 If you used procmail like in
21780 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
21781 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
21782 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/mail/incoming/")
21783 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "\\.in")
21786 this now has changed to
21790 '((directory :path "~/mail/incoming/"
21794 More information is available in the info doc at Select Methods ->
21795 Getting Mail -> Mail Sources
21798 Gnus is now a MIME-capable reader. This affects many parts of
21799 Gnus, and adds a slew of new commands. See the manual for details.
21802 Gnus has also been multilingualized. This also affects too
21803 many parts of Gnus to summarize here, and adds many new variables.
21806 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} can now be a function to be
21807 called to position point.
21810 The user can now decide which extra headers should be included in
21811 summary buffers and NOV files.
21814 @code{gnus-article-display-hook} has been removed. Instead, a number
21815 of variables starting with @code{gnus-treat-} have been added.
21818 The Gnus posting styles have been redone again and now works in a
21819 subtly different manner.
21822 New web-based back ends have been added: @code{nnslashdot},
21823 @code{nnwarchive} and @code{nnultimate}. nnweb has been revamped,
21824 again, to keep up with ever-changing layouts.
21827 Gnus can now read IMAP mail via @code{nnimap}.
21835 @section The Manual
21839 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
21840 either @code{texi2dvi}
21842 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
21843 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
21845 to get what you hold in your hands now.
21847 The following conventions have been used:
21852 This is a @samp{string}
21855 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
21858 This is a @file{file}
21861 This is a @code{symbol}
21865 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
21869 (setq flargnoze "yes")
21872 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
21875 (setq flumphel 'yes)
21878 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
21879 ever get them confused.
21883 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
21884 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
21885 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
21886 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
21887 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
21888 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
21889 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
21895 @node On Writing Manuals
21896 @section On Writing Manuals
21898 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
21899 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
21900 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
21901 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
21902 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
21903 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
21906 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
21907 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
21908 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
21911 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
21912 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
21917 @section Terminology
21919 @cindex terminology
21924 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
21925 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
21926 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
21927 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
21928 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
21932 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
21933 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
21934 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
21935 not posting, and replying is not following up.
21939 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
21943 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
21948 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of back ends, both news and mail
21949 back ends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
21950 is all done by the back ends.
21954 Gnus will always use one method (and back end) as the @dfn{native}, or
21955 default, way of getting news.
21959 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
21960 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary back ends for getting
21965 Secondary back ends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
21966 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
21970 A message that has been posted as news.
21973 @cindex mail message
21974 A message that has been mailed.
21978 A mail message or news article
21982 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
21987 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
21992 A line from the head of an article.
21996 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
21997 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
22001 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the back end for the headers of all
22002 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
22003 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
22004 normal @sc{head} format.
22008 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
22009 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
22010 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
22011 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
22012 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
22013 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
22015 @item killed groups
22016 @cindex killed groups
22017 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
22018 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
22020 @item zombie groups
22021 @cindex zombie groups
22022 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
22025 @cindex active file
22026 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
22027 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
22028 is rather large, as you might surmise.
22031 @cindex bogus groups
22032 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
22033 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
22034 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
22037 @cindex activating groups
22038 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
22039 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
22040 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
22044 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
22046 @item select method
22047 @cindex select method
22048 A structure that specifies the back end, the server and the virtual
22051 @item virtual server
22052 @cindex virtual server
22053 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
22054 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
22055 whole is a virtual server.
22059 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
22060 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
22063 @item ephemeral groups
22064 @cindex ephemeral groups
22065 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
22066 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
22067 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
22070 @cindex solid groups
22071 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
22072 group buffer are solid groups.
22074 @item sparse articles
22075 @cindex sparse articles
22076 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
22077 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
22081 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
22082 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
22086 @cindex thread root
22087 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
22088 articles in the thread.
22092 An article that has responses.
22096 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
22100 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
22101 specified by RFC 1153.
22107 @node Customization
22108 @section Customization
22109 @cindex general customization
22111 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
22112 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
22113 for some quite common situations.
22116 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
22117 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
22118 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
22119 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
22123 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
22124 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
22126 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
22127 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
22128 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
22132 @item gnus-read-active-file
22133 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
22134 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
22135 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
22136 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
22137 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
22139 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
22140 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
22141 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
22142 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
22146 @node Slow Terminal Connection
22147 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
22149 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
22150 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
22151 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
22155 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
22156 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
22157 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
22158 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
22159 horizontal and vertical recentering.
22161 @item gnus-visible-headers
22162 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
22163 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
22164 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
22165 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
22167 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
22169 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
22170 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
22171 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
22174 @item gnus-use-full-window
22175 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
22176 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
22177 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
22178 want to read them anyway.
22180 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
22181 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
22184 This can also be a predicate specifier (@pxref{Predicate Specifiers}).
22185 Avaliable predicates are @code{gnus-article-unread-p} and
22186 @code{gnus-article-unseen-p}).
22191 (setq gnus-thread-hide-subtree
22192 '(or gnus-article-unread-p
22193 gnus-article-unseen-p))
22196 (It's a pretty nonsensical example, since all unseen articles are also
22197 unread, but you get my drift.)
22200 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
22201 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
22202 lines, which might save some time.
22206 @node Little Disk Space
22207 @subsection Little Disk Space
22210 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
22211 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
22215 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
22216 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
22217 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
22218 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
22221 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
22222 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
22223 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
22224 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
22227 @item gnus-save-killed-list
22228 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
22229 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
22230 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
22231 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
22237 @subsection Slow Machine
22238 @cindex slow machine
22240 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
22241 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
22243 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
22244 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
22246 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
22247 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
22248 summary buffer faster.
22252 @node Troubleshooting
22253 @section Troubleshooting
22254 @cindex troubleshooting
22256 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
22264 Make sure your computer is switched on.
22267 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
22268 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
22272 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
22273 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
22274 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
22275 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
22278 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
22282 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
22283 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
22284 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
22285 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
22286 something like that.
22289 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
22292 @cindex reporting bugs
22294 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
22296 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
22297 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
22298 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
22299 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
22301 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
22302 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
22303 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
22304 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
22307 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
22308 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
22309 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
22310 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
22311 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
22312 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
22314 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
22315 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
22316 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
22320 If you would like to contribute a patch to fix bugs or make
22321 improvements, please produce the patch using @samp{diff -u}.
22323 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
22324 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
22326 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
22327 @cindex ding mailing list
22328 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
22329 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
22333 @node Gnus Reference Guide
22334 @section Gnus Reference Guide
22336 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
22337 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
22338 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
22339 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
22342 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
22343 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
22344 back ends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
22345 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
22346 and general methods of operation.
22349 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
22350 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
22351 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
22352 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
22353 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
22354 * Group Info:: The group info format.
22355 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
22356 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
22357 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
22361 @node Gnus Utility Functions
22362 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
22363 @cindex Gnus utility functions
22364 @cindex utility functions
22366 @cindex internal variables
22368 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
22369 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
22370 Below is a list of the most common ones.
22374 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
22375 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
22376 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
22378 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
22379 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
22380 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
22382 @item gnus-group-real-name
22383 @findex gnus-group-real-name
22384 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
22387 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
22388 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
22389 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
22390 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
22392 @item gnus-get-info
22393 @findex gnus-get-info
22394 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
22396 @item gnus-group-unread
22397 @findex gnus-group-unread
22398 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
22402 @findex gnus-active
22403 The active entry for @var{group}.
22405 @item gnus-set-active
22406 @findex gnus-set-active
22407 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
22409 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
22410 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
22411 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
22414 @item gnus-continuum-version
22415 @findex gnus-continuum-version
22416 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
22417 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
22420 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
22421 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
22422 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
22424 @item gnus-news-group-p
22425 @findex gnus-news-group-p
22426 Says whether @var{group} came from a news back end.
22428 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
22429 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
22430 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
22432 @item gnus-server-to-method
22433 @findex gnus-server-to-method
22434 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
22436 @item gnus-server-equal
22437 @findex gnus-server-equal
22438 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
22440 @item gnus-group-native-p
22441 @findex gnus-group-native-p
22442 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
22444 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
22445 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
22446 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
22448 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
22449 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
22450 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
22452 @item group-group-find-parameter
22453 @findex group-group-find-parameter
22454 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
22455 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
22457 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
22458 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
22459 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
22461 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
22462 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
22463 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
22465 @item gnus-check-backend-function
22466 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
22467 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the back end
22468 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
22471 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
22475 @item gnus-read-method
22476 @findex gnus-read-method
22477 Prompts the user for a select method.
22482 @node Back End Interface
22483 @subsection Back End Interface
22485 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
22486 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
22487 server is a @dfn{back end} and some @dfn{back end variables}. As examples
22488 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
22489 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
22490 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
22492 When Gnus asks for information from a back end---say @code{nntp}---on
22493 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
22494 function parameters. (If not, the back end should use the ``current''
22495 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
22496 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
22497 been opened, the function should fail.
22499 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
22500 name. Take this example:
22504 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
22505 (nntp-port-number 4324))
22508 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
22509 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
22511 The back ends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
22512 The standard back ends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
22513 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
22515 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
22516 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
22517 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
22519 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
22520 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
22521 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
22522 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
22523 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
22524 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
22527 Some back ends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} back ends, and
22528 some might be said not to be. The latter are back ends that generally
22529 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
22530 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
22533 Gnus identifies each message by way of group name and article number. A
22534 few remarks about these article numbers might be useful. First of all,
22535 the numbers are positive integers. Secondly, it is normally not
22536 possible for later articles to `re-use' older article numbers without
22537 confusing Gnus. That is, if a group has ever contained a message
22538 numbered 42, then no other message may get that number, or Gnus will get
22539 mightily confused.@footnote{See the function
22540 @code{nnchoke-request-update-info}, @ref{Optional Back End Functions}.}
22541 Third, article numbers must be assigned in order of arrival in the
22542 group; this is not necessarily the same as the date of the message.
22544 The previous paragraph already mentions all the `hard' restrictions that
22545 article numbers must fulfill. But it seems that it might be useful to
22546 assign @emph{consecutive} article numbers, for Gnus gets quite confused
22547 if there are holes in the article numbering sequence. However, due to
22548 the `no-reuse' restriction, holes cannot be avoided altogether. It's
22549 also useful for the article numbers to start at 1 to avoid running out
22550 of numbers as long as possible.
22552 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary back end
22555 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
22558 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
22559 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
22560 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
22561 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
22562 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
22563 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
22567 @node Required Back End Functions
22568 @subsubsection Required Back End Functions
22572 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
22574 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
22575 @code{Message-ID}s. Current back ends do not fully support either---only
22576 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most back ends do not support
22577 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
22579 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
22580 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
22581 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
22582 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
22584 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
22585 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
22586 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
22587 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
22588 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the back end finds it
22589 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
22590 number, do maximum fetches.
22592 Here's an example HEAD:
22595 221 1056 Article retrieved.
22596 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
22597 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
22598 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
22599 Subject: Re: Something very droll
22600 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
22601 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
22603 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
22604 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
22605 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
22609 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
22610 these in the data buffer.
22612 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
22616 head = error / valid-head
22617 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
22618 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
22619 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
22620 header = <text> eol
22623 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
22624 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
22628 nov-buffer = *nov-line
22629 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
22630 field = <text except TAB>
22633 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
22637 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
22639 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
22640 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
22642 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The back end
22643 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
22644 server. In fact, it should do so.
22646 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
22647 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
22650 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
22652 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
22653 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
22656 There should be no data returned.
22659 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
22661 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the back end
22662 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that back end
22663 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
22664 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
22666 There should be no data returned.
22669 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
22671 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
22672 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
22673 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
22674 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
22676 There should be no data returned.
22679 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
22681 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
22683 There should be no data returned.
22686 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
22688 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
22689 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
22690 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
22691 it would be nice if that were possible.
22693 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
22694 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
22695 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
22696 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
22697 into its article buffer.
22699 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
22700 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
22701 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
22702 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
22703 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
22704 on successful article retrieval.
22707 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
22709 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
22710 making @var{group} the current group.
22712 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
22715 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
22718 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
22721 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
22722 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
22723 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
22724 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
22725 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
22726 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
22727 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
22728 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
22731 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
22732 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
22733 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
22737 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
22739 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
22740 a no-op on most back ends.
22742 There should be no data returned.
22745 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
22747 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
22750 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
22753 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
22754 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
22757 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
22758 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
22761 active-file = *active-line
22762 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
22764 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
22767 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
22768 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
22769 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
22772 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
22774 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
22775 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
22776 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
22777 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
22778 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
22779 clear if the posting could not be completed.
22781 There should be no result data from this function.
22786 @node Optional Back End Functions
22787 @subsubsection Optional Back End Functions
22791 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
22793 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
22794 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
22795 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
22797 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
22798 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
22799 former is in the same format as the data from
22800 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
22801 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
22804 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
22808 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
22810 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the back end for
22811 alterations. This comes in handy if the back end really carries all the
22812 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
22813 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
22814 should return the (altered) group info.
22816 There should be no result data from this function.
22819 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
22821 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
22822 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
22823 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
22824 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
22825 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
22826 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
22827 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
22828 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
22830 There should be no result data from this function.
22833 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
22835 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
22836 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
22837 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some back ends (such as @sc{imap}) however carry
22838 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
22839 propagate the mark information to the server.
22841 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
22844 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
22847 RANGE is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. ACTION is
22848 @code{add} or @code{del}, used to add marks or remove marks
22849 (preserving all marks not mentioned). MARK is a list of marks; where
22850 each mark is a symbol. Currently used marks are @code{read},
22851 @code{tick}, @code{reply}, @code{expire}, @code{killed},
22852 @code{dormant}, @code{save}, @code{download}, @code{unsend},
22853 @code{forward} and @code{recent}, but your back end should, if
22854 possible, not limit itself to these.
22856 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
22857 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
22858 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
22859 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
22861 An example action list:
22864 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
22865 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
22866 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
22869 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
22870 mark on (currently not used for anything).
22872 There should be no result data from this function.
22874 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
22876 If the user tries to set a mark that the back end doesn't like, this
22877 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
22878 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
22879 @var{mark}. If the back end doesn't care, it must return the original
22880 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
22882 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
22883 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
22884 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
22887 There should be no result data from this function.
22890 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
22892 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
22893 request that the back end check for incoming articles, in one way or
22894 another. A mail back end will typically read the spool file or query the
22895 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
22896 to be heeded---if the back end decides that it is too much work just
22897 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
22898 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
22900 There should be no result data from this function.
22903 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
22905 The result data from this function should be a description of
22909 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
22911 description = <text>
22914 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
22916 The result data from this function should be the description of all
22917 groups available on the server.
22920 description-buffer = *description-line
22924 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
22926 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
22927 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date format
22928 (i.e., the date format used in mail and news headers, and returned by
22929 the function @code{message-make-date} by default). The data should be
22930 in the active buffer format.
22932 It is okay for this function to return `too many' groups; some back ends
22933 might find it cheaper to return the full list of groups, rather than
22934 just the new groups. But don't do this for back ends with many groups.
22935 Normally, if the user creates the groups herself, there won't be too
22936 many groups, so nnml and the like are probably safe. But for back ends
22937 like nntp, where the groups have been created by the server, it is quite
22938 likely that there can be many groups.
22941 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
22943 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
22945 There should be no return data.
22948 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
22950 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
22951 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
22952 numbers.) It is left up to the back end to decide how old articles
22953 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
22954 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
22957 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
22960 There should be no result data returned.
22963 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
22966 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
22967 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
22969 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
22970 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
22971 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
22972 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
22973 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
22974 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
22976 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
22977 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
22980 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
22981 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
22983 There should be no data returned.
22986 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
22988 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
22989 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
22990 this function in short order.
22992 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
22993 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
22995 There should be no data returned.
22998 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
23000 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
23001 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
23003 There should be no data returned.
23006 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
23008 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
23009 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
23010 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
23012 There should be no data returned.
23015 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
23017 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
23018 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
23020 There should be no data returned.
23025 @node Error Messaging
23026 @subsubsection Error Messaging
23028 @findex nnheader-report
23029 @findex nnheader-get-report
23030 The back ends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
23031 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
23032 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the back end
23033 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
23034 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
23035 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
23038 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
23040 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
23043 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
23044 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
23045 recently reported message for the back end in question. This function
23046 takes one argument---the server symbol.
23048 Internally, these functions access @var{back-end}@code{-status-string},
23049 so the @code{nnchoke} back end will have its error message stored in
23050 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
23053 @node Writing New Back Ends
23054 @subsubsection Writing New Back Ends
23056 Many back ends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
23057 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
23058 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
23059 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
23060 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
23063 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
23064 back ends when writing new back ends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
23065 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
23067 All the back ends declare their public variables and functions by using a
23068 package called @code{nnoo}.
23070 To inherit functions from other back ends (and allow other back ends to
23071 inherit functions from the current back end), you should use the
23077 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
23078 parameters. For instance:
23081 (nnoo-declare nndir
23085 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
23086 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
23089 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
23090 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
23091 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
23093 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
23094 variables in the parent back ends to map the variable to when executing
23095 a function in those back ends.
23098 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
23099 "Where nndir will look for groups."
23100 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
23103 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
23104 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
23105 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
23107 @item nnoo-define-basics
23108 This macro defines some common functions that almost all back ends should
23112 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
23116 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
23117 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
23118 function as being public so that other back ends can inherit it.
23120 @item nnoo-map-functions
23121 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current back end to
23122 functions from the parent back ends.
23125 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
23126 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
23127 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
23130 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
23131 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
23132 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
23133 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
23136 This macro allows importing functions from back ends. It should be the
23137 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
23138 haven't already been defined.
23144 nnmh-request-newgroups)
23148 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
23149 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
23150 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
23155 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} back end.
23158 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
23159 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
23163 (require 'nnheader)
23167 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
23169 (nnoo-declare nndir
23172 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
23173 "Where nndir will look for groups."
23174 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
23176 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
23177 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
23180 (defvoo nndir-current-group ""
23182 nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
23183 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
23184 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
23186 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
23187 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
23189 ;;; Interface functions.
23191 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
23193 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
23194 (setq nndir-directory
23195 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
23197 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
23198 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
23199 (push `(nndir-current-group
23200 ,(file-name-nondirectory
23201 (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
23203 (push `(nndir-top-directory
23204 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
23206 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
23208 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
23209 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
23210 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
23211 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
23212 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
23216 nnmh-status-message
23218 nnmh-request-newgroups))
23224 @node Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
23225 @subsubsection Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
23227 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
23228 @findex gnus-declare-backend
23229 Having Gnus start using your new back end is rather easy---you just
23230 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
23231 enter the back end into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
23233 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the back end name and
23234 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
23239 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
23242 The above line would then go in the @file{nnchoke.el} file.
23244 The abilities can be:
23248 This is a mailish back end---followups should (probably) go via mail.
23250 This is a newsish back end---followups should (probably) go via news.
23252 This back end supports both mail and news.
23254 This is neither a post nor mail back end---it's something completely
23257 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
23258 articles and groups.
23260 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
23261 true for almost all back ends.
23262 @item prompt-address
23263 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
23264 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for back ends like
23265 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
23269 @node Mail-like Back Ends
23270 @subsubsection Mail-like Back Ends
23272 One of the things that separate the mail back ends from the rest of the
23273 back ends is the heavy dependence by the mail back ends on common
23274 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
23275 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
23278 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
23279 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
23280 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
23283 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
23284 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
23287 This function takes four parameters.
23291 This should be a symbol to designate which back end is responsible for
23294 @item exit-function
23295 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
23297 @item temp-directory
23298 Where the temporary files should be stored.
23301 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
23302 performed for one group only.
23305 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{back-end}@code{-save-mail} to
23306 save each article. @var{back-end}@code{-active-number} will be called to
23307 find the article number assigned to this article.
23309 The function also uses the following variables:
23310 @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
23311 this back end); and @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} and
23312 @var{back-end}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
23313 @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
23317 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
23318 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
23322 @node Score File Syntax
23323 @subsection Score File Syntax
23325 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
23326 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
23327 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
23329 Here's a typical score file:
23333 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
23340 BNF definition of a score file:
23343 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
23344 element = rule / atom
23345 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
23346 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
23347 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
23348 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
23350 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
23351 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
23352 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
23353 date-header = "date"
23354 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
23355 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
23356 score = "nil" / <integer>
23357 date = "nil" / <natural number>
23358 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
23359 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
23360 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
23361 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
23362 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
23363 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
23364 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
23365 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
23366 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
23367 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
23368 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
23369 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
23370 exclude-files / read-only / touched
23371 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
23372 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
23373 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
23374 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
23375 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
23376 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
23377 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
23378 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
23379 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
23380 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
23381 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
23382 eval = "eval" space <form>
23383 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
23386 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
23389 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
23390 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
23391 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
23392 one looong line, then that's ok.
23394 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
23395 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
23399 @subsection Headers
23401 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
23402 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
23403 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
23404 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
23406 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
23407 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
23408 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
23409 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
23410 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
23411 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
23412 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
23414 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
23415 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
23416 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
23417 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
23418 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
23420 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
23421 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
23427 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
23428 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
23430 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
23431 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
23432 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
23433 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
23435 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
23439 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
23442 is transformed into
23445 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
23448 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
23449 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
23452 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
23455 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
23456 is slightly tricky:
23459 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
23465 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
23468 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
23474 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
23481 and is equal to the previous range.
23483 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
23484 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
23485 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
23489 range = simple-range / normal-range
23490 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
23491 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
23492 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
23493 number *[ " " contents ]
23496 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
23497 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
23498 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
23499 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
23500 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
23505 @subsection Group Info
23507 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
23508 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
23509 describes the group.
23511 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
23512 second is a more complex one:
23515 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
23517 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
23518 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
23520 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
23523 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
23524 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
23525 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
23526 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
23527 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
23528 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
23529 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
23530 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
23531 this section is about.
23533 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
23534 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
23535 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
23537 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
23540 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
23541 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
23542 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
23543 group = quote <string> quote
23544 ralevel = rank / level
23545 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
23546 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
23547 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
23549 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
23550 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
23551 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
23552 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
23555 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
23556 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
23559 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
23560 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
23563 @item gnus-info-group
23564 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
23565 @findex gnus-info-group
23566 @findex gnus-info-set-group
23567 Get/set the group name.
23569 @item gnus-info-rank
23570 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
23571 @findex gnus-info-rank
23572 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
23573 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
23575 @item gnus-info-level
23576 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
23577 @findex gnus-info-level
23578 @findex gnus-info-set-level
23579 Get/set the group level.
23581 @item gnus-info-score
23582 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
23583 @findex gnus-info-score
23584 @findex gnus-info-set-score
23585 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
23587 @item gnus-info-read
23588 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
23589 @findex gnus-info-read
23590 @findex gnus-info-set-read
23591 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
23593 @item gnus-info-marks
23594 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
23595 @findex gnus-info-marks
23596 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
23597 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
23599 @item gnus-info-method
23600 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
23601 @findex gnus-info-method
23602 @findex gnus-info-set-method
23603 Get/set the group select method.
23605 @item gnus-info-params
23606 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
23607 @findex gnus-info-params
23608 @findex gnus-info-set-params
23609 Get/set the group parameters.
23612 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
23613 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
23615 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
23616 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
23617 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
23618 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
23621 @node Extended Interactive
23622 @subsection Extended Interactive
23623 @cindex interactive
23624 @findex gnus-interactive
23626 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
23627 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
23628 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
23631 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
23632 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
23637 The best thing to do would have been to implement
23638 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
23639 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
23640 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
23641 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
23642 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
23643 @code{interactive}.
23645 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
23650 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
23651 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
23655 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
23656 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
23657 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
23660 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
23664 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
23668 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
23674 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
23675 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
23679 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
23680 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
23681 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
23683 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
23684 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
23685 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
23686 Gnus, that's very useful.
23688 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
23689 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
23690 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
23691 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
23692 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
23693 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
23694 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
23695 following function:
23698 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
23702 (,function ,@@args))
23706 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
23707 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
23708 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
23711 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
23712 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
23713 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
23715 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
23716 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
23717 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
23720 @node Various File Formats
23721 @subsection Various File Formats
23724 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
23725 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
23729 @node Active File Format
23730 @subsubsection Active File Format
23732 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
23733 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
23736 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
23739 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
23740 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
23741 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
23742 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
23743 no.general 1000 900 y
23746 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
23749 active = *group-line
23750 group-line = group spc high-number spc low-number spc flag <NEWLINE>
23751 group = <non-white-space string>
23753 high-number = <non-negative integer>
23754 low-number = <positive integer>
23755 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
23758 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
23759 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
23762 @node Newsgroups File Format
23763 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
23765 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
23766 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
23767 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
23770 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
23771 Here's the definition:
23775 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
23776 group = <non-white-space string>
23778 description = <string>
23783 @node Emacs for Heathens
23784 @section Emacs for Heathens
23786 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
23787 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
23788 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{C-M-a}'', ``kill the
23789 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
23790 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
23791 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
23792 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
23796 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
23797 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
23802 @subsection Keystrokes
23806 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
23809 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
23812 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
23813 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
23814 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
23815 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
23816 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
23817 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
23819 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
23820 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
23821 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
23822 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
23823 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
23824 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
23825 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
23827 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
23828 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{C-M-m}
23829 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
23830 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
23831 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
23832 ``Press @kbd{C-M-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
23833 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
23835 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
23836 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
23837 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
23838 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
23839 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
23845 @subsection Emacs Lisp
23847 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
23848 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
23849 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
23850 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
23852 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
23853 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
23854 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
23855 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
23856 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
23857 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
23858 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
23861 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
23862 write the following:
23865 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
23868 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
23869 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
23870 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
23873 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
23874 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
23875 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
23876 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
23877 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
23879 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
23880 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
23881 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
23885 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
23889 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
23892 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
23893 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
23896 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
23899 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
23900 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
23903 @include gnus-faq.texi
23923 @c Local Variables:
23925 @c coding: iso-8859-1
23927 % LocalWords: BNF mucho detailmenu cindex kindex kbd
23928 % LocalWords: findex Gnusae vindex dfn dfn samp nntp setq nnspool nntpserver
23929 % LocalWords: nnmbox newusers Blllrph NEWGROUPS dingnusdingnusdingnus
23930 % LocalWords: pre fab rec comp nnslashdot regex ga ga sci nnml nnbabyl nnmh
23931 % LocalWords: nnfolder emph looong eld newsreaders defun init elc pxref