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10 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
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268 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
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277 Copyright \copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
278 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
281 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
282 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
283 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
284 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
285 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
286 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
287 License'' in the Emacs manual.
289 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
290 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
291 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
293 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
294 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
295 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
296 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
304 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
306 Copyright (C) 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
308 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
309 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
310 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
311 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
312 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
313 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
314 License'' in the Emacs manual.
316 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
317 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
318 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
320 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
321 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
322 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
323 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
331 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
334 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
335 Copyright @copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
337 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
338 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
339 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
340 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
341 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
342 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
343 License'' in the Emacs manual.
345 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
346 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
347 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
349 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
350 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
351 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
352 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
361 @top The Gnus Newsreader
365 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
366 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
367 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
370 This manual corresponds to Oort Gnus v.
381 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
382 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
384 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
385 being accused of plagiarism:
387 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
388 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
389 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
390 can even read news with it!
392 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
393 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
394 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
395 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
396 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
402 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
403 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
404 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
405 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
406 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
407 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
408 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
409 * Various:: General purpose settings.
410 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
411 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
412 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
413 * Key Index:: Key Index.
416 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
420 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
421 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
422 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
423 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
424 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
425 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
426 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
427 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
428 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
429 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
430 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
434 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
435 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
436 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
440 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
441 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
442 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
443 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
444 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
445 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
446 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
447 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
448 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
449 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
450 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
451 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
452 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
453 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
454 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
455 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
456 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
460 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
461 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
462 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
466 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
467 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
468 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
469 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
470 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
474 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
475 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
476 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
477 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
481 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
482 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
483 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
484 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
485 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
487 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
488 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
489 * Threading:: How threads are made.
490 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
491 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
492 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
493 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
494 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
495 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
496 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
497 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
498 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
499 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
500 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
501 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
502 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
503 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
504 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
505 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
506 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
507 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
508 or reselecting the current group.
509 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
510 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
511 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
512 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
514 Summary Buffer Format
516 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
517 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
518 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
519 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
523 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
524 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
526 Reply, Followup and Post
528 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
529 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
530 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
531 * Canceling and Superseding::
535 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
536 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
537 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
539 * Generic Marking Commands::
540 * Setting Process Marks::
544 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
545 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
546 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
550 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
551 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
553 Customizing Threading
555 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
556 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
557 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
558 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
562 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
563 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
564 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
565 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
566 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
567 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
571 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
572 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
573 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
577 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
578 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
579 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
580 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
581 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
582 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
583 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
584 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
586 Alternative Approaches
588 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
589 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
591 Various Summary Stuff
593 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
594 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
595 * Summary Generation Commands::
596 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
600 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
601 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
602 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
603 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
604 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
608 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
609 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
610 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
611 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
612 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
613 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
614 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
615 * Using GPG:: How to use GPG and MML to sign and encrypt messages
619 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
620 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
621 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
622 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
623 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
624 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
625 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
629 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
630 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
631 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
632 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
633 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
634 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
635 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
639 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
640 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
644 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
645 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
646 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
650 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
651 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
652 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
653 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
654 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
655 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
656 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
657 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
658 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
659 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
660 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
661 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
662 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
666 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
667 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
668 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
670 Choosing a Mail Backend
672 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
673 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
674 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
675 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
676 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
677 * Comparing Mail Backends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
681 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
682 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
683 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
684 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
685 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
686 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
690 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
691 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
692 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
693 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
694 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
695 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
699 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
703 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
704 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
705 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
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 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
716 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
720 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
721 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
722 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
723 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
724 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
725 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
726 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
727 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
728 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
729 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
733 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
734 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
735 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
739 * Group Agent Commands::
740 * Summary Agent Commands::
741 * Server Agent Commands::
745 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
746 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
747 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
748 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
749 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
750 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
751 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
752 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
753 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
754 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
755 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
756 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
757 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
758 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
759 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
760 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
761 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
765 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
766 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
767 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
768 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
772 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
773 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
774 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
778 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
779 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
780 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
781 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
782 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
783 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
784 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
785 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
786 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
787 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
788 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
789 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
790 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
791 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
792 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
793 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
794 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
795 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
799 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
800 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
801 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
802 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
803 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
804 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
805 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
806 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
810 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
811 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
812 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
813 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
817 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
818 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
819 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
820 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
821 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
825 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
826 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
827 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
828 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
829 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
830 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
831 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
835 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
836 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
837 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
838 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
839 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
840 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
841 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
842 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
843 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
847 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
848 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
849 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
850 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
851 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
855 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
856 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
857 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
858 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
862 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
863 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
864 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
865 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
866 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
867 * Group Info:: The group info format.
868 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
869 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
870 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
874 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
875 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
876 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
877 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
878 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
879 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
883 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
884 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
888 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
889 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
895 @chapter Starting Gnus
900 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
901 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
904 @findex gnus-other-frame
905 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
906 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
907 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
909 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
910 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
911 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
913 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
914 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
917 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
918 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
919 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
920 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
921 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
922 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
923 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
924 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
925 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
926 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
927 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
931 @node Finding the News
932 @section Finding the News
935 @vindex gnus-select-method
937 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
938 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
939 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
940 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
943 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
944 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
947 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
950 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
953 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
956 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
957 certainly be much faster.
959 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
961 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
962 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
963 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
964 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
965 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
966 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
968 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
969 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
970 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
971 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
973 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
974 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
975 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
976 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
977 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
978 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
979 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
980 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
981 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
984 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
986 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
987 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
988 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
989 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
990 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
991 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
993 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
995 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
996 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
997 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
998 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
999 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
1000 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
1003 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
1004 would typically set this variable to
1007 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
1011 @node The First Time
1012 @section The First Time
1013 @cindex first time usage
1015 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
1016 be subscribed by default.
1018 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
1019 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
1020 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
1021 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1024 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1025 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1026 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1028 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
1029 help you with most common problems.
1031 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
1032 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1036 @node The Server is Down
1037 @section The Server is Down
1038 @cindex server errors
1040 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
1041 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1042 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
1044 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1045 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1046 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1047 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1048 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1049 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1050 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1052 @findex gnus-no-server
1053 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1055 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1056 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1057 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
1058 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1059 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1060 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1061 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1065 @section Slave Gnusae
1068 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
1069 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1070 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
1071 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1073 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1074 @code{.newsrc} file.
1076 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
1077 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1078 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1079 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1080 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1081 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1082 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1084 Anyway, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1085 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
1086 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1087 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1088 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
1089 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1090 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1091 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1093 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1094 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
1097 @node Fetching a Group
1098 @section Fetching a Group
1099 @cindex fetching a group
1101 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1102 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1103 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
1104 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1105 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1106 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1112 @cindex subscription
1114 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1115 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1116 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1117 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1118 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1119 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1120 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1121 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the backends for new groups even
1122 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1125 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1126 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1127 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1131 @node Checking New Groups
1132 @subsection Checking New Groups
1134 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1135 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1136 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1137 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
1138 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1139 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1140 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1141 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1142 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1143 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1145 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1146 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1147 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1148 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1149 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1150 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
1151 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1152 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1153 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1154 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1155 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1157 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
1158 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1159 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1160 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1161 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1162 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1165 @node Subscription Methods
1166 @subsection Subscription Methods
1168 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1169 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1170 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1172 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1173 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1175 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1179 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1180 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1181 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1182 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1183 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1185 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1186 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1187 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1188 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1190 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1191 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1192 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1194 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1195 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1196 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1197 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1198 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1199 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1200 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1201 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1202 up. Or something like that.
1204 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1205 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1206 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
1207 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1208 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1210 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1211 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1212 Kill all new groups.
1214 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1215 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1216 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1217 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1218 topic parameter that looks like
1224 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1227 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1232 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1233 A closely related variable is
1234 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1235 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
1236 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1237 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1240 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1241 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1242 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1243 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1246 @node Filtering New Groups
1247 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1249 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1250 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1251 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1254 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1257 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1258 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1259 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1260 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1261 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1262 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1263 subscribing these groups.
1264 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1265 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1267 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1268 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1269 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1270 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1271 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1272 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1273 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1274 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1276 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1277 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1278 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1279 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1280 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1281 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1282 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1283 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1284 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
1285 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
1287 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1288 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1291 @node Changing Servers
1292 @section Changing Servers
1293 @cindex changing servers
1295 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
1296 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1297 very flaky and you want to use another.
1299 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1300 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1304 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1305 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1306 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1307 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1310 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1311 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1312 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1313 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1315 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1316 @findex gnus-change-server
1317 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1318 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1319 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1320 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1321 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1323 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1324 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1325 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1326 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1327 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1329 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1330 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1331 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1332 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1333 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1334 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1336 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1337 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1338 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1342 @section Startup Files
1343 @cindex startup files
1348 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1349 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1351 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1352 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1353 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1354 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1355 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1356 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1357 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1359 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1360 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1361 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1362 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1363 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1364 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1366 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1367 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1368 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1369 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1370 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
1371 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1372 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1373 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
1374 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1375 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1377 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1378 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1379 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1380 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1381 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1382 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1383 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1384 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1385 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1386 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1387 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1388 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1390 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1391 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1392 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1393 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1395 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1396 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1397 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1398 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1399 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1400 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1401 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1402 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1403 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1404 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1407 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1408 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1410 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1411 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1414 @vindex gnus-init-file
1415 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1416 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1417 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1418 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1419 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1420 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1421 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1422 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1423 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1429 @cindex dribble file
1432 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
1433 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1434 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1435 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1436 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1439 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1440 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1443 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1444 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
1445 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1447 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1448 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1449 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
1450 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1451 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1452 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
1454 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1455 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1456 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1459 @node The Active File
1460 @section The Active File
1462 @cindex ignored groups
1464 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1465 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1466 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1468 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1469 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
1470 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1471 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
1472 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1473 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1474 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1477 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1478 @c if you set it to anything else.
1480 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1482 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1483 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
1484 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1486 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1487 you actually subscribe to.
1489 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1490 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
1491 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
1492 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1494 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1495 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1496 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1497 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1498 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1499 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1501 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1502 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1503 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1506 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
1507 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1508 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1509 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1510 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1511 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1513 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1514 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1516 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1517 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1519 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1520 secondary select methods.
1523 @node Startup Variables
1524 @section Startup Variables
1528 @item gnus-load-hook
1529 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1530 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1531 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1532 times you start Gnus.
1534 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1535 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1536 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1538 @item gnus-startup-hook
1539 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1540 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1542 @item gnus-started-hook
1543 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1544 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1547 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1548 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1549 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1550 generating the group buffer.
1552 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1553 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1554 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1555 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1556 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1557 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1558 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1559 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1561 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1562 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1563 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1564 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1565 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1566 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1568 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1569 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1570 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1572 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1573 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1574 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1576 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1577 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1578 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1579 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1585 @chapter Group Buffer
1586 @cindex group buffer
1588 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1589 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1590 long as Gnus is active.
1594 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1595 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group.ps,height=9cm}}
1596 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1597 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1598 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1599 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1600 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1601 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1607 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1608 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1609 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1610 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1611 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1612 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1613 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1614 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1615 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1616 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1617 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1618 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1619 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1620 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1621 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1622 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1623 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1627 @node Group Buffer Format
1628 @section Group Buffer Format
1631 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1632 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1633 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1637 @node Group Line Specification
1638 @subsection Group Line Specification
1639 @cindex group buffer format
1641 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1642 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1644 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1647 25: news.announce.newusers
1648 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1653 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1654 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1655 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1656 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1658 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1659 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1660 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1661 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1662 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1663 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1665 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1667 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1668 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1669 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1670 never examined by Gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1673 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1674 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1675 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1677 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1682 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1685 Whether the group is subscribed.
1688 Level of subscribedness.
1691 Number of unread articles.
1694 Number of dormant articles.
1697 Number of ticked articles.
1700 Number of read articles.
1703 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1704 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1706 Gnus uses this estimation because the NNTP protocol provides efficient
1707 access to @var{max-number} and @var{min-number} but getting the true
1708 unread message count is not possible efficiently. For hysterical
1709 raisins, even the mail backends, where the true number of unread
1710 messages might be available efficiently, use the same limited
1711 interface. To remove this restriction from Gnus means that the
1712 backend interface has to be changed, which is not an easy job. If you
1713 want to work on this, please contact the Gnus mailing list.
1716 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1719 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1728 Newsgroup description.
1731 @samp{m} if moderated.
1734 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1743 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1747 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1750 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1751 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1752 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1753 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1754 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1757 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1759 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1763 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1766 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1770 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1771 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1772 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1773 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1774 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1775 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1780 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1781 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1782 group, or a bogus native group.
1785 @node Group Modeline Specification
1786 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1787 @cindex group modeline
1789 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1790 The mode line can be changed by setting
1791 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1792 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1796 The native news server.
1798 The native select method.
1802 @node Group Highlighting
1803 @subsection Group Highlighting
1804 @cindex highlighting
1805 @cindex group highlighting
1807 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1808 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1809 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1810 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1811 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1813 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1817 (cond (window-system
1818 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1819 (defface my-group-face-1
1820 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1821 (defface my-group-face-2
1822 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1823 (defface my-group-face-3
1824 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1825 (defface my-group-face-4
1826 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1827 (defface my-group-face-5
1828 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1830 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1831 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1832 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1833 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1834 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1835 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1838 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1840 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1847 The number of unread articles in the group.
1851 Whether the group is a mail group.
1853 The level of the group.
1855 The score of the group.
1857 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1859 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1860 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1862 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1863 topic being inserted.
1866 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1867 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1868 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1870 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1871 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1872 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1873 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1874 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1877 @node Group Maneuvering
1878 @section Group Maneuvering
1879 @cindex group movement
1881 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1882 expected, hopefully.
1888 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1889 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1890 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1896 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1897 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1898 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1902 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1903 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1907 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1908 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1912 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1913 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1914 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1918 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1919 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1920 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1923 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1929 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1930 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1931 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1936 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1937 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1938 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1942 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1943 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1944 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1947 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1948 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1949 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1950 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1954 @node Selecting a Group
1955 @section Selecting a Group
1956 @cindex group selection
1961 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1962 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1963 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1964 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1965 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1966 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1967 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1968 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1969 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1970 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{N})} oldest articles.
1972 Thus, @kbd{SPC} enters the group normally, @kbd{C-u SPC} offers old
1973 articles, @kbd{C-u 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 newest articles, and @kbd{C-u
1974 - 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 oldest ones.
1976 When you are in the group (in the Summary buffer), you can type
1977 @kbd{M-g} to fetch new articles, or @kbd{C-u M-g} to also show the old
1982 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1983 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1984 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1985 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1986 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1990 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1991 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1992 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1993 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1994 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1995 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1996 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1997 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
1998 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
1999 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
2002 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
2003 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
2004 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
2005 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
2006 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
2009 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
2010 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
2011 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
2012 doing any processing of its contents
2013 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
2014 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
2015 manner will have no permanent effects.
2019 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
2020 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
2021 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
2022 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
2023 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
2024 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
2025 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
2026 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
2029 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
2030 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
2031 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
2032 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
2037 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
2038 full summary buffer.
2041 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
2044 Select the highest scored article in the group when entering the
2049 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function will
2050 be called to place point on a subject line, and/or select some article.
2051 Useful functions include:
2054 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-subject
2055 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article, but
2056 don't select the article.
2058 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-article
2059 Select the first unread article.
2061 @item gnus-summary-best-unread-article
2062 Select the highest-scored unread article.
2066 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2067 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
2068 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2072 @node Subscription Commands
2073 @section Subscription Commands
2074 @cindex subscription
2082 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2083 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2084 Toggle subscription to the current group
2085 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2091 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2092 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2093 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2094 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2100 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2101 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2102 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2108 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2109 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2112 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2113 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2114 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2115 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2116 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2122 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2123 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2127 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2128 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2131 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2132 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2133 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2134 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2135 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2136 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2137 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2138 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2139 @file{.newsrc} file.
2143 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2153 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2154 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2155 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2156 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2157 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2158 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2163 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2164 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2165 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2169 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2170 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2171 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2173 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2174 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2175 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2176 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
2177 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2178 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2185 @section Group Levels
2189 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2190 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2191 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2192 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2193 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2195 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2201 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2202 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2203 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2204 prompted for a level.
2207 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2208 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2209 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2210 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2211 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2212 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2213 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2214 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2215 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2216 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2217 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2218 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2219 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2220 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2221 reasons of efficiency.
2223 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2224 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2226 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2227 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2228 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2229 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2230 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2231 groups are hidden, in a way.
2233 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2234 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2235 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2236 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2237 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2238 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2240 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2241 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2242 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2243 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2244 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2245 list of killed groups.)
2247 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2248 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2249 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2251 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2252 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2253 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2254 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2255 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2256 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2257 relevant valid ranges.
2259 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2260 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2261 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2262 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2263 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2264 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2267 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2268 one with the best level.
2270 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2271 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2272 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2275 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2276 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2277 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2278 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2281 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2282 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2283 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2284 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2286 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2287 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2288 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2289 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2290 to 5. The default is 6.
2294 @section Group Score
2299 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2300 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2301 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2304 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2305 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2306 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2307 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2308 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2309 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2310 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2311 least significant part.))
2313 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2314 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2315 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2316 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2317 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2318 action after each summary exit, you can add
2319 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2320 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2321 slow things down somewhat.
2324 @node Marking Groups
2325 @section Marking Groups
2326 @cindex marking groups
2328 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2329 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2330 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2331 bidding on those groups.
2333 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2334 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2335 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2343 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2344 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2350 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2351 Remove the mark from the current group
2352 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2356 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2357 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2361 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2362 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2366 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2367 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2371 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2372 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2373 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2376 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2378 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2379 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2380 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2381 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2382 the command to be executed.
2385 @node Foreign Groups
2386 @section Foreign Groups
2387 @cindex foreign groups
2389 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2390 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2391 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2392 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2399 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2400 @cindex making groups
2401 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2402 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2403 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2407 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2408 @cindex renaming groups
2409 Rename the current group to something else
2410 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2411 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2417 @findex gnus-group-customize
2418 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2422 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2423 @cindex renaming groups
2424 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2425 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2429 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2430 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2431 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2435 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2436 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2437 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2441 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2443 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2444 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2449 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2450 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2454 @cindex (ding) archive
2455 @cindex archive group
2456 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2457 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2458 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2459 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2460 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2461 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2462 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2466 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2468 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2469 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2470 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2471 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2475 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2477 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2478 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2479 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2483 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2484 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2486 Make a group based on some file or other
2487 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2488 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2489 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
2490 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
2491 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{nsmail} and @code{forward}.
2492 If you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2493 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2497 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2498 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2499 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2500 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2504 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2509 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2510 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2511 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2512 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2513 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
2514 @xref{Web Searches}.
2516 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
2517 to a particular group by using a match string like
2518 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
2521 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2522 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2523 This function will delete the current group
2524 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2525 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2526 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2527 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2528 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2532 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2533 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2534 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2538 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2539 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2540 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2543 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2546 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2547 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2548 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2549 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2550 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2551 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2555 @node Group Parameters
2556 @section Group Parameters
2557 @cindex group parameters
2559 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2560 Here's an example group parameter list:
2563 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2567 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2568 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2569 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2570 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2572 Some parameters have correspondant customizable variables, each of which
2573 is an alist of regexps and values.
2575 The following group parameters can be used:
2580 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2583 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2586 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2587 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2588 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2589 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2590 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2592 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2593 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2594 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2595 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2596 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2597 list address instead.
2599 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-address-alist}.
2603 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2606 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2609 It is totally ignored
2610 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2611 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2613 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2614 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2615 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2616 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2617 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2619 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2620 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2621 sending the message.
2623 @findex gnus-mailing-list-mode
2624 @cindex Mail List Groups
2625 If this variable is set, @code{gnus-mailing-list-mode} is turned on when
2626 entering summary buffer.
2628 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-list-alist}.
2632 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2633 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2634 of whether it has any unread articles.
2636 @item broken-reply-to
2637 @cindex broken-reply-to
2638 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2639 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2640 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2641 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2642 broken behavior. So there!
2646 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2647 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2651 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2652 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2653 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2658 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2659 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2660 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2661 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2662 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2663 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2664 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2668 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2669 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2670 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2672 See also @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups}.
2675 @cindex total-expire
2676 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2677 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2678 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2679 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2682 See also @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups}.
2686 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2687 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2688 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2689 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2690 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2691 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2694 @cindex score file group parameter
2695 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2696 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2697 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2700 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2701 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2702 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2703 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2706 @cindex admin-address
2707 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2708 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2709 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2710 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2714 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2715 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2719 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2722 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2726 Display articles that satisfy a predicate.
2728 Here are some examples:
2732 Display only read articles.
2735 Display everything except expirable articles.
2737 @item [and (not reply) (not expire)]
2738 Display everything except expirable and articles you've already
2742 The available operators are @code{not}, @code{and} and @code{or}.
2743 Predicates include @code{tick}, @code{unsend}, @code{undownload},
2744 @code{read}, @code{dormant}, @code{expire}, @code{reply},
2745 @code{killed}, @code{bookmark}, @code{score}, @code{save},
2746 @code{cache}, @code{forward}, @code{seen} and @code{recent}.
2750 The @code{display} parameter works by limiting the summary buffer to
2751 the subset specified. You can pop the limit by using the @kbd{/ w}
2752 command (@pxref{Limiting}).
2756 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2757 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2758 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2763 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2764 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2765 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2767 See also @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}.
2769 @item ignored-charsets
2770 @cindex ignored-charset
2771 Elements that look like @code{(ignored-charsets x-known iso-8859-1)}
2772 will make @code{iso-8859-1} and @code{x-unknown} ignored; that is, the
2773 default charset will be used for decoding articles.
2775 See also @code{gnus-group-ignored-charsets-alist}.
2778 @cindex posting-style
2779 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2780 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2781 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2782 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2783 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2785 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2786 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2787 like this in the group parameters:
2792 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2797 If it is set, the value is used as the method for posting message
2798 instead of @code{gnus-post-method}.
2802 An item like @code{(banner . "regex")} causes any part of an article
2803 that matches the regular expression "regex" to be stripped. Instead of
2804 "regex", you can also use the symbol @code{signature} which strips the
2805 last signature or any of the elements of the alist
2806 @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}.
2808 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2809 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2810 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2811 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2812 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2813 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2814 @code{eval}ed there.
2816 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2817 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2818 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2819 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2820 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2824 Use the @kbd{G p} or the @kbd{G c} command to edit group parameters of a
2825 group. (@kbd{G p} presents you with a Lisp-based interface, @kbd{G c}
2826 presents you with a Customize-like interface. The latter helps avoid
2827 silly Lisp errors.) You might also be interested in reading about topic
2828 parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}).
2830 Group parameters can be set via the @code{gnus-parameters} variable too.
2831 But some variables, such as @code{visible}, have no effect. For
2835 (setq gnus-parameters
2837 (gnus-show-threads nil)
2838 (gnus-use-scoring nil)
2839 (gnus-summary-line-format
2840 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%d:%ub%-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
2844 ("^nnimap:\\(foo.bar\\)$"
2848 (gnus-use-scoring t))
2852 (broken-reply-to . t))))
2855 String value of parameters will be subjected to regexp substitution, as
2856 the @code{to-group} example shows.
2859 @node Listing Groups
2860 @section Listing Groups
2861 @cindex group listing
2863 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2871 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2872 List all groups that have unread articles
2873 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2874 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2875 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2876 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2883 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2884 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2885 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2886 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2887 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2888 unsubscribed groups).
2892 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2893 List all unread groups on a specific level
2894 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2895 with no unread articles.
2899 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2900 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2901 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2902 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2907 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2908 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2912 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2913 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2914 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2918 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2919 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2923 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2924 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2925 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2926 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2927 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2928 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2929 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2930 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2934 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2935 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2936 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2940 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2941 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2942 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2946 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
2947 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
2951 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
2952 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
2956 @findex gnus-group-list-limit
2957 List groups limited within the current selection
2958 (@code{gnus-group-list-limit}).
2962 @findex gnus-group-list-flush
2963 Flush groups from the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-flush}).
2967 @findex gnus-group-list-plus
2968 List groups plus the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-plus}).
2972 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2973 @cindex visible group parameter
2974 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2975 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2976 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2977 get the same effect.
2979 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2980 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2981 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2982 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2983 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2986 @node Sorting Groups
2987 @section Sorting Groups
2988 @cindex sorting groups
2990 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2991 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2992 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2993 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2994 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2995 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
3000 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3001 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3002 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
3004 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3005 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3006 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
3008 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
3009 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
3010 Sort by group level.
3012 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
3013 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
3014 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
3016 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3017 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3018 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
3019 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
3021 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3022 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3023 Sort by number of unread articles.
3025 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
3026 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
3027 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
3029 @item gnus-group-sort-by-server
3030 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-server
3031 Sort alphabetically on the Gnus server name.
3036 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
3037 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
3041 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
3042 some sorting criteria:
3046 @kindex G S a (Group)
3047 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3048 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
3049 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3052 @kindex G S u (Group)
3053 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
3054 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
3055 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3058 @kindex G S l (Group)
3059 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
3060 Sort the group buffer by group level
3061 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
3064 @kindex G S v (Group)
3065 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
3066 Sort the group buffer by group score
3067 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3070 @kindex G S r (Group)
3071 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
3072 Sort the group buffer by group rank
3073 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3076 @kindex G S m (Group)
3077 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
3078 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
3079 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
3083 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
3084 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3086 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
3087 commands will sort in reverse order.
3089 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
3093 @kindex G P a (Group)
3094 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
3095 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
3096 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
3099 @kindex G P u (Group)
3100 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
3101 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
3102 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
3105 @kindex G P l (Group)
3106 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
3107 Sort the groups by group level
3108 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
3111 @kindex G P v (Group)
3112 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
3113 Sort the groups by group score
3114 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3117 @kindex G P r (Group)
3118 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
3119 Sort the groups by group rank
3120 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3123 @kindex G P m (Group)
3124 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
3125 Sort the groups alphabetically by backend name
3126 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
3130 And finally, note that you can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} to manually
3134 @node Group Maintenance
3135 @section Group Maintenance
3136 @cindex bogus groups
3141 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
3142 Find bogus groups and delete them
3143 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
3147 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
3148 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
3149 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
3150 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
3151 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
3155 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
3156 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
3157 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
3158 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}). That is, delete
3159 all expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
3160 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3163 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
3164 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3165 Run all expirable articles in all groups through the expiry process
3166 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3171 @node Browse Foreign Server
3172 @section Browse Foreign Server
3173 @cindex foreign servers
3174 @cindex browsing servers
3179 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3180 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3181 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3182 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3185 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3186 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3187 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3188 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3190 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3195 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3196 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3200 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3201 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3204 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3205 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3206 Enter the current group and display the first article
3207 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3210 @kindex RET (Browse)
3211 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3212 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3216 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3217 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3218 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3224 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3225 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3229 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3230 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3231 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3236 @section Exiting Gnus
3237 @cindex exiting Gnus
3239 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
3244 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3245 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
3246 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3247 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3251 @findex gnus-group-exit
3252 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3253 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3257 @findex gnus-group-quit
3258 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3259 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3262 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3263 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3264 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
3265 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
3266 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3271 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
3272 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
3273 trying to customize meta-variables.
3278 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3279 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3280 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3286 @section Group Topics
3289 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3290 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3291 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3292 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3293 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3294 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3298 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3299 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group-topic.ps,height=9cm}}
3310 2: alt.religion.emacs
3313 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3315 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3316 13: comp.sources.unix
3319 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3321 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3322 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3323 is a toggling command.)
3325 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3326 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
3327 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
3328 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
3331 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3332 the hook for the group mode:
3335 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3339 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3340 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3341 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3342 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3343 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3347 @node Topic Variables
3348 @subsection Topic Variables
3349 @cindex topic variables
3351 Now, if you select a topic, it will fold/unfold that topic, which is
3352 really neat, I think.
3354 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3355 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3356 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3369 Number of groups in the topic.
3371 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3373 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3376 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3377 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3378 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3381 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3382 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3384 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3385 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3386 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3389 @node Topic Commands
3390 @subsection Topic Commands
3391 @cindex topic commands
3393 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3394 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3395 definitions slightly.
3401 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3402 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3403 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3407 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3408 Move the current group to some other topic
3409 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3410 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3414 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3415 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3419 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3420 Copy the current group to some other topic
3421 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3422 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3426 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3427 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3428 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3432 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3433 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3434 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3438 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3439 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3440 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3441 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3442 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3443 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3444 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3447 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3448 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3452 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3453 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3454 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3458 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3459 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3460 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3464 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3465 Toggle hiding empty topics
3466 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3470 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3471 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3472 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
3475 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3476 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3477 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3478 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
3482 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3484 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3485 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3486 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3487 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3490 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3491 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3492 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3493 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3497 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3499 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3500 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3501 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3502 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3503 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3504 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3507 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3508 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3509 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the
3510 expiry process (if any)
3511 (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}). (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3515 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3516 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3517 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3521 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3522 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3523 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3528 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3529 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3532 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3533 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3534 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3538 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3539 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3540 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3544 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3545 @cindex group parameters
3546 @cindex topic parameters
3548 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3549 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3555 @subsection Topic Sorting
3556 @cindex topic sorting
3558 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3564 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3565 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3566 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3567 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3570 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3571 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3572 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3573 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3576 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3577 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3578 Sort the current topic by group level
3579 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3582 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3583 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3584 Sort the current topic by group score
3585 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3588 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3589 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3590 Sort the current topic by group rank
3591 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3594 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3595 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3596 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
3597 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3601 @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group sorting.
3604 @node Topic Topology
3605 @subsection Topic Topology
3606 @cindex topic topology
3609 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3615 2: alt.religion.emacs
3618 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3620 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3621 13: comp.sources.unix
3624 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3625 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3626 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3631 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3632 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3636 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3637 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3638 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3639 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3640 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3641 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3643 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3644 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3645 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3648 @node Topic Parameters
3649 @subsection Topic Parameters
3650 @cindex topic parameters
3652 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3653 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3654 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3656 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3661 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3662 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3663 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3668 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3669 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3670 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3671 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3677 2: alt.religion.emacs
3681 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3683 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3684 13: comp.sources.unix
3688 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3689 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3690 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3691 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3692 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3693 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3695 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3696 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3697 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3698 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3699 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3701 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3702 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3703 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3704 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3705 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3706 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3707 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3708 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3711 @node Misc Group Stuff
3712 @section Misc Group Stuff
3715 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3716 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
3717 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3718 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3725 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3726 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3727 @xref{Server Buffer}.
3731 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3732 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a
3733 prefix, the current group name will be used as the default.
3737 @findex gnus-group-mail
3738 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
3742 Variables for the group buffer:
3746 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3747 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3748 is called after the group buffer has been
3751 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3752 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3753 is called after the group buffer is
3754 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3757 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3758 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3759 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3760 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3762 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3763 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3764 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3765 whether they are empty or not.
3767 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3768 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3769 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
3770 non-ASCII group names.
3774 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3775 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
3778 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3779 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3780 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names.
3781 It is used to show non-ASCII group names.
3785 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3786 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
3791 @node Scanning New Messages
3792 @subsection Scanning New Messages
3793 @cindex new messages
3794 @cindex scanning new news
3800 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
3801 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
3802 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
3803 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
3804 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
3805 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
3810 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
3811 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
3812 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
3813 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
3814 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
3815 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
3816 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
3818 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
3819 @cindex activating groups
3821 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
3822 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
3827 @findex gnus-group-restart
3828 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
3829 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
3830 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
3834 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3835 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3837 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3838 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3842 @node Group Information
3843 @subsection Group Information
3844 @cindex group information
3845 @cindex information on groups
3852 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
3853 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
3856 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
3857 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
3858 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
3859 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
3860 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
3861 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
3862 for fetching the file.
3864 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
3865 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
3869 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
3871 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
3872 @cindex describing groups
3873 @cindex group description
3874 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
3875 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
3876 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
3880 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
3881 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
3882 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
3889 @findex gnus-version
3890 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
3894 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
3895 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
3898 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
3901 @findex gnus-info-find-node
3902 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
3906 @node Group Timestamp
3907 @subsection Group Timestamp
3909 @cindex group timestamps
3911 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
3912 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
3913 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
3916 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
3919 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
3921 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
3922 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
3925 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3926 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
3929 This will result in lines looking like:
3932 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
3933 0: custom 19961002T012713
3936 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
3937 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
3941 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3942 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
3947 @subsection File Commands
3948 @cindex file commands
3954 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
3955 @vindex gnus-init-file
3956 @cindex reading init file
3957 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
3958 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
3962 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
3963 @cindex saving .newsrc
3964 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
3965 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
3966 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
3969 @c @kindex Z (Group)
3970 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
3971 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3976 @node Summary Buffer
3977 @chapter Summary Buffer
3978 @cindex summary buffer
3980 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3981 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3983 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3984 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3986 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3989 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3990 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3991 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3992 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3993 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3994 * Delayed Articles::
3995 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3996 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3997 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3998 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3999 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
4000 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
4001 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
4002 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
4003 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
4004 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
4005 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
4006 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
4007 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
4008 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
4009 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
4010 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
4011 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
4012 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
4013 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
4014 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
4015 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
4016 or reselecting the current group.
4017 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
4018 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
4019 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
4020 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
4024 @node Summary Buffer Format
4025 @section Summary Buffer Format
4026 @cindex summary buffer format
4030 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
4031 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary.ps,width=7.5cm}}
4032 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-article.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4038 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
4039 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
4040 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
4041 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
4044 @findex mail-extract-address-components
4045 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
4046 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
4047 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
4048 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
4049 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
4050 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
4051 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
4052 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
4053 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
4054 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead:
4057 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
4058 'mail-extract-address-components)
4061 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
4062 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
4063 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
4064 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
4067 @node Summary Buffer Lines
4068 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
4070 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4071 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
4072 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
4073 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
4074 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
4076 There should always be a colon or a point position marker on the line;
4077 the cursor always moves to the point position marker or the colon after
4078 performing an operation. (Of course, Gnus wouldn't be Gnus if it wasn't
4079 possible to change this. Just write a new function
4080 @code{gnus-goto-colon} which does whatever you like with the cursor.)
4082 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%) %s\n}.
4084 The following format specification characters are understood:
4090 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
4091 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
4093 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
4094 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
4095 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
4097 Full @code{From} header.
4099 The name (from the @code{From} header).
4101 The name, code @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header
4102 (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
4104 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
4105 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
4106 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
4107 may be more thorough.
4109 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
4112 Number of lines in the article.
4114 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported
4115 in some methods (like nnfolder).
4117 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4119 A complex trn-style thread tree, showing response-connecting trace
4122 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
4123 pushes everything after it off the screen).
4125 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
4126 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4128 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
4129 for adopted articles.
4131 One space for each thread level.
4133 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
4138 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
4139 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
4143 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
4145 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
4146 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
4147 default level. If the difference between
4148 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
4149 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
4157 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
4159 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
4165 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
4166 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
4168 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
4169 article has any children.
4175 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4176 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4177 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4178 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4179 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4180 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4183 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4184 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
4185 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4186 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4187 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4188 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4190 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4191 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4193 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
4196 @node To From Newsgroups
4197 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4201 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4202 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4203 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4204 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4205 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4209 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4210 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4211 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4215 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4216 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4219 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4220 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4223 @findex gnus-extra-header
4224 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4225 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4226 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4229 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4233 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4234 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4235 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4236 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4237 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4238 headers are used instead.
4242 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4243 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4244 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
4245 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
4248 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4249 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4250 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4251 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4253 In summary, you'd typically put something like the following in
4257 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4259 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4260 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4261 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
4262 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4266 Now, this is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4267 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4274 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4275 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4278 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4279 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4281 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4282 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4283 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4284 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4286 Here are the elements you can play with:
4292 Unprefixed group name.
4294 Current article number.
4296 Current article score.
4300 Number of unread articles in this group.
4302 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4305 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4306 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4307 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4308 and no unselected ones.
4310 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4311 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4313 Subject of the current article.
4315 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4317 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4319 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4321 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4323 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4325 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4329 @node Summary Highlighting
4330 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4334 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4335 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4336 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4337 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4338 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4340 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4341 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4342 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4343 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4345 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4346 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4347 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4348 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4350 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4351 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4352 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4353 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4354 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4355 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4358 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4359 ((> score default) . bold))
4361 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4362 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4366 @node Summary Maneuvering
4367 @section Summary Maneuvering
4368 @cindex summary movement
4370 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4371 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4373 None of these commands select articles.
4378 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4379 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4380 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4381 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4382 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4386 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4387 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4388 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4389 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4390 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4393 @kindex G g (Summary)
4394 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4395 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4396 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4399 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4400 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4401 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4402 to the group buffer.
4404 Variables related to summary movement:
4408 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4409 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4410 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4411 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
4412 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4413 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4414 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
4415 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
4416 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
4417 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
4418 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
4419 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
4420 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
4421 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
4423 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4424 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4425 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4426 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4427 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4428 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4429 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4431 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4433 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4434 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4435 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4436 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4437 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4439 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4440 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4441 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4442 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4443 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4444 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4445 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4446 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4449 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4450 the given number of lines from the top.
4455 @node Choosing Articles
4456 @section Choosing Articles
4457 @cindex selecting articles
4460 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4461 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4465 @node Choosing Commands
4466 @subsection Choosing Commands
4468 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4469 and they all select and display an article.
4471 If you want to fetch new articles or redisplay the group, see
4472 @ref{Exiting the Summary Buffer}.
4476 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4477 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4478 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4479 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4484 @kindex G n (Summary)
4485 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4486 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4487 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4492 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4493 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4494 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4499 @kindex G N (Summary)
4500 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4501 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4506 @kindex G P (Summary)
4507 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4508 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4511 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4512 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4513 Go to the next article with the same subject
4514 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4517 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4518 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4519 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4520 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4524 @kindex G f (Summary)
4526 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4527 Go to the first unread article
4528 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
4532 @kindex G b (Summary)
4534 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
4535 Go to the article with the highest score
4536 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
4541 @kindex G l (Summary)
4542 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
4543 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
4546 @kindex G o (Summary)
4547 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
4549 @cindex article history
4550 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
4551 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
4552 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
4553 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
4554 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
4555 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
4560 @kindex G j (Summary)
4561 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
4562 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
4563 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
4568 @node Choosing Variables
4569 @subsection Choosing Variables
4571 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
4574 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4575 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4576 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
4577 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
4578 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
4579 the server and display it in the article buffer.
4581 @item gnus-select-article-hook
4582 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
4583 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
4584 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
4586 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
4587 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
4588 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
4589 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
4590 @findex gnus-unread-mark
4591 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
4592 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
4593 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
4594 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
4595 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
4596 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
4597 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
4598 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
4599 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
4604 @node Paging the Article
4605 @section Scrolling the Article
4606 @cindex article scrolling
4611 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4612 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4613 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
4614 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
4615 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4618 @kindex DEL (Summary)
4619 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
4620 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
4623 @kindex RET (Summary)
4624 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
4625 Scroll the current article one line forward
4626 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
4629 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
4630 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
4631 Scroll the current article one line backward
4632 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
4636 @kindex A g (Summary)
4638 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
4639 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4640 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
4641 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
4642 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
4643 the way it came from the server.
4645 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
4646 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
4647 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
4650 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4655 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
4660 @kindex A < (Summary)
4661 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
4662 Scroll to the beginning of the article
4663 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
4668 @kindex A > (Summary)
4669 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
4670 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
4674 @kindex A s (Summary)
4676 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
4677 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
4678 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
4682 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
4683 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
4688 @node Reply Followup and Post
4689 @section Reply, Followup and Post
4692 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
4693 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
4694 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
4695 * Canceling and Superseding::
4699 @node Summary Mail Commands
4700 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
4702 @cindex composing mail
4704 Commands for composing a mail message:
4710 @kindex S r (Summary)
4712 @findex gnus-summary-reply
4713 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
4714 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
4715 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
4716 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
4721 @kindex S R (Summary)
4722 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
4723 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
4724 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
4725 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
4726 command uses the process/prefix convention.
4729 @kindex S w (Summary)
4730 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
4731 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
4732 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
4733 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4734 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
4737 @kindex S W (Summary)
4738 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
4739 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
4740 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
4741 the process/prefix convention.
4744 @kindex S v (Summary)
4745 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply
4746 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article
4747 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{very wide reply} is a reply
4748 that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4749 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers in all the process/prefixed
4750 articles. This command uses the process/prefix convention.
4754 @kindex S o m (Summary)
4755 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
4756 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
4757 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
4758 Forward the current article to some other person
4759 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If no prefix is given, the message
4760 is forwarded according to the value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime})
4761 and (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
4762 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
4763 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
4764 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
4765 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
4766 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
4767 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
4772 @kindex S m (Summary)
4773 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
4774 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
4775 Send a mail to some other person
4776 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
4779 @kindex S D b (Summary)
4780 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
4781 @cindex bouncing mail
4782 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
4783 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
4784 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
4785 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
4786 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
4787 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
4788 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
4789 very well fail, though.
4792 @kindex S D r (Summary)
4793 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
4794 Not to be confused with the previous command,
4795 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
4796 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
4797 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
4798 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
4799 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
4800 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
4801 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
4803 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
4804 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
4805 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
4806 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
4807 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
4809 This command understands the process/prefix convention
4810 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4813 @kindex S O m (Summary)
4814 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
4815 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
4816 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
4817 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4820 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
4821 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
4822 @cindex crossposting
4823 @cindex excessive crossposting
4824 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
4825 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
4827 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
4828 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
4829 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
4830 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
4831 command understands the process/prefix convention
4832 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
4836 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4839 @node Summary Post Commands
4840 @subsection Summary Post Commands
4842 @cindex composing news
4844 Commands for posting a news article:
4850 @kindex S p (Summary)
4851 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
4852 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
4853 Post an article to the current group
4854 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
4859 @kindex S f (Summary)
4860 @findex gnus-summary-followup
4861 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
4862 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
4866 @kindex S F (Summary)
4868 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
4869 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
4870 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
4871 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
4872 process/prefix convention.
4875 @kindex S n (Summary)
4876 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
4877 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4878 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
4881 @kindex S N (Summary)
4882 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
4883 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4884 message through mail and include the original message
4885 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
4886 the process/prefix convention.
4889 @kindex S o p (Summary)
4890 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
4891 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
4892 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}).
4893 If no prefix is given, the message is forwarded according to the value
4894 of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}) and
4895 (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
4896 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
4897 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
4898 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
4899 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
4900 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
4901 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
4904 @kindex S O p (Summary)
4905 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
4907 @cindex making digests
4908 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
4909 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
4910 process/prefix convention.
4913 @kindex S u (Summary)
4914 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
4915 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
4916 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
4917 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
4920 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4923 @node Summary Message Commands
4924 @subsection Summary Message Commands
4928 @kindex S y (Summary)
4929 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
4930 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
4931 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
4932 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
4933 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4938 @node Canceling and Superseding
4939 @subsection Canceling Articles
4940 @cindex canceling articles
4941 @cindex superseding articles
4943 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
4944 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
4946 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
4948 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
4950 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
4951 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
4952 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
4953 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
4954 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
4955 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4957 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
4958 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
4961 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
4962 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
4963 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
4965 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
4966 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
4967 your original article.
4969 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
4971 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
4972 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
4973 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
4976 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
4977 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
4978 have posted almost the same article twice.
4980 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
4981 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
4982 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
4983 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
4984 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
4985 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
4986 header by substituting one of those words for the word
4987 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
4988 you would do normally. The previous article will be
4989 canceled/superseded.
4991 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
4993 @node Delayed Articles
4994 @section Delayed Articles
4995 @cindex delayed sending
4996 @cindex send delayed
4998 Sometimes, you might wish to delay the sending of a message. For
4999 example, you might wish to arrange for a message to turn up just in time
5000 to remind your about the birthday of your Significant Other. For this,
5001 there is the @code{gnus-delay} package. Setup is simple:
5004 (gnus-delay-initialize)
5007 @findex gnus-delay-article
5008 Normally, to send a message you use the @kbd{C-c C-c} command from
5009 Message mode. To delay a message, use @kbd{C-c C-j}
5010 (@code{gnus-delay-article}) instead. This will ask you for how long the
5011 message should be delayed. Possible answers are:
5015 A time span. Consists of an integer and a letter. For example,
5016 @code{42d} means to delay for 42 days. Available letters are @code{m}
5017 (minutes), @code{h} (hours), @code{d} (days), @code{w} (weeks), @code{M}
5018 (months) and @code{Y} (years).
5021 A specific date. Looks like @code{YYYYY-MM-DD}. The message will be
5022 delayed until that day, at a specific time (eight o'clock by default).
5023 See also @code{gnus-delay-default-hour}.
5026 A specific time of day. Given in @code{hh:mm} format, 24h, no am/pm
5027 stuff. The deadline will be at that time today, except if that time has
5028 already passed, then it's at the given time tomorrow. So if it's ten
5029 o'clock in the morning and you specify @code{11:15}, then the deadline
5030 is one hour and fifteen minutes hence. But if you specify @code{9:20},
5031 that means a time tomorrow.
5034 The action of the @code{gnus-delay-article} command is influenced by a
5035 couple of variables:
5038 @item gnus-delay-default-hour
5039 @vindex gnus-delay-default-hour
5040 When you specify a specific date, the message will be due on that hour
5041 on the given date. Possible values are integers 0 through 23.
5043 @item gnus-delay-default-delay
5044 @vindex gnus-delay-default-delay
5045 This is a string and gives the default delay. It can be of any of the
5046 formats described above.
5048 @item gnus-delay-group
5049 @vindex gnus-delay-group
5050 Delayed articles will be kept in this group on the drafts server until
5051 they are due. You probably don't need to change this. The default
5052 value is @code{"delayed"}.
5054 @item gnus-delay-header
5055 @vindex gnus-delay-header
5056 The deadline for each article will be stored in a header. This variable
5057 is a string and gives the header name. You probably don't need to
5058 change this. The default value is @code{"X-Gnus-Delayed"}.
5061 The way delaying works is like this: when you use the
5062 @code{gnus-delay-article} command, you give a certain delay. Gnus
5063 calculates the deadline of the message and stores it in the
5064 @code{X-Gnus-Delayed} header and puts the message in the
5065 @code{nndraft:delayed} group.
5067 And whenever you get new news, Gnus looks through the group for articles
5068 which are due and sends them. It uses the @code{gnus-delay-send-drafts}
5069 function for this. By default, this function is added to the hook
5070 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But of course, you can change this.
5071 Maybe you want to use the demon to send drafts? Just tell the demon to
5072 execute the @code{gnus-delay-send-drafts} function.
5075 @item gnus-delay-initialize
5076 @findex gnus-delay-initialize
5077 By default, this function installs the @kbd{C-c C-j} key binding in
5078 Message mode and @code{gnus-delay-send-drafts} in
5079 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But it accepts two optional arguments,
5080 @code{no-keymap} and @code{no-check}. If @code{no-keymap} is non-nil,
5081 the @kbd{C-c C-j} binding is not intalled. If @code{no-check} is
5082 non-nil, @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is not changed.
5084 For example, @code{(gnus-delay-initialize nil t)} means to change the
5085 keymap but not to change @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. Presumably, you
5086 want to use the demon for sending due delayed articles. Just don't
5087 forget to set that up :-)
5091 @node Marking Articles
5092 @section Marking Articles
5093 @cindex article marking
5094 @cindex article ticking
5097 There are several marks you can set on an article.
5099 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
5100 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
5101 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
5103 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
5106 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
5107 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
5108 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
5112 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
5116 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
5117 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
5118 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
5122 @node Unread Articles
5123 @subsection Unread Articles
5125 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
5130 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
5131 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
5133 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
5134 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
5135 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
5136 tick it. However, articles can be expired (from news servers by the
5137 news server software, Gnus itself never expires ticked messages), so if
5138 you want to keep an article forever, you'll have to make it persistent
5139 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
5142 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
5143 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
5145 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
5146 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
5147 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
5148 Otherwise (except for the visibility issue), they are just like ticked
5152 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
5153 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
5155 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
5160 @subsection Read Articles
5161 @cindex expirable mark
5163 All the following marks mark articles as read.
5168 @vindex gnus-del-mark
5169 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
5170 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
5173 @vindex gnus-read-mark
5174 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
5177 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
5178 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
5179 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
5182 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
5183 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
5186 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
5187 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
5190 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
5191 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
5194 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
5195 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
5198 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
5199 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
5202 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
5203 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
5206 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
5207 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
5211 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
5212 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
5213 (@code{gnus-duplicate-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
5217 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
5218 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
5220 One more special mark, though:
5224 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
5225 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
5227 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
5228 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
5229 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
5230 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
5236 @subsection Other Marks
5237 @cindex process mark
5240 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
5246 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
5247 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
5248 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
5249 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
5250 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
5253 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
5254 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
5255 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
5256 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
5258 @vindex gnus-forwarded-mark
5259 All articles that you have forwarded will be marked with an @samp{F} in
5260 the second column (@code{gnus-forwarded-mark}).
5262 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5263 Articles that are ``recently'' arrived in the group will be marked
5264 with an @samp{N} in the second column (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Most
5265 backend doesn't support the mark, in which case it's not shown.
5268 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
5269 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
5270 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5273 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
5274 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
5275 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
5276 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
5279 @vindex gnus-unseen-mark
5280 Articles that haven't been seen by the user before are marked with a
5281 @samp{.} in the second column (@code{gnus-unseen-mark}).
5284 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
5285 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
5286 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
5287 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
5288 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
5291 @vindex gnus-process-mark
5292 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
5293 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
5294 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
5295 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
5296 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
5300 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
5301 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
5302 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
5304 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
5305 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
5306 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
5310 @subsection Setting Marks
5311 @cindex setting marks
5313 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
5318 @kindex M c (Summary)
5319 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5320 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5321 @cindex mark as unread
5322 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5323 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5329 @kindex M t (Summary)
5330 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5331 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5332 @xref{Article Caching}.
5337 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5338 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5339 Mark the current article as dormant
5340 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5344 @kindex M d (Summary)
5346 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5347 Mark the current article as read
5348 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5352 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5353 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5354 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5359 @kindex M k (Summary)
5360 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5361 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5362 and then select the next unread article
5363 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5367 @kindex M K (Summary)
5368 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5369 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5370 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5371 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5374 @kindex M C (Summary)
5375 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5376 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5377 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5380 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5381 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5382 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5383 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5386 @kindex M H (Summary)
5387 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5388 Catchup the current group to point (before the point)
5389 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5392 @kindex M h (Summary)
5393 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-from-here
5394 Catchup the current group from point (after the point)
5395 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-from-here}).
5398 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5399 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5400 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5401 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5404 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5405 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5406 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5407 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5411 @kindex M e (Summary)
5413 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5414 Mark the current article as expirable
5415 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5418 @kindex M b (Summary)
5419 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5420 Set a bookmark in the current article
5421 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5424 @kindex M B (Summary)
5425 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5426 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5427 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5430 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5431 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5432 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5433 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5436 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5437 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5438 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5439 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5442 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5443 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5444 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5445 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5446 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5449 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
5450 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
5451 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
5452 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
5453 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
5454 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
5455 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
5456 The default is @code{t}.
5459 @node Generic Marking Commands
5460 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
5462 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
5463 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
5464 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
5465 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
5466 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
5469 Multiply these five behaviors with five different marking commands, and
5470 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
5473 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
5474 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
5475 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
5476 to list in this manual.
5478 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
5479 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
5480 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
5481 article, you could say something like:
5484 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
5485 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5486 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
5492 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5493 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
5497 @node Setting Process Marks
5498 @subsection Setting Process Marks
5499 @cindex setting process marks
5506 @kindex M P p (Summary)
5507 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
5508 Mark the current article with the process mark
5509 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
5510 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
5514 @kindex M P u (Summary)
5515 @kindex M-# (Summary)
5516 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
5517 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
5520 @kindex M P U (Summary)
5521 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
5522 Remove the process mark from all articles
5523 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
5526 @kindex M P i (Summary)
5527 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
5528 Invert the list of process marked articles
5529 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
5532 @kindex M P R (Summary)
5533 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
5534 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5535 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
5538 @kindex M P G (Summary)
5539 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
5540 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5541 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
5544 @kindex M P r (Summary)
5545 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
5546 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
5549 @kindex M P t (Summary)
5550 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5551 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5552 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5555 @kindex M P T (Summary)
5556 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5557 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5558 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5561 @kindex M P v (Summary)
5562 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
5563 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
5564 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
5567 @kindex M P s (Summary)
5568 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
5569 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5572 @kindex M P S (Summary)
5573 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
5574 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
5575 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
5578 @kindex M P a (Summary)
5579 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
5580 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5583 @kindex M P b (Summary)
5584 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
5585 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
5586 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
5589 @kindex M P k (Summary)
5590 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
5591 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
5592 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
5595 @kindex M P y (Summary)
5596 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
5597 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
5598 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
5601 @kindex M P w (Summary)
5602 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
5603 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
5604 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
5608 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
5609 set process marks based on article body contents.
5616 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
5617 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
5618 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
5621 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
5622 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
5623 additional articles.
5629 @kindex / / (Summary)
5630 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
5631 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
5632 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
5635 @kindex / a (Summary)
5636 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
5637 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
5638 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
5641 @kindex / x (Summary)
5642 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
5643 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
5644 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
5645 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}).
5649 @kindex / u (Summary)
5651 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
5652 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
5653 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
5654 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
5655 dormant articles will also be excluded.
5658 @kindex / m (Summary)
5659 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
5660 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
5661 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
5664 @kindex / t (Summary)
5665 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
5666 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
5667 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
5668 articles younger than that number of days.
5671 @kindex / n (Summary)
5672 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
5673 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
5674 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
5675 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5678 @kindex / w (Summary)
5679 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
5680 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
5681 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
5685 @kindex / v (Summary)
5686 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
5687 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
5688 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
5691 @kindex / p (Summary)
5692 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-display-parameter
5693 Limit the summary buffer to articles that satisfy the @code{display}
5694 group parameter predicate
5695 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-display-parameter}). See @pxref{Group
5696 Parameters} for more on this predicate.
5700 @kindex M S (Summary)
5701 @kindex / E (Summary)
5702 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
5703 Include all expunged articles in the limit
5704 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
5707 @kindex / D (Summary)
5708 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
5709 Include all dormant articles in the limit
5710 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
5713 @kindex / * (Summary)
5714 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
5715 Include all cached articles in the limit
5716 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
5719 @kindex / d (Summary)
5720 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
5721 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
5722 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
5725 @kindex / M (Summary)
5726 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
5727 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
5730 @kindex / T (Summary)
5731 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
5732 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
5735 @kindex / c (Summary)
5736 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
5737 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
5738 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
5741 @kindex / C (Summary)
5742 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
5743 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
5744 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
5745 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
5753 @cindex article threading
5755 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
5756 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
5757 hierarchical fashion.
5759 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
5760 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
5761 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
5762 or simply missing. Weird news propagation exacerbates the problem,
5763 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
5764 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
5765 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
5767 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
5771 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
5774 A tree-like article structure.
5777 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
5780 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
5781 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
5782 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
5783 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
5784 called loose threads.
5786 @item thread gathering
5787 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
5789 @item sparse threads
5790 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
5791 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
5797 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
5798 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
5802 @node Customizing Threading
5803 @subsection Customizing Threading
5804 @cindex customizing threading
5807 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
5808 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
5809 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
5810 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
5815 @subsubsection Loose Threads
5818 @cindex loose threads
5821 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
5822 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
5823 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
5824 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
5825 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
5826 read or killed the root in a previous session.
5828 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
5829 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
5830 There are four possible values:
5834 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
5835 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-adopt.ps,width=7.5cm}}
5836 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-empty.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5837 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-none.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5838 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-dummy.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5843 @cindex adopting articles
5848 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
5849 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
5850 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
5851 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
5854 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
5855 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
5856 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
5857 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
5858 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
5859 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
5860 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
5863 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
5864 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
5865 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
5869 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
5870 display them after one another.
5873 Don't gather loose threads.
5876 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
5877 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
5878 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
5879 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
5880 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
5881 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
5882 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
5883 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
5884 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
5885 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
5886 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
5888 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
5889 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
5890 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
5893 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
5894 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
5895 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
5896 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
5897 simplification is used.
5899 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5900 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5901 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
5902 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
5904 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
5906 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5912 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
5913 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
5914 "answer" "reference" "announce"
5915 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
5920 (mapconcat 'identity
5921 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
5923 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
5926 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
5929 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
5930 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
5931 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
5932 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
5933 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
5934 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
5936 Useful functions to put in this list include:
5939 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
5940 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
5941 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
5943 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
5944 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
5947 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
5948 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
5949 Remove excessive whitespace.
5952 You may also write your own functions, of course.
5955 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5956 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5957 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
5958 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
5959 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
5960 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
5961 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
5962 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
5964 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5965 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5966 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
5967 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
5968 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
5969 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
5970 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
5971 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
5972 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
5976 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5977 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5978 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
5979 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
5981 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5982 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5983 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
5986 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
5990 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5991 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
5997 @node Filling In Threads
5998 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
6001 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
6002 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
6003 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
6004 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
6005 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
6006 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
6007 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
6008 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
6009 fetching old headers only works if the backend you are using carries
6010 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
6011 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
6012 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
6014 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
6015 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
6016 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
6018 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
6019 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
6020 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
6021 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
6022 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
6023 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
6024 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
6025 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
6026 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
6027 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
6028 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
6029 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
6030 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
6031 @code{nil} by default.
6033 @item gnus-read-all-available-headers
6034 @vindex gnus-read-all-available-headers
6035 This is a rather obscure variable that few will find useful. It's
6036 intended for those non-news newsgroups where the backend has to fetch
6037 quite a lot to present the summary buffer, and where it's impossible to
6038 go back to parents of articles. This is mostly the case in the
6039 web-based groups, like the @code{nnultimate} groups.
6041 If you don't use those, then it's safe to leave this as the default
6042 @code{nil}. If you want to use this variable, it should be a regexp
6043 that matches the group name, or @code{t} for all groups.
6048 @node More Threading
6049 @subsubsection More Threading
6052 @item gnus-show-threads
6053 @vindex gnus-show-threads
6054 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
6055 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
6056 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
6057 slower and more awkward.
6059 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6060 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6061 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
6064 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
6065 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
6066 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
6067 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
6068 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
6069 threads are expunged.
6071 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
6072 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
6073 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
6076 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6077 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6078 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
6079 this variable is non-@code{nil}, which is the default, the subject
6080 change is ignored. If it is @code{nil}, a change in the subject will
6081 result in a new thread.
6083 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
6084 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
6085 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
6088 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6089 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6090 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
6091 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
6092 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
6093 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
6094 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
6095 Setting this variable to an alternate value
6096 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
6097 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
6098 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
6103 @node Low-Level Threading
6104 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
6108 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
6109 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
6110 Hook run before parsing any headers.
6112 @item gnus-alter-header-function
6113 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
6114 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
6115 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
6116 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
6117 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
6118 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
6119 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
6120 meaningful. Here's one example:
6123 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
6125 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
6126 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
6128 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
6130 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
6137 @node Thread Commands
6138 @subsection Thread Commands
6139 @cindex thread commands
6145 @kindex T k (Summary)
6146 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
6147 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
6148 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
6149 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
6150 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
6155 @kindex T l (Summary)
6156 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
6157 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
6158 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
6159 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
6162 @kindex T i (Summary)
6163 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
6164 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
6165 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
6168 @kindex T # (Summary)
6169 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6170 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
6171 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6174 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
6175 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6176 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
6177 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6180 @kindex T T (Summary)
6181 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
6182 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
6185 @kindex T s (Summary)
6186 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
6187 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
6188 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
6191 @kindex T h (Summary)
6192 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
6193 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
6196 @kindex T S (Summary)
6197 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
6198 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
6201 @kindex T H (Summary)
6202 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
6203 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
6206 @kindex T t (Summary)
6207 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
6208 Re-thread the current article's thread
6209 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
6210 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
6213 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
6214 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
6215 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
6216 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
6220 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
6221 understand the numeric prefix.
6226 @kindex T n (Summary)
6228 @kindex M-C-n (Summary)
6230 @kindex M-down (Summary)
6231 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
6232 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
6235 @kindex T p (Summary)
6237 @kindex M-C-p (Summary)
6239 @kindex M-up (Summary)
6240 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
6241 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
6244 @kindex T d (Summary)
6245 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
6246 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
6249 @kindex T u (Summary)
6250 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
6251 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
6254 @kindex T o (Summary)
6255 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
6256 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
6259 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
6260 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
6261 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
6262 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
6263 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
6264 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
6265 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
6266 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
6267 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
6268 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
6269 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
6270 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
6274 @node Sorting the Summary Buffer
6275 @section Sorting the Summary Buffer
6277 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
6278 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
6279 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
6280 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6281 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
6282 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6283 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
6284 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
6285 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
6286 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
6287 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
6289 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
6290 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
6291 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
6292 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
6293 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
6295 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
6296 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
6297 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
6299 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
6300 last function in the list. You should probably always include
6301 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
6302 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
6303 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
6304 ascending article order.
6306 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
6307 by number, you could do something like:
6310 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6311 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6312 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6313 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
6316 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
6317 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
6318 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
6319 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
6320 which the articles arrived.
6322 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
6326 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6328 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
6329 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
6332 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
6333 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
6334 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
6335 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
6338 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
6339 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
6340 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
6341 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6342 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6343 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6344 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
6345 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
6346 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
6347 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
6348 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6349 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
6350 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6352 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6356 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6357 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6358 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6363 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6364 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6365 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6366 @cindex article pre-fetch
6369 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
6370 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6371 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6372 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6373 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6375 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6376 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
6378 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
6379 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
6380 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
6381 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
6382 connection is blocked.
6384 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
6385 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
6386 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
6387 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
6389 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
6390 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
6391 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
6392 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
6395 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
6398 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
6399 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
6400 happen automatically.
6402 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
6403 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
6404 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
6405 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
6406 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
6407 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
6408 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
6410 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
6411 @findex gnus-async-read-p
6412 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
6413 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
6414 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
6415 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
6416 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
6417 data structure as the only parameter.
6419 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
6422 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
6423 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
6424 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
6425 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
6428 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
6431 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
6432 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
6433 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
6435 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
6436 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
6437 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
6438 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
6442 Remove articles when they are read.
6445 Remove articles when exiting the group.
6448 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
6450 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
6451 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
6452 @c from the next group.
6455 @node Article Caching
6456 @section Article Caching
6457 @cindex article caching
6460 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
6461 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
6462 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
6463 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
6464 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
6466 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
6468 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6469 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
6470 @vindex gnus-use-cache
6471 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
6472 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
6473 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
6474 cache is flat or hierarchical is controlled by the
6475 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
6477 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
6478 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
6479 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
6480 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
6481 as dormant, and don't worry.
6483 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
6485 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
6486 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
6487 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
6488 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
6489 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
6490 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
6491 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
6492 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
6493 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
6494 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
6496 @findex gnus-jog-cache
6497 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
6498 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
6499 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
6500 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
6501 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
6502 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
6503 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
6504 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
6505 not then be downloaded by this command.
6507 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
6508 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
6509 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
6510 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
6511 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
6512 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
6514 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
6515 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
6516 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
6517 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
6518 variables, the group is not cached.
6520 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
6521 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
6522 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
6523 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
6524 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
6525 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
6526 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
6527 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
6528 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
6532 @node Persistent Articles
6533 @section Persistent Articles
6534 @cindex persistent articles
6536 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
6537 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
6538 useful in my opinion.
6540 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
6541 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
6542 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
6543 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
6544 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
6545 the expiry going on at the news server.
6547 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
6548 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
6549 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
6555 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
6556 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
6559 @kindex M-* (Summary)
6560 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
6561 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
6562 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
6566 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
6568 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
6569 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
6570 interested in persistent articles:
6573 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
6577 @node Article Backlog
6578 @section Article Backlog
6580 @cindex article backlog
6582 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
6583 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
6584 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
6585 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
6586 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
6587 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
6588 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
6589 increase memory usage some.
6591 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
6592 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
6593 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
6594 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
6595 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
6596 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
6597 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
6599 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
6602 @node Saving Articles
6603 @section Saving Articles
6604 @cindex saving articles
6606 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
6607 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
6608 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
6609 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
6610 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
6612 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
6613 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
6614 unwanted headers before saving the article.
6616 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
6617 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
6618 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
6619 deleted before saving.
6625 @kindex O o (Summary)
6627 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
6628 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
6629 Save the current article using the default article saver
6630 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
6633 @kindex O m (Summary)
6634 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
6635 Save the current article in mail format
6636 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
6639 @kindex O r (Summary)
6640 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
6641 Save the current article in rmail format
6642 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
6645 @kindex O f (Summary)
6646 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
6647 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
6648 Save the current article in plain file format
6649 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
6652 @kindex O F (Summary)
6653 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
6654 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
6655 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
6658 @kindex O b (Summary)
6659 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
6660 Save the current article body in plain file format
6661 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
6664 @kindex O h (Summary)
6665 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
6666 Save the current article in mh folder format
6667 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
6670 @kindex O v (Summary)
6671 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
6672 Save the current article in a VM folder
6673 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
6677 @kindex O p (Summary)
6679 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
6680 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
6681 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
6684 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
6685 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
6686 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
6687 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
6688 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
6689 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
6690 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
6691 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
6692 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
6693 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
6694 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
6695 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
6699 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
6700 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
6701 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
6702 functions below, or you can create your own.
6706 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6707 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6708 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
6709 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
6710 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
6711 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6712 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
6714 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
6715 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
6716 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
6717 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
6718 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6719 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
6721 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
6722 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
6723 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
6724 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
6725 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
6726 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6727 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
6729 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
6730 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
6731 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
6732 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6733 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
6735 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
6736 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
6737 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
6738 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
6739 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
6742 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
6743 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
6744 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
6745 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
6746 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
6748 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
6749 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
6750 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
6751 reader to use this setting.
6754 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
6755 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
6756 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
6757 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
6760 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
6761 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
6762 available functions that generate names:
6766 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
6767 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
6768 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
6770 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
6771 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
6772 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
6774 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
6775 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
6776 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
6778 @item gnus-plain-save-name
6779 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
6780 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
6782 @item gnus-sender-save-name
6783 @findex gnus-sender-save-name
6784 File names like @file{~/News/larsi}.
6787 @vindex gnus-split-methods
6788 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
6789 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
6790 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
6791 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
6795 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
6796 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
6797 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
6798 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
6801 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
6802 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
6803 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
6804 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
6805 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
6806 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
6807 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
6808 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
6809 called returns a string or a list of strings.
6811 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
6812 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
6813 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
6814 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
6816 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
6817 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
6818 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
6821 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
6822 lots of mail groups called things like
6823 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
6824 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
6825 following will do just that:
6828 (defun my-save-name (group)
6829 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
6830 (substring group (match-end 0))))
6832 (setq gnus-split-methods
6833 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
6838 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6839 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
6840 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
6841 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
6842 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
6843 all the files in the top level directory
6844 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
6845 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
6846 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
6847 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
6849 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
6850 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
6851 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
6852 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
6853 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
6856 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
6860 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
6861 (setq gnus-default-article-saver
6862 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
6865 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
6866 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
6867 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
6868 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
6871 @node Decoding Articles
6872 @section Decoding Articles
6873 @cindex decoding articles
6875 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
6876 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
6879 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
6880 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
6881 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
6882 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
6883 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
6884 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
6888 @cindex article series
6889 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
6890 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
6891 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
6892 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
6893 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
6895 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
6896 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
6897 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
6899 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
6900 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
6901 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
6903 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
6904 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
6905 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
6908 @node Uuencoded Articles
6909 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
6911 @cindex uuencoded articles
6916 @kindex X u (Summary)
6917 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
6918 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
6919 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
6922 @kindex X U (Summary)
6923 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
6924 Uudecodes and saves the current series
6925 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
6928 @kindex X v u (Summary)
6929 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
6930 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
6933 @kindex X v U (Summary)
6934 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
6935 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
6936 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
6940 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
6941 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
6942 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
6943 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
6944 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
6946 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
6947 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
6948 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
6949 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
6952 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
6953 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
6954 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
6955 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
6956 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
6957 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
6961 @node Shell Archives
6962 @subsection Shell Archives
6964 @cindex shell archives
6965 @cindex shared articles
6967 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
6968 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
6969 some commands to deal with these:
6974 @kindex X s (Summary)
6975 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
6976 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
6979 @kindex X S (Summary)
6980 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
6981 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
6984 @kindex X v s (Summary)
6985 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
6986 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
6989 @kindex X v S (Summary)
6990 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
6991 Unshars, views and saves the current series
6992 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
6996 @node PostScript Files
6997 @subsection PostScript Files
7003 @kindex X p (Summary)
7004 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
7005 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
7008 @kindex X P (Summary)
7009 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
7010 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
7011 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
7014 @kindex X v p (Summary)
7015 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
7016 View the current PostScript series
7017 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
7020 @kindex X v P (Summary)
7021 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
7022 View and save the current PostScript series
7023 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
7028 @subsection Other Files
7032 @kindex X o (Summary)
7033 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
7034 Save the current series
7035 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
7038 @kindex X b (Summary)
7039 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
7040 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
7041 doesn't really work yet.
7045 @node Decoding Variables
7046 @subsection Decoding Variables
7048 Adjective, not verb.
7051 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
7052 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
7053 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
7057 @node Rule Variables
7058 @subsubsection Rule Variables
7059 @cindex rule variables
7061 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
7062 variables are of the form
7065 (list '(regexp1 command2)
7072 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7073 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7075 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
7076 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
7079 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7080 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
7083 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7084 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7085 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
7086 user and default view rules.
7088 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7089 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7090 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
7095 @node Other Decode Variables
7096 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
7099 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7101 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7102 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
7103 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
7104 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
7105 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
7109 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
7110 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
7113 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
7114 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
7115 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
7118 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7119 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7120 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
7121 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
7122 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
7125 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7126 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7127 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
7129 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7130 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7131 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
7132 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
7133 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
7136 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7137 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7138 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
7140 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7141 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7142 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
7143 looking for files to display.
7145 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
7146 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
7147 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
7150 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7151 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7152 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
7155 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7156 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7157 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
7160 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7161 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7162 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
7165 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7166 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7167 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
7168 decoded articles as unread.
7170 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7171 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7172 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
7173 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
7175 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7176 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7177 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
7179 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7180 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7182 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
7183 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
7184 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
7185 @code{metamail} for viewing.
7187 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7188 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7189 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
7190 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
7191 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
7192 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
7193 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
7194 simply dropped them.
7199 @node Uuencoding and Posting
7200 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
7204 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7205 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7206 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
7207 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
7208 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
7209 for you when you post the article.
7211 @item gnus-uu-post-length
7212 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
7213 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
7214 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
7216 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
7217 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
7218 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
7219 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
7220 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
7221 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
7222 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
7224 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7225 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7226 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
7227 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
7228 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
7229 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
7230 Default is @code{t}.
7236 @subsection Viewing Files
7237 @cindex viewing files
7238 @cindex pseudo-articles
7240 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
7241 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
7242 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
7243 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
7244 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
7245 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
7246 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
7248 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
7249 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
7250 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
7251 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
7253 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
7254 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
7255 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
7257 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
7258 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
7259 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
7260 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
7261 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
7263 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
7264 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
7265 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
7266 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
7267 a list of parameters to that command.
7269 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
7270 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
7271 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
7273 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
7274 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
7275 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
7278 @node Article Treatment
7279 @section Article Treatment
7281 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
7282 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
7283 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
7284 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
7285 these articles easier.
7288 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
7289 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
7290 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
7291 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
7292 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
7293 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
7294 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
7295 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
7299 @node Article Highlighting
7300 @subsection Article Highlighting
7301 @cindex highlighting
7303 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
7304 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
7309 @kindex W H a (Summary)
7310 @findex gnus-article-highlight
7311 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7312 Do much highlighting of the current article
7313 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
7314 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
7317 @kindex W H h (Summary)
7318 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
7319 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
7320 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
7321 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
7322 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
7323 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
7324 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
7325 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
7326 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
7327 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
7328 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
7331 @kindex W H c (Summary)
7332 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
7333 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
7335 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
7338 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7340 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7341 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
7342 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
7344 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7345 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
7346 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
7348 @item gnus-cite-face-list
7349 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
7350 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
7351 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
7352 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
7353 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
7355 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
7356 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
7357 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
7359 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7360 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7361 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
7363 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7364 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7365 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
7366 that it's a citation.
7368 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7369 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7370 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
7372 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7373 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7374 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
7376 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
7377 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
7378 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
7379 cited text belonging to the attribution.
7385 @kindex W H s (Summary)
7386 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7387 @vindex gnus-signature-face
7388 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
7389 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
7390 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
7391 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
7392 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
7397 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
7400 @node Article Fontisizing
7401 @subsection Article Fontisizing
7403 @cindex article emphasis
7405 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
7406 @kindex W e (Summary)
7407 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
7408 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
7409 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
7410 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
7412 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
7413 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
7414 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
7415 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
7416 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
7417 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
7418 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
7419 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
7423 (setq gnus-emphasis-alist
7424 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
7425 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
7434 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
7435 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
7436 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
7437 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
7438 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
7439 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
7440 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
7441 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
7442 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
7443 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
7444 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
7445 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
7446 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
7448 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
7449 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
7450 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
7454 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
7457 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
7459 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
7460 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
7461 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
7462 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
7464 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
7467 @node Article Hiding
7468 @subsection Article Hiding
7469 @cindex article hiding
7471 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
7472 too much cruft in most articles.
7477 @kindex W W a (Summary)
7478 @findex gnus-article-hide
7479 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
7480 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
7481 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
7484 @kindex W W h (Summary)
7485 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
7486 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
7490 @kindex W W b (Summary)
7491 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7492 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
7493 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
7496 @kindex W W s (Summary)
7497 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
7498 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
7502 @kindex W W l (Summary)
7503 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
7504 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7505 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
7506 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
7507 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
7508 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
7509 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
7513 @item gnus-list-identifiers
7514 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7515 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
7516 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
7521 @kindex W W p (Summary)
7522 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
7523 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7524 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
7525 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
7526 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
7527 articles that have signatures in them do:
7529 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
7531 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
7533 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
7534 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
7536 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7539 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
7544 @kindex W W P (Summary)
7545 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
7546 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
7547 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
7550 @kindex W W B (Summary)
7551 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
7554 @cindex stripping advertisements
7555 @cindex advertisements
7556 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
7557 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
7558 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
7559 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
7560 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
7561 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
7562 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
7563 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
7564 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
7565 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
7569 @kindex W W c (Summary)
7570 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
7571 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
7572 customizing the hiding:
7576 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7577 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7578 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7579 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7580 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
7581 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
7582 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
7587 Starting point of the hidden text.
7589 Ending point of the hidden text.
7591 Number of characters in the hidden region.
7593 Number of lines of hidden text.
7596 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
7597 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
7598 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
7599 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
7600 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
7605 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
7606 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
7608 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
7609 following two variables:
7612 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7613 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7614 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
7615 50), hide the cited text.
7617 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7618 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7619 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
7624 @kindex W W C (Summary)
7625 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
7626 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
7627 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
7628 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
7629 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
7633 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
7634 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
7635 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
7637 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
7638 citation customization.
7640 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
7644 @node Article Washing
7645 @subsection Article Washing
7647 @cindex article washing
7649 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
7650 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
7652 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
7653 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
7656 @xref{Customizing Articles}, if you want to change how Gnus displays
7657 articles by default.
7662 This is not really washing, it's sort of the opposite of washing. If
7663 you type this, you see the article exactly as it exists on disk or on
7667 @kindex W l (Summary)
7668 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
7669 Remove page breaks from the current article
7670 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
7674 @kindex W r (Summary)
7675 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
7676 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
7677 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
7678 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
7679 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
7680 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
7682 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
7683 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
7684 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
7685 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
7689 @kindex W t (Summary)
7691 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
7692 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
7693 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
7696 @kindex W v (Summary)
7697 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
7698 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
7699 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
7702 @kindex W o (Summary)
7703 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
7704 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
7707 @kindex W d (Summary)
7708 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
7709 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
7711 @cindex M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s
7713 Treat M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s according to
7714 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
7715 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
7716 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
7719 Sm*rtq**t*s are M****s***'s unilateral extension to the character map in
7720 an attempt to provide more quoting characters. If you see something
7721 like @code{\222} or @code{\264} where you're expecting some kind of
7722 apostrophe or quotation mark, then try this wash.
7725 @kindex W w (Summary)
7726 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
7727 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
7729 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
7733 @kindex W Q (Summary)
7734 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
7735 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
7738 @kindex W C (Summary)
7739 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
7740 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
7741 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
7744 @kindex W c (Summary)
7745 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
7746 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
7747 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
7748 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
7749 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
7752 @kindex W q (Summary)
7753 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
7754 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
7755 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
7756 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
7757 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
7758 readable to me. Note that the this is usually done automatically by
7759 Gnus if the message in question has a @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding}
7760 header that says that this encoding has been done.
7761 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
7764 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
7765 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
7766 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}).
7767 Base64 is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending non-ASCII
7768 (i. e., 8-bit) articles. Note that the this is usually done
7769 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
7770 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding has
7772 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
7775 @kindex W Z (Summary)
7776 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
7777 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
7778 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
7779 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
7782 @kindex W h (Summary)
7783 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
7784 Treat HTML (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}).
7785 Note that the this is usually done automatically by Gnus if the message
7786 in question has a @code{Content-Type} header that says that this type
7788 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
7791 @kindex W f (Summary)
7793 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
7794 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
7795 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
7796 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
7803 Look for and display any X-Face headers
7804 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
7805 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
7806 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
7807 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
7808 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
7809 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
7810 The default action under Emacs is to fork off the @code{display}
7811 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For the
7812 @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
7813 like `compface' or `faces-xface' on a GNU/Linux system.}
7814 to view the face. Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image
7815 support, the default action is to display the face before the
7816 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
7817 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
7818 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
7819 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
7820 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
7821 like @code{netpbm} or @code{libgr-progs}.}) If you
7822 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
7826 @kindex W b (Summary)
7827 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
7828 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
7829 @xref{Article Buttons}.
7832 @kindex W B (Summary)
7833 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
7834 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
7835 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
7838 @kindex W p (Summary)
7839 @findex gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig
7840 Verify a signed control message (@code{gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig}).
7841 Control messages such as @code{newgroup} and @code{checkgroups} are
7842 usually signed by the hierarchy maintainer. You need to add the PGP
7843 public key of the maintainer to your keyring to verify the
7844 message.@footnote{PGP keys for many hierarchies are available at
7845 @uref{ftp://ftp.isc.org/pub/pgpcontrol/README.html}}
7848 @kindex W W H (Summary)
7849 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body
7850 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
7851 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body}).
7854 @kindex W E l (Summary)
7855 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
7856 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
7857 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
7860 @kindex W E m (Summary)
7861 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
7862 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
7863 lines with a single empty line.
7864 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
7867 @kindex W E t (Summary)
7868 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
7869 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
7870 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
7873 @kindex W E a (Summary)
7874 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
7875 Do all the three commands above
7876 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
7879 @kindex W E A (Summary)
7880 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
7881 Remove all blank lines
7882 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
7885 @kindex W E s (Summary)
7886 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
7887 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
7888 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
7891 @kindex W E e (Summary)
7892 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
7893 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
7894 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
7898 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
7901 @node Article Buttons
7902 @subsection Article Buttons
7905 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
7906 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
7907 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
7908 button on these references.
7910 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
7911 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
7912 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
7917 @item gnus-button-alist
7918 @vindex gnus-button-alist
7919 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
7922 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
7928 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
7929 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
7930 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
7933 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
7934 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
7935 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
7938 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
7939 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
7940 avoid false matches.
7943 This function will be called when you click on this button.
7946 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
7947 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
7951 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
7954 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
7957 @item gnus-header-button-alist
7958 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
7959 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
7960 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
7961 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
7964 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
7967 @var{header} is a regular expression.
7969 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
7970 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
7971 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
7972 default values of the variables above.
7974 @item gnus-article-button-face
7975 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
7976 Face used on buttons.
7978 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
7979 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
7980 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
7984 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
7988 @subsection Article Date
7990 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
7991 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
7992 when the article was sent.
7997 @kindex W T u (Summary)
7998 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
7999 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
8000 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
8003 @kindex W T i (Summary)
8004 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
8006 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
8007 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
8010 @kindex W T l (Summary)
8011 @findex gnus-article-date-local
8012 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
8015 @kindex W T p (Summary)
8016 @findex gnus-article-date-english
8017 Display the date in a format that's easily pronounceable in English
8018 (@code{gnus-article-date-english}).
8021 @kindex W T s (Summary)
8022 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
8023 @findex gnus-article-date-user
8024 @findex format-time-string
8025 Display the date using a user-defined format
8026 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
8027 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
8028 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
8029 for a list of possible format specs.
8032 @kindex W T e (Summary)
8033 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
8034 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
8035 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
8036 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
8037 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
8040 X-Sent: 6 weeks, 4 days, 1 hour, 3 minutes, 8 seconds ago
8043 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
8044 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
8047 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
8048 into wonderful absurdities.
8050 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
8053 (gnus-start-date-timer)
8056 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
8057 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
8061 @kindex W T o (Summary)
8062 @findex gnus-article-date-original
8063 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
8064 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
8065 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
8066 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
8067 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
8071 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
8072 preferred format automatically.
8075 @node Article Signature
8076 @subsection Article Signature
8078 @cindex article signature
8080 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
8081 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
8082 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
8083 that says what is to be considered a signature is
8084 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
8085 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
8086 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
8087 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
8088 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
8091 (setq gnus-signature-separator
8092 '("^-- $" ; The standard
8093 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
8094 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
8095 ; line of dashes. Shame!
8096 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
8097 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
8098 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
8101 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
8104 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
8105 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
8106 signature when displaying articles.
8110 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
8113 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
8116 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
8117 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
8119 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
8120 in question is not a signature.
8123 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
8124 listed above. Here's an example:
8127 (setq gnus-signature-limit
8128 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
8131 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
8132 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
8133 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
8134 signature after all.
8137 @node Article Miscellania
8138 @subsection Article Miscellania
8142 @kindex A t (Summary)
8143 @findex gnus-article-babel
8144 Translate the article from one language to another
8145 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
8151 @section @sc{mime} Commands
8152 @cindex MIME decoding
8154 @cindex viewing attachments
8156 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
8157 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @sc{mime} part''.
8163 @kindex K v (Summary)
8164 View the @sc{mime} part.
8167 @kindex K o (Summary)
8168 Save the @sc{mime} part.
8171 @kindex K c (Summary)
8172 Copy the @sc{mime} part.
8175 @kindex K e (Summary)
8176 View the @sc{mime} part externally.
8179 @kindex K i (Summary)
8180 View the @sc{mime} part internally.
8183 @kindex K | (Summary)
8184 Pipe the @sc{mime} part to an external command.
8187 The rest of these @sc{mime} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
8192 @kindex K b (Summary)
8193 Make all the @sc{mime} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
8194 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
8198 @kindex K m (Summary)
8199 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
8200 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
8201 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
8202 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
8203 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
8206 @kindex X m (Summary)
8207 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
8208 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
8209 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
8210 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8213 @kindex M-t (Summary)
8214 @findex gnus-summary-display-buttonized
8215 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
8216 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
8219 @kindex W M w (Summary)
8220 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
8221 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
8224 @kindex W M c (Summary)
8225 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
8226 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
8228 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
8229 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
8230 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
8231 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not include
8232 MIME headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic parameter to
8233 the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
8236 @kindex W M v (Summary)
8237 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
8238 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
8245 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
8246 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
8247 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8248 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
8251 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
8254 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
8258 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8259 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8260 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8261 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8262 displayed. The default value is @code{(".*/.*")}.
8264 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
8265 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
8266 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
8267 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
8268 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
8269 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
8270 save all jpegs into some directory).
8272 Here's an example function the does the latter:
8275 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
8276 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
8278 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
8279 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
8280 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
8281 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
8282 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
8285 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8286 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8287 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
8289 @vindex mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8290 @item mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8291 List of functions used for rewriting file names of @sc{mime} parts.
8292 Each function takes a file name as input and returns a file name.
8294 Ready-made functions include@*
8295 @code{mm-file-name-delete-whitespace},
8296 @code{mm-file-name-trim-whitespace},
8297 @code{mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace}, and
8298 @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace}. The later uses the value of
8299 the variable @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace} to replace each
8300 whitespace character in a file name with that string; default value
8301 is @code{"_"} (a single underscore).
8302 @findex mm-file-name-delete-whitespace
8303 @findex mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8304 @findex mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8305 @findex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8306 @vindex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8308 The standard functions @code{capitalize}, @code{downcase},
8309 @code{upcase}, and @code{upcase-initials} may be useful, too.
8311 Everybody knows that whitespace characters in file names are evil,
8312 except those who don't know. If you receive lots of attachments from
8313 such unenlightened users, you can make live easier by adding
8316 (setq mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8317 '(mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8318 mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8319 mm-file-name-replace-whitespace))
8323 to your @file{.gnus} file.
8332 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
8333 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
8334 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
8335 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
8336 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
8337 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
8338 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
8340 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
8341 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
8342 variable, which is an alist of regexps (use the first item to match full
8343 group names) and default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
8345 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
8346 aren't. These blithely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1} even
8347 if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
8348 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
8349 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be set
8350 on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
8351 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit)}, which is
8352 something some agents insist on having in there.
8354 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
8355 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
8356 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @sc{mime}
8357 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
8358 quoted-printable header encoding.
8360 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
8361 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
8362 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
8366 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
8369 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
8370 means encode all charsets),
8372 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
8373 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
8374 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
8381 @cindex coding system aliases
8382 @cindex preferred charset
8384 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
8386 If there are several @sc{mime} charsets that encode the same Emacs
8387 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
8390 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
8391 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
8394 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
8395 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @sc{mime} charset.
8397 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
8400 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
8403 This will almost do the right thing.
8405 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
8409 (codepage-setup 1251)
8410 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
8414 @node Article Commands
8415 @section Article Commands
8422 @kindex A P (Summary)
8423 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
8424 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
8425 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
8426 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
8427 run just before printing the buffer.
8432 @node Summary Sorting
8433 @section Summary Sorting
8434 @cindex summary sorting
8436 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
8437 can't really see why you'd want that.
8442 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
8443 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
8444 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
8447 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
8448 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
8449 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
8452 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
8453 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
8454 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
8457 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
8458 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
8459 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
8462 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
8463 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
8464 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
8467 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
8468 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
8469 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
8472 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
8473 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
8474 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
8477 @kindex C-c C-s C-o (Summary)
8478 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-original
8479 Sort using the default sorting method
8480 (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-original}).
8483 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
8484 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
8485 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
8486 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
8487 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
8491 @node Finding the Parent
8492 @section Finding the Parent
8493 @cindex parent articles
8494 @cindex referring articles
8499 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
8500 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
8501 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
8502 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
8503 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
8504 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
8505 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
8506 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
8507 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
8509 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
8510 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
8511 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
8512 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
8513 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
8517 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
8518 @kindex A R (Summary)
8519 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
8520 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
8523 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
8524 @kindex A T (Summary)
8525 Display the full thread where the current article appears
8526 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
8527 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
8528 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
8529 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
8530 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
8531 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
8533 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
8534 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
8535 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
8536 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
8537 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
8538 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
8541 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
8542 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
8544 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
8545 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
8546 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
8547 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
8548 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
8549 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
8550 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
8553 The current select method will be used when fetching by
8554 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
8555 by giving this command a prefix.
8557 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
8558 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
8559 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
8560 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
8561 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
8562 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
8565 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
8566 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
8567 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
8570 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
8571 then ask Deja if that fails:
8574 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
8576 (nnweb "refer" (nnweb-type dejanews))))
8579 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
8580 not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
8581 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
8582 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
8583 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
8584 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
8587 @node Alternative Approaches
8588 @section Alternative Approaches
8590 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
8591 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
8594 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
8595 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
8600 @subsection Pick and Read
8601 @cindex pick and read
8603 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
8604 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
8605 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
8606 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
8608 @findex gnus-pick-mode
8609 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
8610 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
8611 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
8612 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
8613 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
8615 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
8620 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
8621 Pick the article or thread on the current line
8622 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
8623 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
8624 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
8625 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
8626 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
8627 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
8630 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
8631 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
8632 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
8633 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
8637 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
8638 Unpick the thread or article
8639 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
8640 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
8641 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
8642 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
8643 the thread or article at that line.
8647 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
8648 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
8649 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
8650 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
8651 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
8652 will still be visible when you are reading.
8656 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
8657 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
8658 which is mapped to the same function
8659 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
8661 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
8664 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
8667 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
8668 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
8670 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
8671 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
8672 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
8674 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
8675 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
8676 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
8677 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
8678 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
8679 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
8680 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
8684 @subsection Binary Groups
8685 @cindex binary groups
8687 @findex gnus-binary-mode
8688 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
8689 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
8690 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
8691 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
8692 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
8693 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
8696 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
8697 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
8698 command, when you have turned on this mode
8699 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
8701 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
8702 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
8706 @section Tree Display
8709 @vindex gnus-use-trees
8710 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
8711 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
8712 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
8715 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
8718 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
8719 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
8720 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
8722 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
8723 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
8724 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
8725 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
8726 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
8728 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
8729 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
8730 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
8731 default is @code{modeline}.
8733 @item gnus-tree-line-format
8734 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
8735 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
8736 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
8737 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
8738 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
8739 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
8745 The name of the poster.
8747 The @code{From} header.
8749 The number of the article.
8751 The opening bracket.
8753 The closing bracket.
8758 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
8760 Variables related to the display are:
8763 @item gnus-tree-brackets
8764 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
8765 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
8766 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
8767 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
8768 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
8770 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
8771 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
8772 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
8773 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
8777 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
8778 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
8779 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
8780 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
8781 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
8782 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
8783 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
8784 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
8785 other windows displayed next to it.
8787 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
8788 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
8789 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
8790 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
8791 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
8792 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
8793 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
8797 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
8800 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
8810 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
8814 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
8815 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
8817 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
8819 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
8824 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
8825 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
8826 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
8829 (setq gnus-use-trees t
8830 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
8831 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
8832 (gnus-add-configuration
8836 (summary 0.75 point)
8841 @xref{Window Layout}.
8844 @node Mail Group Commands
8845 @section Mail Group Commands
8846 @cindex mail group commands
8848 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
8849 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
8851 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
8852 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8857 @kindex B e (Summary)
8858 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
8859 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
8860 process (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}). That is, delete all
8861 expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
8862 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
8865 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
8866 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
8867 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
8868 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
8869 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
8870 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
8873 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
8874 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
8875 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
8876 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
8877 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
8878 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
8881 @kindex B m (Summary)
8883 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
8884 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
8885 Move the article from one mail group to another
8886 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
8887 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
8890 @kindex B c (Summary)
8892 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
8893 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
8894 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
8895 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
8896 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
8899 @kindex B B (Summary)
8900 @cindex crosspost mail
8901 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
8902 Crosspost the current article to some other group
8903 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
8904 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
8905 be properly updated.
8908 @kindex B i (Summary)
8909 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
8910 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
8911 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
8912 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
8915 @kindex B r (Summary)
8916 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
8917 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
8918 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
8919 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
8920 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
8921 Marks will be preserved if @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
8922 (which is the default).
8926 @kindex B w (Summary)
8928 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
8929 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
8930 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
8931 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
8932 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
8933 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
8936 @kindex B q (Summary)
8937 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
8938 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
8939 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
8940 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
8943 @kindex B t (Summary)
8944 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
8945 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
8946 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
8949 @kindex B p (Summary)
8950 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
8951 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
8952 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
8953 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
8954 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
8955 article from your news server (or rather, from
8956 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
8957 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
8958 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
8959 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
8960 just not have arrived yet.
8964 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
8965 @cindex moving articles
8966 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
8967 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
8968 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
8969 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
8970 suggestions you find reasonable. (Note that
8971 @code{gnus-move-split-methods} uses group names where
8972 @code{gnus-split-methods} uses file names.)
8975 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
8976 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
8977 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
8978 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
8982 @node Various Summary Stuff
8983 @section Various Summary Stuff
8986 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
8987 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
8988 * Summary Generation Commands::
8989 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
8993 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
8994 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
8995 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
8997 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
8998 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
8999 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
9000 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
9001 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
9002 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
9005 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9006 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9007 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
9008 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
9009 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
9011 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
9012 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
9013 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
9016 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
9017 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
9018 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
9019 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
9020 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
9021 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
9022 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
9023 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
9024 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
9025 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
9027 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
9028 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
9029 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
9030 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
9031 list of articles to be selected.
9033 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
9034 the list in one particular group:
9037 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
9038 (if (string= group "some.group")
9039 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
9046 @node Summary Group Information
9047 @subsection Summary Group Information
9052 @kindex H f (Summary)
9053 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
9054 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
9055 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
9056 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
9057 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
9058 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
9059 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
9060 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
9061 be used for fetching the file.
9064 @kindex H d (Summary)
9065 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
9066 Give a brief description of the current group
9067 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
9068 rereading the description from the server.
9071 @kindex H h (Summary)
9072 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
9073 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
9074 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
9077 @kindex H i (Summary)
9078 @findex gnus-info-find-node
9079 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
9083 @node Searching for Articles
9084 @subsection Searching for Articles
9089 @kindex M-s (Summary)
9090 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
9091 Search through all subsequent (raw) articles for a regexp
9092 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
9095 @kindex M-r (Summary)
9096 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
9097 Search through all previous (raw) articles for a regexp
9098 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
9102 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
9103 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
9104 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
9105 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
9106 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
9107 search backward instead.
9109 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
9110 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
9113 @kindex M-& (Summary)
9114 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
9115 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
9116 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
9119 @node Summary Generation Commands
9120 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
9125 @kindex Y g (Summary)
9126 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
9127 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
9130 @kindex Y c (Summary)
9131 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
9132 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
9133 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
9138 @node Really Various Summary Commands
9139 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
9145 @kindex C-d (Summary)
9146 @kindex A D (Summary)
9147 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
9148 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
9149 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
9150 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
9151 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
9152 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
9153 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
9154 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
9158 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
9159 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
9160 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
9161 several documents into one biiig group
9162 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
9163 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
9164 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
9165 command understands the process/prefix convention
9166 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9169 @kindex C-t (Summary)
9170 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
9171 Toggle truncation of summary lines
9172 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
9173 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
9174 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
9178 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
9179 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
9180 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
9183 @kindex M-C-e (Summary)
9184 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
9185 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9186 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
9189 @kindex M-C-a (Summary)
9190 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
9191 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9192 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
9197 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
9198 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
9199 @cindex summary exit
9200 @cindex exiting groups
9202 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
9203 group and return you to the group buffer.
9209 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
9211 @findex gnus-summary-exit
9212 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
9213 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
9214 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
9215 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
9216 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
9217 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
9218 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
9219 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
9220 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
9221 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
9225 @kindex Z E (Summary)
9227 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
9228 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
9229 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
9233 @kindex Z c (Summary)
9235 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
9236 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
9237 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
9238 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
9241 @kindex Z C (Summary)
9242 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
9243 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
9244 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
9247 @kindex Z n (Summary)
9248 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
9249 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
9250 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
9253 @kindex Z R (Summary)
9254 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
9255 Exit this group, and then enter it again
9256 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
9257 all articles, both read and unread.
9261 @kindex Z G (Summary)
9262 @kindex M-g (Summary)
9263 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
9264 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
9265 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
9266 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
9267 articles, both read and unread.
9270 @kindex Z N (Summary)
9271 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
9272 Exit the group and go to the next group
9273 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
9276 @kindex Z P (Summary)
9277 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
9278 Exit the group and go to the previous group
9279 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
9282 @kindex Z s (Summary)
9283 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
9284 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
9285 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
9286 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
9287 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
9290 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
9291 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
9292 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
9293 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
9295 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
9296 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
9297 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
9298 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
9299 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
9300 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
9301 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
9302 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
9303 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
9304 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
9305 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
9306 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
9308 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
9310 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
9311 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
9312 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
9313 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
9314 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
9315 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
9316 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
9317 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
9318 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
9321 @node Crosspost Handling
9322 @section Crosspost Handling
9326 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
9327 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
9328 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
9329 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
9330 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
9331 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
9334 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
9335 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
9336 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
9337 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
9338 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
9340 @cindex cross-posting
9343 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
9344 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
9345 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
9346 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
9347 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
9348 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
9349 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
9350 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
9351 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
9352 the cross reference mechanism.
9354 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
9355 @cindex overview.fmt
9356 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
9357 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
9358 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
9359 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
9360 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
9361 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
9364 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
9365 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
9366 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
9371 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
9374 @node Duplicate Suppression
9375 @section Duplicate Suppression
9377 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
9378 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
9379 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
9380 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
9385 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
9386 is evil and not very common.
9389 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
9390 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
9393 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
9394 different @sc{nntp} servers.
9397 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
9400 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
9401 well, but these four are the most common situations.
9403 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
9404 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
9405 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
9406 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
9407 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
9408 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
9409 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
9412 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
9413 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
9414 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
9415 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
9416 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
9420 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
9421 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
9422 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
9424 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
9425 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
9426 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
9427 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
9428 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
9429 session are suppressed.
9431 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
9432 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
9433 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
9434 suppression list. The default is 10000.
9436 @item gnus-duplicate-file
9437 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
9438 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
9439 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
9442 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
9443 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
9444 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
9445 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
9446 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
9447 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
9448 to you to figure out, I think.
9453 Gnus is able to verify PGP or S/MIME signed messages or decrypt PGP
9458 To verify or decrypt PGP messages, you have to install mailcrypt or
9464 @item mm-verify-option
9465 @vindex mm-verify-option
9466 Option of verifying signed parts. @code{never}, not verify;
9467 @code{always}, always verify; @code{known}, only verify known
9468 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9470 @item mm-decrypt-option
9471 @vindex mm-decrypt-option
9472 Option of decrypting encrypted parts. @code{never}, no decryption;
9473 @code{always}, always decrypt @code{known}, only decrypt known
9474 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9479 @section Mailing List
9481 Gnus understands some mailing list fields of RFC 2369.
9486 @kindex C-c C-n h (Summary)
9487 @findex gnus-mailing-list-help
9488 Send a message to fetch mailing list help, if List-Help field exists.
9491 @kindex C-c C-n s (Summary)
9492 @findex gnus-mailing-list-subscribe
9493 Send a message to subscribe the mailing list, if List-Subscribe field exists.
9496 @kindex C-c C-n u (Summary)
9497 @findex gnus-mailing-list-unsubscribe
9498 Send a message to unsubscribe the mailing list, if List-Unsubscribe
9502 @kindex C-c C-n p (Summary)
9503 @findex gnus-mailing-list-post
9504 Post to the mailing list, if List-Post field exists.
9507 @kindex C-c C-n o (Summary)
9508 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
9509 Send a message to the mailing list owner, if List-Owner field exists.
9512 @kindex C-c C-n a (Summary)
9513 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
9514 Browse the mailing list archive, if List-Archive field exists.
9518 @node Article Buffer
9519 @chapter Article Buffer
9520 @cindex article buffer
9522 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
9523 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
9524 tell Gnus otherwise.
9527 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
9528 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
9529 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
9530 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
9531 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
9535 @node Hiding Headers
9536 @section Hiding Headers
9537 @cindex hiding headers
9538 @cindex deleting headers
9540 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
9541 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
9543 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
9544 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
9545 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
9546 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
9547 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
9548 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
9549 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
9550 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
9551 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
9553 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
9557 @item gnus-visible-headers
9558 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
9559 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
9560 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
9561 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
9563 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
9564 the article and the subject, you'd say:
9567 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
9570 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9573 @item gnus-ignored-headers
9574 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
9575 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
9576 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
9577 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
9578 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
9580 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
9581 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
9584 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
9587 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9590 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
9591 variable will have no effect.
9595 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
9596 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
9597 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
9598 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
9599 the headers are to be displayed.
9601 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
9602 and then the subject, you might say something like:
9605 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
9608 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
9609 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
9611 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
9612 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
9613 You can hide further boring headers by setting
9614 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
9615 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
9616 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
9617 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
9620 These conditions are:
9623 Remove all empty headers.
9625 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
9626 @code{Newsgroups} header.
9628 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
9631 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
9634 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
9635 the current groups's @code{to-address} parameter.
9637 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
9640 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
9642 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
9645 To include these three elements, you could say something like;
9648 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
9649 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
9652 This is also the default value for this variable.
9656 @section Using @sc{mime}
9659 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
9660 while people stand around yawning.
9662 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
9663 while all newsreaders die of fear.
9665 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
9666 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
9667 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
9669 @vindex gnus-display-mime-function
9670 @findex gnus-display-mime
9671 Gnus pushes @sc{mime} articles through @code{gnus-display-mime-function}
9672 to display the @sc{mime} parts. This is @code{gnus-display-mime} by
9673 default, which creates a bundle of clickable buttons that can be used to
9674 display, save and manipulate the @sc{mime} objects.
9676 The following commands are available when you have placed point over a
9680 @findex gnus-article-press-button
9682 @itemx BUTTON-2 (Article)
9683 Toggle displaying of the @sc{mime} object
9684 (@code{gnus-article-press-button}).
9686 @findex gnus-mime-view-part
9687 @item M-RET (Article)
9689 Prompt for a method, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
9690 method (@code{gnus-mime-view-part}).
9692 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-type
9694 View the @sc{mime} object as if it were a different @sc{mime} media type
9695 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-type}).
9697 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset
9699 Prompt for a charset, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
9700 charset (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset}).
9702 @findex gnus-mime-save-part
9704 Prompt for a file name, and then save the @sc{mime} object
9705 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part}).
9707 @findex gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip
9709 Prompt for a file name, then save the @sc{mime} object and strip it from
9710 the article. Then proceed to article editing, where a reasonable
9711 suggestion is being made on how the altered article should look
9712 like. The stripped @sc{mime} object will be referred via the
9713 message/external-body @sc{mime} type.
9714 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip}).
9716 @findex gnus-mime-copy-part
9718 Copy the @sc{mime} object to a fresh buffer and display this buffer
9719 (@code{gnus-mime-copy-part}).
9721 @findex gnus-mime-inline-part
9723 Insert the contents of the @sc{mime} object into the buffer
9724 (@code{gnus-mime-inline-part}) as text/plain. If given a prefix, insert
9725 the raw contents without decoding. If given a numerical prefix, you can
9726 do semi-manual charset stuff (see
9727 @code{gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist} in @pxref{Paging the
9730 @findex gnus-mime-internalize-part
9732 View the @sc{mime} object with an internal viewer. If no internal
9733 viewer is available, use an external viewer
9734 (@code{gnus-mime-internalize-part}).
9736 @findex gnus-mime-externalize-part
9738 View the @sc{mime} object with an external viewer.
9739 (@code{gnus-mime-externalize-part}).
9741 @findex gnus-mime-pipe-part
9743 Output the @sc{mime} object to a process (@code{gnus-mime-pipe-part}).
9745 @findex gnus-mime-action-on-part
9747 Interactively run an action on the @sc{mime} object
9748 (@code{gnus-mime-action-on-part}).
9752 Gnus will display some @sc{mime} objects automatically. The way Gnus
9753 determines which parts to do this with is described in the Emacs MIME
9756 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the article
9757 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
9758 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
9759 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
9760 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume button,
9761 because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you, and you
9762 try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the program
9763 to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly decides
9764 to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
9766 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
9768 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
9771 @node Customizing Articles
9772 @section Customizing Articles
9773 @cindex article customization
9775 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
9776 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
9777 called automatically when you select the articles.
9779 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
9780 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
9781 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
9782 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
9784 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
9785 for sensible values.
9789 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
9792 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
9795 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
9798 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
9801 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
9805 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
9806 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
9807 regexps in the list.
9810 A list where the first element is not a string:
9812 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
9813 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
9814 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
9818 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
9823 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
9824 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
9825 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
9826 considered to contain just a single part.
9828 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
9829 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
9830 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
9831 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
9832 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
9833 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
9834 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
9836 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
9837 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
9838 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
9839 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
9842 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last)
9843 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
9844 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
9845 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
9846 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
9847 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
9848 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
9849 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
9850 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
9851 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
9852 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation-maybe (t, integer)
9853 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp (t, last, integer)
9854 @item gnus-treat-x-pgp-sig (head)
9855 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
9856 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
9857 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
9858 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
9859 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
9860 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
9861 @item gnus-treat-date-english (head)
9862 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
9863 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
9864 @item gnus-treat-date-iso8601 (head)
9865 @item gnus-treat-date-user-defined (head)
9866 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
9867 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
9868 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
9869 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
9870 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
9871 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
9872 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
9873 @item gnus-treat-display-picons (head)
9874 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
9875 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
9876 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
9877 @item gnus-treat-translate
9880 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
9881 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
9882 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
9883 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
9884 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
9888 @node Article Keymap
9889 @section Article Keymap
9891 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
9892 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
9893 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
9894 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
9897 A few additional keystrokes are available:
9902 @kindex SPACE (Article)
9903 @findex gnus-article-next-page
9904 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
9907 @kindex DEL (Article)
9908 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
9909 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
9912 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
9913 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
9914 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
9915 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
9916 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
9919 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
9920 @findex gnus-article-mail
9921 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
9922 given a prefix, include the mail.
9926 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
9927 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
9928 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
9932 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
9933 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
9934 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
9937 @kindex TAB (Article)
9938 @findex gnus-article-next-button
9939 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
9940 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
9943 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
9944 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
9945 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
9951 @section Misc Article
9955 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
9956 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
9957 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
9958 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
9961 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
9962 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
9964 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
9965 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
9967 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
9968 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
9969 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
9970 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
9971 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
9972 the contents of the article buffer.
9974 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
9975 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
9976 Hook called in article mode buffers.
9978 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
9979 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
9980 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
9981 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
9983 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
9984 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
9985 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
9986 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
9987 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
9992 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
9993 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
9996 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
9999 @vindex gnus-break-pages
10001 @item gnus-break-pages
10002 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
10003 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
10004 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
10005 paging will not be done.
10007 @item gnus-page-delimiter
10008 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
10009 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
10014 @node Composing Messages
10015 @chapter Composing Messages
10016 @cindex composing messages
10019 @cindex sending mail
10025 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
10026 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
10027 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
10028 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The
10029 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
10030 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
10033 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
10034 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
10035 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
10036 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
10037 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
10038 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
10039 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
10040 * Using GPG:: How to use GPG and MML to sign and encrypt messages
10043 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
10044 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
10050 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
10053 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
10054 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
10055 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
10056 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
10058 @item gnus-add-to-list
10059 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
10060 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
10061 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
10066 @node Posting Server
10067 @section Posting Server
10069 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
10070 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
10072 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
10074 @vindex gnus-post-method
10076 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will post using the same
10077 select method as you're reading from (which might be convenient if
10078 you're reading lots of groups from different private servers).
10079 However. If the server you're reading from doesn't allow posting,
10080 just reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
10081 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
10082 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
10085 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
10088 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
10089 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
10090 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
10091 the ``current'' server, to get back the default behavior, for posting.
10093 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
10094 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
10096 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
10097 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
10100 Finally, if you want to always post using the native select method,
10101 you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
10104 @node Mail and Post
10105 @section Mail and Post
10107 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
10111 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
10112 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
10113 @cindex mailing lists
10115 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
10116 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
10117 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
10118 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
10119 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
10120 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
10121 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
10122 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
10123 still a pain, though.
10127 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
10128 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
10129 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
10132 @findex ispell-message
10134 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
10137 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
10138 you're in, you could say something like the following:
10141 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
10145 "^de\\." (gnus-group-real-name gnus-newsgroup-name))
10146 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
10148 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
10151 Modify to suit your needs.
10154 @node Archived Messages
10155 @section Archived Messages
10156 @cindex archived messages
10157 @cindex sent messages
10159 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
10160 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
10161 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
10162 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
10165 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
10166 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
10167 use to store sent messages. The default is:
10170 (nnfolder "archive"
10171 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
10172 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
10173 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
10174 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
10177 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
10178 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likable select method
10179 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
10180 directory chosen, you could say something like:
10183 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
10184 '(nnfolder "archive"
10185 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
10186 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
10187 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
10190 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
10192 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
10193 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
10194 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
10196 This variable can be used to do the following:
10200 Messages will be saved in that group.
10202 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
10203 message will not be stored in the select method given by
10204 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
10205 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
10206 has the default value shown above. Then setting
10207 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
10208 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
10209 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
10211 @item a list of strings
10212 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
10213 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
10214 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
10216 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
10221 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
10223 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
10226 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
10228 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
10231 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
10233 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10234 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
10235 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
10236 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
10239 More complex stuff:
10241 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10242 '((if (message-news-p)
10247 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
10248 messages in one file per month:
10251 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10252 '((if (message-news-p)
10254 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
10257 (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
10258 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
10260 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
10261 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
10262 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
10263 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
10264 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
10265 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
10266 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
10267 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
10268 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
10269 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
10271 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
10272 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
10273 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
10274 this will disable archiving.
10277 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
10278 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
10279 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
10280 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
10281 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
10284 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
10285 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
10286 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
10289 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
10290 but the latter is the preferred method.
10292 @item gnus-inews-mark-gcc-as-read
10293 @vindex gnus-inews-mark-gcc-as-read
10294 If non-@code{nil}, automatically mark @code{Gcc} articles as read.
10299 @node Posting Styles
10300 @section Posting Styles
10301 @cindex posting styles
10304 All them variables, they make my head swim.
10306 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
10307 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
10308 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
10311 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
10312 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
10313 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
10314 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
10315 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
10320 (signature "Peace and happiness")
10321 (organization "What me?"))
10323 (signature "Death to everybody"))
10324 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
10325 (organization "Emacs is it")))
10328 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
10329 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
10330 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
10331 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
10332 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
10333 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
10334 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
10335 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
10337 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
10338 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
10339 If it is the symbol @code{header}, then Gnus will look for header (the
10340 next element in the match) in the original article , and compare that to
10341 the last regexp in the match. If it's a function symbol, that function
10342 will be called with no arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the
10343 variable will be referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be
10344 @code{eval}ed. In any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value,
10345 then the style is said to @dfn{match}.
10347 Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
10348 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} @var{value})} pair. The
10349 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
10350 @code{organization}, @code{address}, @code{name} or @code{body}. The
10351 attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
10352 a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
10353 article; if the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed.
10354 If the attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the
10355 result is thrown away.
10357 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
10358 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
10359 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
10360 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
10361 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
10362 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable.
10364 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
10365 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
10366 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
10368 @findex message-mail-p
10369 @findex message-news-p
10371 So here's a new example:
10374 (setq gnus-posting-styles
10376 (signature-file "~/.signature")
10378 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
10379 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
10381 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
10382 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
10383 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
10385 (signature my-news-signature))
10386 (header "to" "larsi.*org"
10387 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
10388 ((posting-from-work-p)
10389 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
10390 (address "user@@bar.foo")
10391 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
10392 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
10394 (From (save-excursion
10395 (set-buffer gnus-article-buffer)
10396 (message-fetch-field "to"))))
10398 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
10401 The @samp{nnml:.*} rule means that you use the @code{To} address as the
10402 @code{From} address in all your outgoing replies, which might be handy
10403 if you fill many roles.
10410 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
10411 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
10412 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
10413 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
10414 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
10416 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
10417 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
10418 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
10419 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
10420 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
10424 @vindex nndraft-directory
10425 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
10426 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
10427 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
10428 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
10429 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
10430 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
10432 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
10433 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
10436 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
10437 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
10438 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
10439 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
10440 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
10441 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
10442 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
10443 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
10444 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
10445 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
10446 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
10447 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
10448 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
10449 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
10451 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
10452 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
10453 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
10455 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
10456 @kindex D e (Draft)
10457 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
10458 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
10459 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
10461 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
10464 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
10465 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
10466 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
10467 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
10468 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
10469 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
10470 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
10473 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
10474 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
10475 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
10478 @node Rejected Articles
10479 @section Rejected Articles
10480 @cindex rejected articles
10482 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
10483 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
10484 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
10485 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
10487 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
10488 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
10489 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
10490 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
10491 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
10493 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
10494 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
10495 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
10501 Gnus has an ALPHA support to GPG that's provided by @file{gpg.el}. See
10502 @code{mm-verify-option} and @code{mm-decrypt-option} to enable Gnus to
10503 verify or decrypt messages accordingly.
10505 To use this correctly with GPG, you'll need the following lisp code in your
10506 @file{~/.emacs} or @file{~/.gnus}:
10510 (setq mml2015-use 'gpg)
10511 (setq gpg-temp-directory (expand-file-name "~/.gnupg/tmp"))
10514 The @code{gpg-temp-directory} need to point to a directory with permissions set
10515 to 700, for your own safety.
10517 If you want to benefit of PGP2.6 compatibility, you might create a script named
10518 @file{gpg-2comp} with these instructions:
10522 exec gpg --rfc1991 "$@@"
10525 If you don't want to use such compatibility, you can add the following line to
10526 your @file{~/.emacs} or @file{~/.gnus}:
10529 (setq gpg-command-default-alist (quote ((gpg . "gpg") (gpg-2comp . "gpg"))))
10532 To sign or encrypt your message you may choose to use the MML Security
10533 menu or @kbd{C-c C-m s p} to sign your message using PGP/MIME, @kbd{C-c
10534 C-m s s} to sign your message using S/MIME. There's also @kbd{C-c C-m c
10535 p} to encrypt your message with PGP/MIME and @kbd{C-c C-m c s} to
10536 encrypt using S/MIME.
10538 Gnus will ask for your passphrase and then it will send your message, if
10539 you've typed it correctly.
10541 @node Select Methods
10542 @chapter Select Methods
10543 @cindex foreign groups
10544 @cindex select methods
10546 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
10547 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
10548 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
10549 personal mail group.
10551 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
10552 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
10553 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
10554 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
10555 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
10556 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
10558 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
10559 we do just that (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
10561 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
10564 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
10565 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
10566 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
10567 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
10568 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
10570 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
10573 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
10574 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
10575 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
10576 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
10577 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
10578 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
10579 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
10583 @node Server Buffer
10584 @section Server Buffer
10586 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
10587 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
10588 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
10589 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
10590 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
10591 backend represents a virtual server.
10593 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
10594 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
10595 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
10596 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
10598 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
10599 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
10600 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
10601 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
10602 Anyway, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
10603 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
10604 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
10606 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
10607 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
10610 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
10611 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
10612 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
10613 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
10614 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
10615 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
10616 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
10619 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
10620 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
10623 @node Server Buffer Format
10624 @subsection Server Buffer Format
10625 @cindex server buffer format
10627 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
10628 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
10629 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
10630 variable, with some simple extensions:
10635 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
10638 The name of this server.
10641 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
10644 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
10647 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
10648 The mode line can also be customized by using the
10649 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
10650 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
10660 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
10663 @node Server Commands
10664 @subsection Server Commands
10665 @cindex server commands
10671 @findex gnus-server-add-server
10672 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
10676 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
10677 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
10680 @kindex SPACE (Server)
10681 @findex gnus-server-read-server
10682 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
10686 @findex gnus-server-exit
10687 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
10691 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
10692 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
10696 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
10697 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
10701 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
10702 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
10706 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
10707 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
10711 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
10712 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
10713 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
10718 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
10719 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
10720 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
10721 a mail backend that has gotten out of sync.
10726 @node Example Methods
10727 @subsection Example Methods
10729 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
10732 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
10735 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
10741 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
10742 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
10745 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
10746 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
10748 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
10749 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
10753 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
10756 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
10757 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
10759 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
10760 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
10761 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
10765 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
10768 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
10771 Here's the method for a public spool:
10775 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
10776 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
10782 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
10783 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
10784 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
10785 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
10786 should probably look something like this:
10790 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet)
10791 (nntp-via-address "the.firewall.machine")
10792 (nntp-address "the.real.nntp.host")
10793 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
10796 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
10797 compressed connection over the modem line, you could add the following
10798 configuration to the example above:
10801 (nntp-via-rlogin-command "ssh")
10804 If you're behind a firewall, but have direct access to the outside world
10805 through a wrapper command like "runsocks", you could open a socksified
10806 telnet connection to the news server as follows:
10810 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
10811 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-telnet)
10812 (nntp-address "the.news.server")
10813 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
10816 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
10817 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
10818 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
10819 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
10822 @node Creating a Virtual Server
10823 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
10825 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
10826 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
10828 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
10829 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
10830 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
10832 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
10834 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
10835 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
10836 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
10837 will contain the following:
10847 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
10848 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
10849 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
10852 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
10853 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
10854 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
10857 @node Server Variables
10858 @subsection Server Variables
10860 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
10861 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
10862 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
10863 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
10864 won't change the "derived" variables.
10866 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
10867 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
10868 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
10869 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
10870 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
10871 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
10872 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
10873 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
10874 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
10878 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
10879 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
10880 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
10884 @node Servers and Methods
10885 @subsection Servers and Methods
10887 Wherever you would normally use a select method
10888 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
10889 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
10890 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
10894 @node Unavailable Servers
10895 @subsection Unavailable Servers
10897 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
10898 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
10899 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
10900 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
10901 actually the case or not.
10903 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
10904 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
10905 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
10906 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
10907 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
10908 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
10909 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
10910 it will regard that server as ``down''.
10912 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
10913 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
10915 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{Server Buffer}) and poke it
10916 with the following commands:
10922 @findex gnus-server-open-server
10923 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
10924 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
10928 @findex gnus-server-close-server
10929 Close the connection (if any) to the server
10930 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
10934 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
10935 Mark the current server as unreachable
10936 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
10939 @kindex M-o (Server)
10940 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
10941 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
10942 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
10945 @kindex M-c (Server)
10946 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
10947 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
10948 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
10952 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
10953 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
10954 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
10960 @section Getting News
10961 @cindex reading news
10962 @cindex news backends
10964 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
10965 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
10966 or it can read from a local spool.
10969 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
10970 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
10975 @subsection @sc{nntp}
10978 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
10979 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
10980 server as the, uhm, address.
10982 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
10983 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
10984 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
10985 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
10987 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
10988 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
10989 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
10991 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
10996 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
10997 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
10998 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
11000 @cindex authentification
11001 @cindex nntp authentification
11002 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
11003 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
11004 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
11005 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
11006 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
11007 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
11008 present in this hook.
11010 @item nntp-authinfo-function
11011 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
11012 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
11013 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
11014 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
11015 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
11016 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
11017 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
11018 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
11019 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
11020 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
11021 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
11025 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
11028 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
11030 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
11031 @samp{default}. In addition Gnus introduces two new tokens, not present
11032 in the original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
11033 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
11034 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
11035 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to and
11036 @samp{force} is explained below.
11040 Here's an example file:
11043 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
11044 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
11047 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
11048 have to be first, for instance.
11050 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
11051 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
11052 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
11053 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
11054 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
11055 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
11056 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
11058 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
11059 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
11065 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
11066 previously mentioned.
11068 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
11070 @item nntp-server-action-alist
11071 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
11072 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
11073 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
11074 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
11077 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
11078 '(("innd" (ding))))
11081 You probably don't want to do that, though.
11083 The default value is
11086 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
11087 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook
11088 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
11091 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
11092 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
11094 @item nntp-maximum-request
11095 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
11096 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
11097 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
11098 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
11099 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
11100 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
11101 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
11103 @item nntp-connection-timeout
11104 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
11105 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
11106 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
11107 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
11108 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
11109 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
11110 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
11111 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
11112 no timeouts are done.
11114 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
11115 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
11116 @c @cindex PPP connections
11117 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
11118 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
11119 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
11120 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
11121 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
11122 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
11123 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
11124 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
11125 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
11126 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
11128 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
11129 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
11130 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
11131 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
11132 @c described above.
11134 @item nntp-server-hook
11135 @vindex nntp-server-hook
11136 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
11139 @item nntp-buggy-select
11140 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
11141 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
11143 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
11144 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
11145 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
11146 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
11149 @item nntp-xover-commands
11150 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
11153 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
11154 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
11158 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
11159 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
11160 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
11161 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
11162 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
11163 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
11164 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
11165 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
11166 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
11167 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
11168 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
11170 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
11171 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
11172 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
11174 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
11175 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
11176 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
11177 server closes connection.
11179 @item nntp-record-commands
11180 @vindex nntp-record-commands
11181 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
11182 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestamp) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
11183 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
11184 that doesn't seem to work.
11186 @item nntp-open-connection-function
11187 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
11188 It is possible to customize how the connection to the nntp server will
11189 be opened. If you specify an @code{nntp-open-connection-function}
11190 parameter, Gnus will use that function to establish the connection.
11191 Five pre-made functions are supplied. These functions can be grouped in
11192 two categories: direct connection functions (three pre-made), and
11193 indirect ones (two pre-made).
11197 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
11198 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
11199 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
11203 @node Direct Functions
11204 @subsubsection Direct Functions
11205 @cindex direct connection functions
11207 These functions are called direct because they open a direct connection
11208 between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server. The behavior of these
11209 functions is also affected by commonly understood variables
11210 (@pxref{Common Variables}).
11213 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
11214 @item nntp-open-network-stream
11215 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
11218 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
11219 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
11220 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
11221 you must have SSLay installed
11222 (@uref{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also need
11223 @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distribution, for instance). You then
11224 define a server as follows:
11227 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
11229 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
11231 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
11232 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
11233 (nntp-port-number "snews")
11234 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
11237 @findex nntp-open-telnet-stream
11238 @item nntp-open-telnet-stream
11239 Opens a connection to an @sc{nntp} server by simply @samp{telnet}'ing
11240 it. You might wonder why this function exists, since we have the
11241 default @code{nntp-open-network-stream} which would do the job. (One
11242 of) the reason(s) is that if you are behind a firewall but have direct
11243 connections to the outside world thanks to a command wrapper like
11244 @code{runsocks}, you can use it like this:
11248 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
11249 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-telnet-stream)
11250 (nntp-address "the.news.server"))
11253 With the default method, you would need to wrap your whole Emacs
11254 session, which is not a good idea.
11258 @node Indirect Functions
11259 @subsubsection Indirect Functions
11260 @cindex indirect connection functions
11262 These functions are called indirect because they connect to an
11263 intermediate host before actually connecting to the @sc{nntp} server.
11264 All of these functions and related variables are also said to belong to
11265 the "via" family of connection: they're all prefixed with "via" to make
11266 things cleaner. The behavior of these functions is also affected by
11267 commonly understood variables (@pxref{Common Variables}).
11270 @item nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
11271 @findex nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
11272 Does an @samp{rlogin} on a remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet}
11273 to the real @sc{nntp} server from there. This is useful for instance if
11274 you need to connect to a firewall machine first.
11276 @code{nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet}-specific variables:
11279 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command
11280 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command
11281 Command used to log in on the intermediate host. The default is
11282 @samp{rsh}, but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
11285 @item nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
11286 @findex nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
11287 Does essentially the same, but uses @samp{telnet} instead of
11288 @samp{rlogin} to connect to the intermediate host.
11290 @code{nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet}-specific variables:
11293 @item nntp-via-telnet-command
11294 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-command
11295 Command used to @code{telnet} the intermediate host. The default is
11298 @item nntp-via-telnet-switches
11299 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-switches
11300 List of strings to be used as the switches to the
11301 @code{nntp-via-telnet-command} command. The default is @samp{("-8")}.
11303 @item nntp-via-user-password
11304 @vindex nntp-via-user-password
11305 Password to use when logging in on the intermediate host.
11307 @item nntp-via-envuser
11308 @vindex nntp-via-envuser
11309 If non-@code{nil}, the intermediate @code{telnet} session (client and
11310 server both) will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for
11311 login name. This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
11313 @item nntp-via-shell-prompt
11314 @vindex nntp-via-shell-prompt
11315 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the intermediate host. The default
11316 is @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
11323 Here are some additional variables that are understood by all the above
11328 @item nntp-via-user-name
11329 @vindex nntp-via-user-name
11330 User name to use when connecting to the intermediate host.
11332 @item nntp-via-address
11333 @vindex nntp-via-address
11334 Address of the intermediate host to connect to.
11339 @node Common Variables
11340 @subsubsection Common Variables
11342 The following variables affect the behavior of all, or several of the
11343 pre-made connection functions. When not specified, all functions are
11348 @item nntp-pre-command
11349 @vindex nntp-pre-command
11350 A command wrapper to use when connecting through a non native connection
11351 function (all except @code{nntp-open-network-stream} and
11352 @code{nntp-open-ssl-stream}. This is where you would put a @samp{SOCKS}
11353 wrapper for instance.
11356 @vindex nntp-address
11357 The address of the @sc{nntp} server.
11359 @item nntp-port-number
11360 @vindex nntp-port-number
11361 Port number to connect to the @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{nntp}.
11363 @item nntp-end-of-line
11364 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
11365 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
11366 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
11367 using a non native connection function.
11369 @item nntp-telnet-command
11370 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
11371 Command to use when connecting to the @sc{nntp} server through
11372 @samp{telnet}. This is NOT for an intermediate host. This is just for
11373 the real @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{telnet}.
11375 @item nntp-telnet-switches
11376 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
11377 A list of switches to pass to @code{nntp-telnet-command}. The default
11384 @subsection News Spool
11388 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
11389 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
11390 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
11393 Anyway, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
11394 anything else) as the address.
11396 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
11397 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
11398 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
11399 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
11403 @item nnspool-inews-program
11404 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
11405 Program used to post an article.
11407 @item nnspool-inews-switches
11408 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
11409 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
11411 @item nnspool-spool-directory
11412 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
11413 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
11414 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
11416 @item nnspool-nov-directory
11417 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
11418 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
11419 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
11421 @item nnspool-lib-dir
11422 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
11423 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
11425 @item nnspool-active-file
11426 @vindex nnspool-active-file
11427 The path to the active file.
11429 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
11430 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
11431 The path to the group descriptions file.
11433 @item nnspool-history-file
11434 @vindex nnspool-history-file
11435 The path to the news history file.
11437 @item nnspool-active-times-file
11438 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
11439 The path to the active date file.
11441 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
11442 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
11443 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
11446 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
11447 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
11449 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
11450 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
11451 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
11457 @section Getting Mail
11458 @cindex reading mail
11461 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
11465 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
11466 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
11467 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
11468 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
11469 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
11470 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
11471 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
11472 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
11473 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
11474 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
11475 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
11476 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
11477 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
11481 @node Mail in a Newsreader
11482 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
11484 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
11485 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
11486 of a culture shock.
11488 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
11489 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
11491 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
11492 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
11493 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
11494 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
11496 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
11498 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
11499 deleted? How awful!
11501 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
11502 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
11503 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
11504 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
11507 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
11508 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
11509 they want to treat a message.
11511 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
11512 via SMTP, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
11513 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
11514 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
11515 archived somewhere else.
11517 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
11518 These are transported via @sc{nntp}, and are therefore news. But we may need
11519 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
11520 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
11521 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
11523 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
11524 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
11525 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
11527 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
11528 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
11531 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
11532 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
11533 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
11534 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
11535 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
11537 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
11538 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
11539 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
11540 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
11541 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
11542 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
11546 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
11547 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
11549 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
11550 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
11551 and things will happen automatically.
11553 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
11554 mail" backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
11557 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
11560 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
11561 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
11562 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
11563 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
11564 like any other group.
11566 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
11569 (setq nnmail-split-methods
11570 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11571 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
11575 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
11576 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
11577 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
11580 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
11581 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
11582 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
11585 @node Splitting Mail
11586 @subsection Splitting Mail
11587 @cindex splitting mail
11588 @cindex mail splitting
11590 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
11591 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
11592 to be split into groups.
11595 (setq nnmail-split-methods
11596 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11597 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
11598 ("mail.other" "")))
11601 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
11602 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
11603 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
11604 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
11605 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
11606 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
11607 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
11610 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
11613 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
11614 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
11615 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
11616 mail belongs in that group.
11618 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
11619 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
11620 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
11621 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
11622 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
11623 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
11625 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
11626 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
11627 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
11628 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
11629 thinks should carry this mail message.
11631 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
11632 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
11633 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
11634 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
11636 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
11637 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
11638 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
11639 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
11640 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
11642 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
11645 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
11646 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
11647 links. If that's the case for you, set
11648 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
11649 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
11651 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
11652 @kindex nnmail-split-history
11653 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
11654 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
11655 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
11656 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
11659 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
11660 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
11661 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
11662 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
11663 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
11664 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
11665 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
11666 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
11667 month's rent money.
11671 @subsection Mail Sources
11673 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
11674 POP mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a maildir, for
11678 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
11679 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
11680 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
11684 @node Mail Source Specifiers
11685 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
11687 @cindex mail server
11690 @cindex mail source
11692 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
11693 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
11698 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
11701 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
11702 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
11703 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
11706 The following mail source types are available:
11710 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
11716 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
11717 environment variable or @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}.
11720 An example file mail source:
11723 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
11726 Or using the default path:
11732 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best to
11733 use POP or @sc{imap} or the like to fetch the mail. You can not use ange-ftp
11734 file names here---it has no way to lock the mail spool while moving the
11737 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
11741 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
11744 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
11748 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
11751 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
11753 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
11756 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
11760 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used when
11761 you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files. Setting
11762 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-nil forces Gnus to
11763 scan the mail source only once. This is particularly useful if you want
11764 to scan mail groups at a specified level.
11770 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
11774 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
11778 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
11779 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
11780 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
11781 predicate are considered.
11785 Script run before/after fetching mail.
11789 An example directory mail source:
11792 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
11797 Get mail from a POP server.
11803 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
11804 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
11807 The port number of the POP server. This can be a number (eg,
11808 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
11809 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
11810 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}. On some systems you might
11811 need to specify it as @samp{"pop-3"} instead.
11814 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
11818 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
11822 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This should be
11823 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
11826 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
11829 The valid format specifier characters are:
11833 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
11834 included in this string.
11837 The name of the server.
11840 The port number of the server.
11843 The user name to use.
11846 The password to use.
11849 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
11850 corresponding keywords.
11853 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
11854 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
11857 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
11858 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
11861 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
11862 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
11865 @item :authentication
11866 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
11867 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
11872 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
11873 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
11875 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
11876 default user name, and default fetcher:
11882 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
11885 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
11886 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
11889 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
11892 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
11896 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
11897 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
11898 contains exactly one mail.
11904 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
11905 taken from the @code{MAILDIR} environment variable or
11908 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
11909 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
11911 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
11912 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
11913 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
11916 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
11917 from locking problems).
11921 Two example maildir mail sources:
11924 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/"
11925 :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
11929 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/"
11934 Get mail from a @sc{imap} server. If you don't want to use @sc{imap}
11935 as intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie with nnimap), for
11936 some reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar to a POP server
11937 and fetches articles from a given @sc{imap} mailbox. @xref{IMAP}, for
11944 The name of the @sc{imap} server. The default is taken from the
11945 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
11948 The port number of the @sc{imap} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
11949 @samp{993} for SSL connections.
11952 The user name to give to the @sc{imap} server. The default is the login
11956 The password to give to the @sc{imap} server. If not specified, the user is
11960 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
11961 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
11962 @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{ssl} or the default @samp{network}.
11964 @item :authentication
11965 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is one
11966 of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now, this
11967 means @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default
11971 When using the `shell' :stream, the contents of this variable is
11972 mapped into the `imap-shell-program' variable. This should be a
11973 @code{format}-like string (or list of strings). Here's an example:
11979 The valid format specifier characters are:
11983 The name of the server.
11986 User name from `imap-default-user'.
11989 The port number of the server.
11992 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
11993 corresponding keywords.
11996 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
11997 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
12000 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
12001 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
12002 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @sc{imap} client and mark some
12003 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{nil}.
12004 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
12005 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 §6.4.4.
12008 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
12009 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
12010 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
12011 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 §2.3.2.
12014 If non-nil, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the mailbox
12015 after finishing the fetch.
12019 An example @sc{imap} mail source:
12022 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com"
12024 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
12028 Get mail from a webmail server, such as www.hotmail.com,
12029 webmail.netscape.com, www.netaddress.com, www.my-deja.com.
12031 NOTE: Now mail.yahoo.com provides POP3 service, so @sc{pop} mail source
12034 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
12035 required for url "4.0pre.46".
12037 WARNING: Mails may lost. NO WARRANTY.
12043 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
12044 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
12047 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
12051 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
12055 If non-nil, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to trash
12056 folder after finishing the fetch.
12060 An example webmail source:
12063 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail
12065 :password "secret")
12070 @item Common Keywords
12071 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
12077 If non-nil, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you use
12078 directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this example:
12082 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
12087 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
12088 useful when you use local mail and news.
12093 @subsubsection Function Interface
12095 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
12096 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
12097 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
12098 consider the following mail-source setting:
12101 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
12102 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
12105 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
12106 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
12107 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
12108 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
12109 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
12111 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
12114 @node Mail Source Customization
12115 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
12117 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
12118 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
12122 @item mail-source-crash-box
12123 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
12124 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
12125 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
12127 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
12128 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
12129 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
12131 @item mail-source-directory
12132 @vindex mail-source-directory
12133 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
12134 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
12135 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
12138 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
12139 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
12140 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
12141 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
12142 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
12143 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
12145 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
12146 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
12147 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
12152 @node Fetching Mail
12153 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
12155 @vindex mail-sources
12156 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
12157 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
12158 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
12159 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
12161 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
12162 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
12165 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
12166 mail server, you'd say something like:
12171 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
12172 :password "secret")))
12175 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
12179 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
12180 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
12183 :password "secret")))
12187 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
12188 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
12189 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
12190 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
12191 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
12192 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
12196 @node Mail Backend Variables
12197 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
12199 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
12203 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
12204 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
12205 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
12206 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
12208 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
12209 @item nnmail-split-hook
12210 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
12211 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
12212 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
12213 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
12214 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
12215 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
12216 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
12217 in the buffer will show up in any files.
12218 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
12221 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12222 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12223 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12224 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12225 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
12226 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
12227 starting to handle the new mail) and
12228 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
12229 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
12230 default file modes the new mail files get:
12233 (add-hook 'nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12234 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
12236 (add-hook 'nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12237 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
12240 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
12241 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
12242 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
12243 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
12244 (assuming use of @code{nnml} backend) or files (assuming use of
12245 @code{nnfolder} backend) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
12246 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
12248 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
12249 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
12250 @findex delete-file
12251 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
12253 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12254 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12255 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
12256 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
12257 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
12262 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
12263 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
12264 @cindex mail splitting
12265 @cindex fancy mail splitting
12267 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
12268 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
12269 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
12270 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
12271 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
12272 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
12274 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
12277 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
12278 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
12279 ;; from real errors.
12280 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
12282 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
12283 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
12284 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
12285 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
12286 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
12287 ;; Other mailing lists...
12288 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
12289 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
12290 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
12291 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
12292 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
12293 ;; message was really cross-posted.
12294 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
12295 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
12297 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
12298 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
12302 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
12303 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
12304 the five possible split syntaxes:
12309 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
12310 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
12314 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
12315 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
12316 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
12317 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
12318 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
12319 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
12320 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
12321 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
12324 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12325 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
12326 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
12327 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
12330 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12331 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
12334 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
12335 this message. Use with extreme caution.
12338 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
12339 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
12340 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
12341 function should return a @var{split}.
12344 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
12345 body of the messages:
12348 (defun split-on-body ()
12350 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
12351 (goto-char (point-min))
12352 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
12356 The @samp{" *nnmail incoming*"} is narrowed to the message in question
12357 when the @code{:} function is run.
12360 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12361 element is @code{!}, then SPLIT will be processed, and FUNC will be
12362 called as a function with the result of SPLIT as argument. FUNC should
12366 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
12370 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
12371 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
12372 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
12373 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
12374 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
12376 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
12377 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
12378 are expanded as specified by the variable
12379 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
12380 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
12383 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
12384 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
12385 when all this splitting is performed.
12387 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
12388 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
12389 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
12392 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
12395 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
12396 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
12398 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
12399 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
12400 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
12401 groupings 1 through 9.
12403 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
12404 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
12405 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
12406 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
12407 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
12408 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
12409 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
12410 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
12411 it once per thread.
12413 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} and
12414 @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} to a non-nil value. And then
12415 you can include @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} using the colon
12418 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
12419 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
12420 ;; other splits go here
12424 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
12425 non-nil, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees in the
12426 file specified by the variable @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file},
12427 together with the group it is in (the group is omitted for non-mail
12428 messages). When mail splitting is invoked, the function
12429 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks at the References (and
12430 In-Reply-To) header of each message to split and searches the file
12431 specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file} for the message ids.
12432 When it has found a parent, it returns the corresponding group name
12433 unless the group name matches the regexp
12434 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent-ignore-groups}. It is recommended
12435 that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a somewhat higher
12436 number than the default so that the message ids are still in the cache.
12437 (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some 300 kBytes in size.)
12438 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12439 When @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus
12440 also records the message ids of moved articles, so that the followup
12441 messages goes into the new group.
12444 @node Group Mail Splitting
12445 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
12446 @cindex mail splitting
12447 @cindex group mail splitting
12449 @findex gnus-group-split
12450 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
12451 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
12452 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
12453 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
12454 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
12455 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
12456 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
12457 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
12459 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
12460 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
12461 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
12462 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
12464 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
12465 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
12466 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
12467 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
12468 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
12469 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
12470 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
12472 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
12473 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
12474 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
12475 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
12476 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
12477 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
12478 @code{gnus-group-split}.
12480 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
12481 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
12482 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
12483 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
12484 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
12485 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
12486 that group is used as the catch-all group. Even though this variable is
12487 often used just to name a group, it may also be set to an arbitrarily
12488 complex fancy split (after all, a group name is a fancy split), and this
12489 may be useful to split mail that doesn't go to any mailing list to
12490 personal mail folders. Note that this fancy split is added as the last
12491 element of a @code{|} split list that also contains a @code{&} split
12492 with the rules extracted from group parameters.
12494 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
12499 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
12500 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
12502 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
12503 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
12504 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
12505 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
12507 ((split-spec . catch-all))
12510 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
12511 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
12512 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
12515 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
12516 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
12517 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
12521 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
12522 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
12523 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
12527 (: gnus-mlsplt-fancy GROUPS NO-CROSSPOST CATCH-ALL)
12530 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
12531 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
12532 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
12533 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} is the fallback
12534 fancy split, used like @var{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}.
12535 If @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
12536 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
12537 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
12538 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
12540 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
12541 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
12542 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
12543 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
12544 used to enable @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
12545 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
12546 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
12547 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
12548 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
12550 @findex gnus-group-split-update
12551 However, if you change group parameters, you'd have to update
12552 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
12553 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
12554 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
12555 you. For example, add to your @file{.gnus}:
12558 (gnus-group-split-setup AUTO-UPDATE CATCH-ALL)
12561 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
12562 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
12563 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
12564 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional, equivalent to @code{nil}),
12565 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
12568 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
12569 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
12570 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
12571 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
12573 @node Incorporating Old Mail
12574 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
12575 @cindex incorporating old mail
12576 @cindex import old mail
12578 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
12579 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
12580 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
12583 Doing so can be quite easy.
12585 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
12586 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
12587 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
12588 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
12589 your @code{nnml} groups.
12595 Go to the group buffer.
12598 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
12599 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
12602 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
12605 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
12606 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
12609 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
12610 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
12613 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
12614 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
12615 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
12616 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
12617 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
12619 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
12620 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
12621 using the new mail backend.
12624 @node Expiring Mail
12625 @subsection Expiring Mail
12626 @cindex article expiry
12628 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
12629 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
12630 different approach to mail reading.
12632 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
12633 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
12634 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
12635 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
12636 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
12637 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
12640 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
12641 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
12642 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
12643 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
12644 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
12645 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
12646 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
12647 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
12649 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
12650 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
12651 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
12652 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
12653 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
12654 column in the summary buffer.
12656 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
12657 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
12658 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
12659 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
12662 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
12664 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
12665 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
12666 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
12669 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
12670 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
12671 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
12672 articles expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
12673 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
12675 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
12676 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
12679 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
12680 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
12683 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
12684 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
12686 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
12687 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
12688 don't really mix very well.
12690 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
12691 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
12692 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
12693 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
12696 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
12697 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
12698 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
12699 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
12702 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
12704 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
12706 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
12708 ((string= group "mail.junk")
12710 ((string= group "important")
12716 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
12717 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
12719 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
12720 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
12721 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
12724 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
12725 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
12727 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
12728 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
12729 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them to
12730 other groups instead of deleting them. The variable @code{nnmail-expiry-target}
12731 (and the @code{expiry-target} group parameter) controls this. The
12732 variable supplies a default value for all groups, which can be
12733 overridden for specific groups by the group parameter.
12734 default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a string (which
12735 should be the name of the group the message should be moved to), or a
12736 function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to the message in
12737 question, and with the name of the group being moved from as its
12738 parameter) which should return a target -- either a group name or
12741 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
12743 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
12747 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
12748 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
12749 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
12750 easier for procmail users.
12752 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
12753 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
12754 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
12755 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
12756 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
12757 caution. Even more dangerous is the
12758 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
12759 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
12760 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
12761 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
12762 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
12763 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
12764 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
12767 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
12769 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
12770 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
12771 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
12772 auto-expire turned on.
12776 @subsection Washing Mail
12777 @cindex mail washing
12778 @cindex list server brain damage
12779 @cindex incoming mail treatment
12781 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
12782 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
12783 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
12784 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
12785 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
12786 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
12788 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
12789 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
12790 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
12793 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
12794 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
12795 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
12796 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
12799 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
12800 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
12801 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
12802 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
12803 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
12806 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
12807 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
12808 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
12809 Emacs running on MS machines.
12813 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
12814 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
12815 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
12816 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
12819 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
12820 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
12821 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
12822 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
12824 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
12825 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
12826 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
12827 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
12828 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
12829 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
12830 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
12833 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
12834 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
12837 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
12838 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
12841 This can also be done non-destructively with
12842 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
12844 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
12845 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
12846 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
12848 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
12849 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
12851 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
12852 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
12853 @code{References} headers.
12857 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
12858 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
12859 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
12863 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
12864 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
12865 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
12872 @subsection Duplicates
12874 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
12875 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
12876 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
12877 @cindex duplicate mails
12878 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
12879 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
12880 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
12881 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
12882 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
12883 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
12884 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
12885 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
12886 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
12887 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
12888 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
12889 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
12890 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
12892 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
12893 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
12894 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
12895 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
12897 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
12900 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
12901 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
12905 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
12906 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
12907 ("gnus-warning" "duplicat\\(e\\|ion\\) of message" "duplicate")
12908 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
12909 (any mail "mail.misc")
12916 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12917 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:.*duplicate")
12922 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
12923 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
12924 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
12925 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
12926 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
12929 @node Not Reading Mail
12930 @subsection Not Reading Mail
12932 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
12933 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
12934 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
12936 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
12937 @code{nil}, none of the backends will ever attempt to read incoming
12938 mail, which should help.
12940 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12941 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
12942 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
12943 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
12944 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
12945 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
12946 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
12947 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
12948 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
12949 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
12950 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
12952 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
12953 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
12957 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
12958 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
12960 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
12961 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
12962 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
12964 There are five different mail backends in the standard Gnus, and more
12965 backends are available separately. The mail backend most people use
12966 (because it is the fastest and most flexible) is @code{nnml}
12967 (@pxref{Mail Spool}).
12970 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
12971 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
12972 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
12973 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
12974 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
12975 * Comparing Mail Backends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
12979 @node Unix Mail Box
12980 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
12982 @cindex unix mail box
12984 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
12985 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
12986 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
12987 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
12988 which group it belongs in.
12990 Virtual server settings:
12993 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
12994 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
12995 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory. Default is
12998 @item nnmbox-active-file
12999 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
13000 The name of the active file for the mail box. Default is
13001 @file{~/.mbox-active}.
13003 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
13004 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
13005 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
13006 into groups. Default is @code{t}.
13011 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
13015 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
13016 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
13017 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
13018 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
13019 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
13021 Virtual server settings:
13024 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
13025 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
13026 The name of the rmail mbox file. The default is @file{~/RMAIL}
13028 @item nnbabyl-active-file
13029 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
13030 The name of the active file for the rmail box. The default is
13031 @file{~/.rmail-active}
13033 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13034 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13035 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail. Default is
13041 @subsubsection Mail Spool
13043 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
13045 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
13046 format. It should be used with some caution.
13048 @vindex nnml-directory
13049 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
13050 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
13051 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
13052 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
13054 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
13057 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
13058 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
13059 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
13060 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
13061 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
13062 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
13063 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
13064 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
13066 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
13067 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
13068 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
13069 backend when it comes to reading mail.
13071 @cindex self contained nnml servers
13072 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnml}
13073 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
13074 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
13075 proper @code{nnml} server) and have all your marks be preserved. Marks
13076 for a group is usually stored in the @code{.marks} file (but see
13077 @code{nnml-marks-file-name}) within the @code{nnml} directory.
13078 Individual @code{nnml} groups are also possible to backup, restore it
13079 using @kbd{G m} to subscribe to the group.
13081 Virtual server settings:
13084 @item nnml-directory
13085 @vindex nnml-directory
13086 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
13087 The default is the value of `message-directory' (whose default value is
13090 @item nnml-active-file
13091 @vindex nnml-active-file
13092 The active file for the @code{nnml} server. The default is
13093 @file{~/Mail/active"}.
13095 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
13096 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
13097 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
13098 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}.
13100 @item nnml-get-new-mail
13101 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
13102 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail. The default is
13105 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
13106 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
13107 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
13108 default is @code{nil}.
13110 @item nnml-nov-file-name
13111 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
13112 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
13114 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
13115 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
13116 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
13118 @item nnml-marks-is-evil
13119 @vindex nnml-marks-is-evil
13120 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
13121 default is @code{nil}.
13123 @item nnml-marks-file-name
13124 @vindex nnml-marks-file-name
13125 The name of the @sc{marks} files. The default is @file{.marks}.
13129 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
13130 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
13131 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
13132 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
13133 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
13134 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
13135 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
13140 @subsubsection MH Spool
13142 @cindex mh-e mail spool
13144 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
13145 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
13146 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
13147 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
13149 Virtual server settings:
13152 @item nnmh-directory
13153 @vindex nnmh-directory
13154 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory. The
13155 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
13158 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
13159 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
13160 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail. The default is
13164 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
13165 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
13166 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
13167 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
13168 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
13169 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
13170 to set this variable to @code{t}. The default is @code{nil}.
13175 @subsubsection Mail Folders
13177 @cindex mbox folders
13178 @cindex mail folders
13180 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
13181 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
13182 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
13185 Virtual server settings:
13188 @item nnfolder-directory
13189 @vindex nnfolder-directory
13190 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
13191 The default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
13194 @item nnfolder-active-file
13195 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
13196 The name of the active file. The default is @file{~/Mail/active}.
13198 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
13199 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
13200 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
13201 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}
13203 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
13204 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
13205 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail. The default
13208 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
13209 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
13210 @cindex backup files
13211 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
13212 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
13213 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
13214 your @file{.emacs} file:
13217 (defun turn-off-backup ()
13218 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
13220 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
13223 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
13224 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
13225 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
13226 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
13227 extract some information from it before removing it.
13229 @item nnfolder-nov-is-evil
13230 @vindex nnfolder-nov-is-evil
13231 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
13232 default is @code{nil}.
13237 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
13238 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
13239 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
13240 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
13241 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
13242 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
13245 @node Comparing Mail Backends
13246 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Backends
13248 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{backend} is the common word for a
13249 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
13250 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
13251 and so selection of a suitable backend is required in order to get that
13252 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
13254 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
13255 typically done by @sc{nntp} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
13256 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
13257 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @sc{nntp} server), and
13258 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
13259 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
13260 @code{nnspool} backends, to select between these methods, if one happens
13261 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
13264 The goal in selecting a mail backend is to pick one which
13265 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
13266 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
13267 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
13272 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
13273 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
13274 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
13275 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
13276 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
13277 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
13278 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
13279 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
13280 this backend, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
13281 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
13282 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
13283 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
13284 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
13289 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
13290 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
13291 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
13292 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
13293 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
13294 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
13295 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
13296 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
13297 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
13298 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
13299 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
13300 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
13301 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
13302 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
13304 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
13305 filesystem, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
13310 @code{nnml} is the backend which smells the most as though you were
13311 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
13312 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
13313 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
13314 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
13315 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
13316 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
13317 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
13318 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
13319 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
13320 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
13321 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
13322 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
13323 provided by the active file and overviews.
13325 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
13326 resource which defines available places in the filesystem to put new
13327 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
13328 tight, shared filesystems. But if you live on a personal machine where
13329 the filesystem is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
13332 It is also problematic using this backend if you are living in a
13333 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
13338 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
13339 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
13340 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
13341 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
13342 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
13343 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
13344 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
13348 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
13349 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
13350 itself puts *all* one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
13351 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
13352 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
13353 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
13354 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
13355 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
13356 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
13358 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
13359 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
13360 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
13361 friendly mail backend all over.
13366 @node Browsing the Web
13367 @section Browsing the Web
13369 @cindex browsing the web
13373 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
13374 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
13375 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
13376 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
13377 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
13378 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
13379 even know what a news group is.
13381 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
13382 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
13383 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
13384 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
13385 you mad in the end.
13387 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
13390 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of backends for providing
13391 interfaces to these sources.
13394 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
13395 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
13396 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
13397 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
13398 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
13399 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
13402 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
13404 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
13405 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @sc{html} data
13406 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus backend
13407 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these backends,
13408 though, you should be ok.
13410 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
13411 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
13412 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
13413 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
13414 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
13418 @subsection Web Searches
13422 @cindex InReference
13423 @cindex Usenet searches
13424 @cindex searching the Usenet
13426 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
13427 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
13428 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
13429 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
13430 searches without having to use a browser.
13432 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
13433 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
13434 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
13435 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
13436 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
13438 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
13439 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
13440 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
13441 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
13442 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
13443 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
13444 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
13445 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
13446 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
13447 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
13450 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
13451 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
13452 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
13453 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
13454 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
13455 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
13457 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
13458 to use @code{nnweb}.
13460 Virtual server variables:
13465 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
13466 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
13470 @vindex nnweb-search
13471 The search string to feed to the search engine.
13473 @item nnweb-max-hits
13474 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
13475 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
13478 @item nnweb-type-definition
13479 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
13480 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
13481 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
13486 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
13490 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
13493 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
13496 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
13500 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
13507 @subsection Slashdot
13511 Slashdot (@uref{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
13512 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
13513 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
13515 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
13516 following in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
13519 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
13520 '((nnslashdot "")))
13523 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} backend for new comments
13524 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
13525 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
13526 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
13527 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
13530 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
13531 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
13533 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
13534 comments), some light @sc{html}izations will be performed. In
13535 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
13536 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
13537 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @sc{html}
13538 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
13541 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
13544 @item nnslashdot-threaded
13545 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
13546 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
13547 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
13548 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
13549 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
13550 but much, much slower than untreaded.
13552 @item nnslashdot-login-name
13553 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
13554 The login name to use when posting.
13556 @item nnslashdot-password
13557 @vindex nnslashdot-password
13558 The password to use when posting.
13560 @item nnslashdot-directory
13561 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
13562 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default is
13563 @samp{~/News/slashdot/}.
13565 @item nnslashdot-active-url
13566 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
13567 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
13568 news articles and comments. The default is
13569 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
13571 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
13572 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
13573 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
13575 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
13577 @item nnslashdot-article-url
13578 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
13579 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
13581 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
13583 @item nnslashdot-threshold
13584 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
13585 The score threshold. The default is -1.
13587 @item nnslashdot-group-number
13588 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
13589 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
13590 updated. The default is 0.
13597 @subsection Ultimate
13599 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
13601 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@uref{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
13602 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
13603 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
13604 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
13606 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
13607 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
13608 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
13609 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
13610 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
13611 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
13612 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
13614 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
13617 @item nnultimate-directory
13618 @vindex nnultimate-directory
13619 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
13620 @samp{~/News/ultimate/}.
13625 @subsection Web Archive
13627 @cindex Web Archive
13629 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
13630 @uref{http://www.egroups.com/} and
13631 @uref{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
13632 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
13635 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
13636 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
13637 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET an_egroup RET egroups RET
13638 www.egroups.com RET your@@email.address RET}. (Substitute the
13639 @sc{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
13640 @sc{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
13641 backend by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
13643 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
13646 @item nnwarchive-directory
13647 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
13648 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
13649 @samp{~/News/warchive/}.
13651 @item nnwarchive-login
13652 @vindex nnwarchive-login
13653 The account name on the web server.
13655 @item nnwarchive-passwd
13656 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
13657 The password for your account on the web server.
13665 Some sites have RDF site summary (RSS)
13666 @uref{http://purl.org/rss/1.0/spec}. It has a quite regular and nice
13667 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
13670 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something
13671 like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET RET}, then
13674 The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:
13677 @item nnrss-directory
13678 @vindex nnrss-directory
13679 The directory where @code{nnrss} stores its files. The default is
13680 @samp{~/News/rss/}.
13684 The following code may be helpful, if you want to show the description in
13685 the summary buffer.
13688 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-description-field)
13689 (setq gnus-summary-line-format "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-15,15f%]%) %s%uX\n")
13691 (defun gnus-user-format-function-X (header)
13693 (assq nnrss-description-field (mail-header-extra header))))
13694 (if descr (concat "\n\t" (cdr descr)) "")))
13697 The following code may be useful to open an nnrss url directly from the
13700 (require 'browse-url)
13702 (defun browse-nnrss-url( arg )
13704 (let ((url (assq nnrss-url-field
13707 (assq (gnus-summary-article-number)
13708 gnus-newsgroup-data))))))
13710 (browse-url (cdr url))
13711 (gnus-summary-scroll-up arg))))
13713 (eval-after-load "gnus"
13714 #'(define-key gnus-summary-mode-map
13715 (kbd "<RET>") 'browse-nnrss-url))
13716 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-url-field)
13719 @node Customizing w3
13720 @subsection Customizing w3
13726 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
13727 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
13728 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
13730 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
13731 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
13732 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
13735 (eval-after-load "w3"
13737 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
13738 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
13739 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
13740 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
13742 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
13745 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
13746 @sc{html} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
13750 @node Other Sources
13751 @section Other Sources
13753 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
13754 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
13758 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
13759 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
13760 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
13761 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
13762 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
13763 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
13767 @node Directory Groups
13768 @subsection Directory Groups
13770 @cindex directory groups
13772 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
13773 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
13776 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
13777 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
13778 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
13779 backend to read directories. Big deal.
13781 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
13782 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
13783 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
13784 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
13785 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
13787 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
13789 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
13790 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
13791 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
13792 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
13795 @node Anything Groups
13796 @subsection Anything Groups
13799 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
13800 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
13801 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
13804 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
13805 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
13806 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
13807 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
13808 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
13809 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
13810 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
13811 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
13812 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
13813 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
13816 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
13817 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
13818 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
13819 in the article buffer, just as usual.
13821 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
13822 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
13823 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
13824 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
13826 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
13827 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
13828 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
13829 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
13830 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
13831 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
13832 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
13833 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
13838 @item nneething-map-file-directory
13839 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
13840 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
13841 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
13843 @item nneething-exclude-files
13844 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
13845 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
13846 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
13848 @item nneething-include-files
13849 @vindex nneething-include-files
13850 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
13851 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
13853 @item nneething-map-file
13854 @vindex nneething-map-file
13855 Name of the map files.
13859 @node Document Groups
13860 @subsection Document Groups
13862 @cindex documentation group
13865 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
13866 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
13873 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
13878 The standard Unix mbox file.
13880 @cindex MMDF mail box
13882 The MMDF mail box format.
13885 Several news articles appended into a file.
13888 @cindex rnews batch files
13889 The rnews batch transport format.
13890 @cindex forwarded messages
13893 Forwarded articles.
13896 Netscape mail boxes.
13899 MIME multipart messages.
13901 @item standard-digest
13902 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
13905 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
13908 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
13909 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
13910 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
13913 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
13914 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
13915 group. And that's it.
13917 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
13918 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
13919 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
13920 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
13921 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
13922 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
13923 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
13924 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
13925 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
13926 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
13928 Virtual server variables:
13931 @item nndoc-article-type
13932 @vindex nndoc-article-type
13933 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
13934 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
13935 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
13936 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail} or @code{guess}.
13938 @item nndoc-post-type
13939 @vindex nndoc-post-type
13940 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
13941 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
13946 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
13950 @node Document Server Internals
13951 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
13953 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
13954 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
13955 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
13956 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
13958 First, here's an example document type definition:
13962 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
13963 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
13966 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
13967 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
13968 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
13969 types can be defined with very few settings:
13972 @item first-article
13973 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
13974 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
13977 @item article-begin
13978 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
13979 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
13981 @item head-begin-function
13982 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
13985 @item nndoc-head-begin
13986 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
13989 @item nndoc-head-end
13990 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
13991 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
13993 @item body-begin-function
13994 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
13998 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
14001 @item body-end-function
14002 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
14006 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
14009 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
14010 regexp will be totally ignored.
14014 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
14015 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
14016 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
14017 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
14018 something that's palatable for Gnus:
14021 @item prepare-body-function
14022 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
14023 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
14024 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
14026 @item article-transform-function
14027 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
14028 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
14029 body of the article.
14031 @item generate-head-function
14032 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
14033 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
14034 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
14035 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
14039 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
14044 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
14045 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
14046 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
14047 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
14048 (head-end . "^ ?$")
14049 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
14050 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
14051 (subtype digest guess))
14054 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
14055 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
14056 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
14057 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
14058 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
14060 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
14061 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
14062 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
14063 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
14064 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
14065 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
14066 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
14067 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
14068 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
14069 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
14077 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
14078 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
14079 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
14081 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
14082 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
14083 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
14086 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
14087 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
14088 that interested in doing things properly.
14090 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
14091 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
14094 First some terminology:
14099 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
14100 get news and/or mail from.
14103 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
14104 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
14107 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
14111 @item message packets
14112 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
14113 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
14114 default, where @var{x} is a number.
14116 @item response packets
14117 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
14118 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
14119 default, where @var{x} is a number.
14129 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
14130 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
14131 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
14132 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
14135 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
14138 You put the packet in your home directory.
14141 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
14142 the native or secondary server.
14145 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
14146 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
14149 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
14153 You transfer this packet to the server.
14156 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
14159 You then repeat until you die.
14163 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
14164 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
14167 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
14168 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
14169 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
14173 @node SOUP Commands
14174 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
14176 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
14180 @kindex G s b (Group)
14181 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
14182 Pack all unread articles in the current group
14183 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
14184 process/prefix convention.
14187 @kindex G s w (Group)
14188 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
14189 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
14192 @kindex G s s (Group)
14193 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
14194 Send all replies from the replies packet
14195 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
14198 @kindex G s p (Group)
14199 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
14200 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
14203 @kindex G s r (Group)
14204 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
14205 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
14208 @kindex O s (Summary)
14209 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
14210 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
14211 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
14212 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
14217 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
14222 @item gnus-soup-directory
14223 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
14224 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
14225 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
14227 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
14228 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
14229 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
14230 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
14232 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
14233 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
14234 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
14235 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
14237 @item gnus-soup-packer
14238 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
14239 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
14240 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
14242 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
14243 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
14244 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
14245 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
14247 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
14248 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
14249 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
14251 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
14252 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
14253 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
14254 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
14260 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
14263 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
14264 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
14265 you can read them at leisure.
14267 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
14271 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
14272 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
14273 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
14274 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
14276 @item nnsoup-directory
14277 @vindex nnsoup-directory
14278 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
14279 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
14281 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
14282 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
14283 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
14284 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
14286 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
14287 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
14288 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
14289 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
14290 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
14292 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
14293 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
14294 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
14295 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
14297 @item nnsoup-active-file
14298 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
14299 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
14300 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
14301 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
14302 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
14304 @item nnsoup-packer
14305 @vindex nnsoup-packer
14306 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
14307 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
14309 @item nnsoup-unpacker
14310 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
14311 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
14312 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
14314 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
14315 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
14316 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
14319 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
14320 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
14321 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
14324 @item nnsoup-always-save
14325 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
14326 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
14332 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
14334 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
14335 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
14336 more for that to happen.
14338 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
14339 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
14340 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
14343 In specific, this is what it does:
14346 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
14347 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
14350 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
14351 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
14352 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
14355 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
14356 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
14357 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
14360 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
14361 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
14362 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
14364 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
14370 @item nngateway-address
14371 @vindex nngateway-address
14372 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
14374 @item nngateway-header-transformation
14375 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
14376 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
14377 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
14378 transformation should be called, and defaults to
14379 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
14380 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
14383 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
14384 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
14385 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
14388 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
14391 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
14394 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
14397 The following pre-defined functions exist:
14399 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
14402 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
14403 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
14404 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
14406 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
14408 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
14409 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
14410 @code{nngateway-address}.
14415 (setq gnus-post-method
14417 "mail2news@@replay.com"
14418 (nngateway-header-transformation
14419 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
14427 So, to use this, simply say something like:
14430 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
14436 @subsection @sc{imap}
14440 @sc{imap} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or ...),
14441 think of it as a modernized @sc{nntp}. Connecting to a @sc{imap}
14442 server is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just
14443 specify the network address of the server.
14445 @sc{imap} has two properties. First, @sc{imap} can do everything that
14446 POP can, it can hence be viewed as POP++. Secondly, @sc{imap} is a
14447 mail storage protocol, similar to @sc{nntp} being a news storage
14448 protocol. (@sc{imap} offers more features than @sc{nntp} because news
14449 is more or less read-only whereas mail is read-write.)
14451 If you want to use @sc{imap} as POP++, use an imap entry in
14452 mail-sources. With this, Gnus will fetch mails from the @sc{imap}
14453 server and store them on the local disk. This is not the usage
14454 described in this section. @xref{Mail Sources}.
14456 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a mail storage protocol, use an nnimap
14457 entry in gnus-secondary-select-methods. With this, Gnus will
14458 manipulate mails stored on the @sc{imap} server. This is the kind of
14459 usage explained in this section.
14461 A server configuration in @code{~/.gnus} with a few @sc{imap} servers
14462 might look something like this:
14465 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
14466 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; no special configuration
14467 ; perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:
14469 (nnimap-address "localhost")
14470 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
14471 ; a UW server running on localhost
14473 (nnimap-server-port 143)
14474 (nnimap-address "localhost")
14475 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
14476 ; anonymous public cyrus server:
14477 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
14478 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
14479 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
14480 (nnimap-stream network))
14481 ; a ssl server on a non-standard port:
14483 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
14484 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
14485 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
14488 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
14493 @item nnimap-address
14494 @vindex nnimap-address
14496 The address of the remote @sc{imap} server. Defaults to the virtual
14497 server name if not specified.
14499 @item nnimap-server-port
14500 @vindex nnimap-server-port
14501 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for SSL.
14503 Note that this should be a integer, example server specification:
14506 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14507 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
14510 @item nnimap-list-pattern
14511 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
14512 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
14513 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
14514 interested in a few -- some servers export your home directory via
14515 @sc{imap}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
14516 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
14518 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
14519 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
14520 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
14523 Example server specification:
14526 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14527 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
14528 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
14531 @item nnimap-stream
14532 @vindex nnimap-stream
14533 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
14534 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
14535 of SSL. (SSL is being replaced by STARTTLS, which can be automatically
14536 detected, but it's not widely deployed yet).
14538 Example server specification:
14541 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14542 (nnimap-stream ssl))
14545 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
14549 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5). Requires the
14550 @samp{imtest} program.
14552 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with kerberos 4. Requires the @samp{imtest} program.
14554 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
14555 SSL). Requires the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
14558 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL. Requires OpenSSL (the
14559 program @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}).
14561 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start @sc{imap} connection.
14563 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
14566 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
14567 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD. If you're
14568 using @samp{imtest} from Cyrus IMAPD < 2.0.14 (which includes version
14569 1.5.x and 1.6.x) you need to frob @code{imap-process-connection-type}
14570 to make @code{imap.el} use a pty instead of a pipe when communicating
14571 with @samp{imtest}. You will then suffer from a line length
14572 restrictions on IMAP commands, which might make Gnus seem to hang
14573 indefinitely if you have many articles in a mailbox. The variable
14574 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
14577 @vindex imap-ssl-program
14578 For SSL connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
14579 @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
14580 and nnimap support it too - altough the most recent versions of
14581 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
14582 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
14583 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
14586 @vindex imap-shell-program
14587 @vindex imap-shell-host
14588 For @sc{imap} connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
14589 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
14591 @item nnimap-authenticator
14592 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
14594 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
14595 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
14597 Example server specification:
14600 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14601 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
14604 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
14608 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Require
14609 external program @code{imtest}.
14611 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos authentication. Require external program
14614 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Require
14615 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
14617 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
14619 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
14621 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your emailadress as password.
14624 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
14626 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
14627 Unlike Parmenides the @sc{imap} designers has decided that things that
14628 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @sc{imap} has
14629 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
14630 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
14631 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{G DEL} or
14634 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
14635 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
14636 running in circles yet?
14638 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
14639 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
14642 The possible options are:
14647 The default behavior, delete all articles marked as "Deleted" when
14650 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
14651 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @sc{imap} clients
14652 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
14653 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
14655 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
14660 @item nnimap-importantize-dormant
14661 @vindex nnimap-importantize-dormant
14663 If non-nil, marks dormant articles as ticked (as well), for other IMAP
14664 clients. Within Gnus, dormant articles will naturally still (only) be
14665 marked as ticked. This is to make dormant articles stand out, just
14666 like ticked articles, in other IMAP clients. (In other words, Gnus has
14667 two ``Tick'' marks and IMAP has only one.)
14669 Probably the only reason for frobing this would be if you're trying
14670 enable per-user persistant dormant flags, using something like:
14673 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-flag-alist)
14674 (format "gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
14675 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-predicate-alist)
14676 (format "KEYWORD gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
14679 In this case, you would not want the per-user dormant flag showing up
14680 as ticked for other users.
14682 @item nnimap-expunge-search-string
14684 @vindex nnimap-expunge-search-string
14686 This variable contain the IMAP search command sent to server when
14687 searching for articles eligible for expiring. The default is
14688 @code{"UID %s NOT SINCE %s"}, where the first @code{%s} is replaced by
14689 UID set and the second @code{%s} is replaced by a date.
14691 Probably the only useful value to change this to is
14692 @code{"UID %s NOT SENTSINCE %s"}, which makes nnimap use the Date: in
14693 messages instead of the internal article date. See section 6.4.4 of
14694 RFC 2060 for more information on valid strings.
14696 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
14697 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
14699 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
14700 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
14701 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
14707 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
14708 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
14709 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
14714 @node Splitting in IMAP
14715 @subsubsection Splitting in @sc{imap}
14716 @cindex splitting imap mail
14718 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
14719 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
14720 @sc{imap} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
14721 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @sc{imap}
14722 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
14726 Here are the variables of interest:
14730 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
14731 @cindex splitting, crosspost
14733 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
14735 If non-nil, do crossposting if several split methods match the mail. If
14736 nil, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule} found will be used.
14738 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
14740 @item nnimap-split-inbox
14741 @cindex splitting, inbox
14743 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
14745 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @sc{imap}
14746 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to nil, which means that splitting is
14750 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
14751 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
14754 No nnmail equivalent.
14756 @item nnimap-split-rule
14757 @cindex Splitting, rules
14758 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
14760 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
14763 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
14764 sublist gives the name of the @sc{imap} mailbox to move articles
14765 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
14766 Neither did I, we need examples.
14769 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14771 "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
14772 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
14773 ("INBOX.private" "")))
14776 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
14777 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
14778 into INBOX.junk and everything else in INBOX.private.
14780 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
14781 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
14785 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
14788 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
14789 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
14790 containing the headers of the article. It should return a non-nil value
14791 if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
14793 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
14794 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
14795 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
14796 of your inbox. (This might affect performance if you keep lots of
14797 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
14798 them every time you fetch new mail.)
14800 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
14801 end. The first rule to make a match will "win", unless you have
14802 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will "win".
14804 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
14805 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
14806 thinks the article should be split to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14808 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it need too.
14810 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
14811 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
14812 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
14815 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14816 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
14817 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
14818 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
14819 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
14820 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
14823 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
14824 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
14825 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
14826 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
14827 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
14828 group/function elements.
14830 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
14832 @item nnimap-split-predicate
14834 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
14836 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
14837 split, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
14839 This might be useful if you use another @sc{imap} client to read mail in
14840 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
14841 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
14844 @item nnimap-split-fancy
14845 @cindex splitting, fancy
14846 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
14847 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
14849 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14850 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
14851 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
14853 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
14854 nnimap backends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14855 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
14856 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14861 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
14862 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
14865 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
14869 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
14870 @subsubsection Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14871 @cindex editing imap acls
14872 @cindex Access Control Lists
14873 @cindex Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14875 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
14877 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @sc{imap} for
14878 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
14879 @sc{imap} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
14882 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
14883 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
14884 editing window with detailed instructions.
14886 Some possible uses:
14890 Giving "anyone" the "lrs" rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
14891 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
14892 follow the list without subscribing to it.
14894 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
14895 "anyone" posting ("p") capabilities to have "plussing" work (that is,
14896 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @sc{imap} mailbox
14900 @node Expunging mailboxes
14901 @subsubsection Expunging mailboxes
14905 @cindex Manual expunging
14907 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
14909 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-on-close},
14910 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
14911 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
14913 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
14918 @node Combined Groups
14919 @section Combined Groups
14921 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
14925 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
14926 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
14930 @node Virtual Groups
14931 @subsection Virtual Groups
14933 @cindex virtual groups
14934 @cindex merging groups
14936 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
14939 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
14940 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
14941 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
14943 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
14944 regexp to match component groups.
14946 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
14947 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
14948 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
14949 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
14950 the virtual group.)
14952 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
14953 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
14956 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
14959 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
14960 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
14962 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
14963 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
14964 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
14965 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
14968 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
14971 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
14972 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
14973 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
14975 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
14976 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
14977 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
14978 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
14979 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
14981 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
14982 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
14983 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
14985 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
14986 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
14987 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
14988 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
14989 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
14990 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
14991 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
14992 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
14993 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
14994 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
14995 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
14997 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
14998 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
14999 has to ask the backend of the component group the article comes from
15000 whether it is a news or mail backend. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
15001 there is typically no sure way for the component backend to know this,
15002 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
15003 not-news backend. (Just to be on the safe side.)
15005 @kbd{C-c C-t} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
15006 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
15010 @node Kibozed Groups
15011 @subsection Kibozed Groups
15015 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
15016 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
15017 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
15018 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
15020 @kindex G k (Group)
15021 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
15024 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
15025 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
15026 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
15027 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
15029 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
15030 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
15031 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
15033 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
15034 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
15035 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
15036 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
15037 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
15038 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
15039 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
15040 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
15042 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
15043 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
15044 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
15045 Stranger things have happened.
15047 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
15048 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
15050 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
15051 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
15052 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
15053 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
15054 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
15055 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
15057 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
15058 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
15061 @node Gnus Unplugged
15062 @section Gnus Unplugged
15067 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
15069 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
15070 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
15071 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
15072 read news. Believe it or not.
15074 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
15075 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
15076 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
15077 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
15078 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
15080 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
15081 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
15082 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
15083 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
15084 reading news on a machine.
15086 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
15090 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
15091 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
15095 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
15096 @file{.gnus.el} file:
15103 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
15105 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
15108 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
15109 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
15110 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
15111 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
15112 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
15113 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
15114 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
15115 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
15116 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
15117 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
15122 @subsection Agent Basics
15124 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
15126 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
15127 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
15128 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
15129 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
15131 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
15132 connected to the net continuously.
15134 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
15135 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
15137 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
15142 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
15143 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
15144 already fetched while in this mode.
15147 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
15148 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
15149 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
15150 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
15151 Source Specifiers}).
15154 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
15155 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
15156 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
15157 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
15158 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
15161 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
15162 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
15163 then you read the news offline.
15166 And then you go to step 2.
15169 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
15175 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
15176 backend, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
15177 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
15178 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
15179 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
15180 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
15183 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
15190 @node Agent Categories
15191 @subsection Agent Categories
15193 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
15194 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
15195 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
15196 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
15197 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
15198 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
15199 you're interested in the articles anyway.
15201 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
15202 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
15203 Groups that do not belong in any other category belong to the
15204 @code{default} category. Gnus has its own buffer for creating and
15205 managing categories.
15208 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
15209 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
15210 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
15214 @node Category Syntax
15215 @subsubsection Category Syntax
15217 A category consists of two things.
15221 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
15222 are eligible for downloading; and
15225 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
15226 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
15227 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
15230 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
15231 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
15232 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
15233 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
15235 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
15236 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
15237 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as described below.
15239 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
15240 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
15241 operators sprinkled in between.
15243 Perhaps some examples are in order.
15245 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
15246 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
15252 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
15253 short (for some value of ``short'').
15255 Here's a more complex predicate:
15264 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
15265 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
15268 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
15269 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
15270 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
15272 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
15273 you want to do, you can write your own.
15277 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
15278 lines; default 100.
15281 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
15282 lines; default 200.
15285 True iff the article has a download score less than
15286 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
15289 True iff the article has a download score greater than
15290 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
15293 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
15294 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
15295 checksum and sees whether articles match.
15304 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
15305 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
15306 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
15309 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
15310 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
15311 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
15312 something along the lines of the following:
15315 (defun my-article-old-p ()
15316 "Say whether an article is old."
15317 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
15318 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
15321 with the predicate then defined as:
15324 (not my-article-old-p)
15327 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
15328 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
15329 wherever. (Note: this would have to be at a point *after*
15330 @code{gnus-agent} has been loaded via @code{(gnus-agentize)})
15333 (setq gnus-category-predicate-alist
15334 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
15335 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
15338 and simply specify your predicate as:
15344 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
15345 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
15346 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
15347 just don't give a damn.
15349 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
15350 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
15351 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
15352 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
15353 parameters like so:
15356 (agent-predicate . short)
15359 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
15360 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
15361 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
15363 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
15366 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
15369 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
15370 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
15371 predicate is assumed to be a list.
15374 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
15375 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
15376 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
15377 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
15378 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
15379 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
15381 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
15382 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
15383 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
15384 if it's to be specific to that group.
15386 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
15393 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
15394 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
15400 Category specification
15404 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
15410 Group Parameter specification
15413 (agent-score ("from"
15414 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
15419 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
15425 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
15432 Category specification
15435 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
15441 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
15445 Group Parameter specification
15448 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
15451 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
15456 Use @code{normal} score files
15458 If you don't want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
15459 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
15460 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
15461 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
15463 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
15464 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
15465 files for a group, *filtering out* those sections that do not
15466 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
15470 Category Specification
15477 Group Parameter specification
15480 (agent-score . file)
15485 @node Category Buffer
15486 @subsubsection Category Buffer
15488 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
15489 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
15490 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
15492 The following commands are available in this buffer:
15496 @kindex q (Category)
15497 @findex gnus-category-exit
15498 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
15501 @kindex k (Category)
15502 @findex gnus-category-kill
15503 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
15506 @kindex c (Category)
15507 @findex gnus-category-copy
15508 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
15511 @kindex a (Category)
15512 @findex gnus-category-add
15513 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
15516 @kindex p (Category)
15517 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
15518 Edit the predicate of the current category
15519 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
15522 @kindex g (Category)
15523 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
15524 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
15525 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
15528 @kindex s (Category)
15529 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
15530 Edit the download score rule of the current category
15531 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
15534 @kindex l (Category)
15535 @findex gnus-category-list
15536 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
15540 @node Category Variables
15541 @subsubsection Category Variables
15544 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
15545 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
15546 Hook run in category buffers.
15548 @item gnus-category-line-format
15549 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
15550 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
15551 Variables}). Valid elements are:
15555 The name of the category.
15558 The number of groups in the category.
15561 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
15562 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
15563 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
15565 @item gnus-agent-short-article
15566 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
15567 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
15569 @item gnus-agent-long-article
15570 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
15571 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
15573 @item gnus-agent-low-score
15574 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
15575 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
15578 @item gnus-agent-high-score
15579 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
15580 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
15586 @node Agent Commands
15587 @subsection Agent Commands
15589 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
15590 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged} command works in all modes, and
15591 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
15595 * Group Agent Commands::
15596 * Summary Agent Commands::
15597 * Server Agent Commands::
15600 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
15601 following incantation:
15603 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
15605 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
15610 @node Group Agent Commands
15611 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
15615 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
15616 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
15617 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
15618 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
15621 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
15622 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
15623 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
15626 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
15627 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
15628 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
15629 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
15632 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
15633 @findex gnus-group-send-drafts
15634 Send all sendable messages in the draft group
15635 (@code{gnus-group-send-drafts}). @xref{Drafts}.
15638 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
15639 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
15640 Add the current group to an Agent category
15641 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
15642 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15645 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
15646 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
15647 Remove the current group from its category, if any
15648 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
15649 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15652 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
15653 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
15654 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
15660 @node Summary Agent Commands
15661 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
15665 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
15666 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
15667 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
15670 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
15671 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
15672 Remove the downloading mark from the article
15673 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
15676 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
15677 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
15678 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
15681 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
15682 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
15683 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
15686 @kindex J u (Agent Summary)
15687 @findex gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group
15688 Download all downloadable articles in the current group
15689 (@code{gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group}).
15694 @node Server Agent Commands
15695 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
15699 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
15700 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
15701 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
15702 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
15705 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
15706 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
15707 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
15708 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
15714 @subsection Agent Expiry
15716 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
15717 @findex gnus-agent-expire
15718 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
15719 @cindex Agent expiry
15720 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
15723 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
15724 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
15725 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
15726 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
15727 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
15728 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
15730 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
15731 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
15732 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
15733 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
15734 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
15737 @node Agent and IMAP
15738 @subsection Agent and IMAP
15740 The Agent work with any Gnus backend, including nnimap. However,
15741 since there are some conceptual differences between @sc{nntp} and
15742 @sc{imap}, this section (should) provide you with some information to
15743 make Gnus Agent work smoother as a @sc{imap} Disconnected Mode client.
15745 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
15746 are kept on the @sc{imap} server, rather than in @code{.newsrc} as is the
15747 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
15748 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
15750 Gnus keep track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
15751 Agent by default. When you plug back in, by default Gnus will check if
15752 you have any changed any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize these
15753 with the server. This behavior is customizable with
15754 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
15756 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
15757 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
15758 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, the
15759 default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so ask if
15760 you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has any other
15761 value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
15763 If you do not wish to automatically synchronize flags when you
15764 re-connect, this can be done manually with the
15765 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
15766 in the group buffer by default.
15768 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
15769 expect from a disconnected @sc{imap} client, including:
15774 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
15777 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
15781 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by "pushing"
15782 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
15783 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
15784 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
15785 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
15786 removed from the server when you "synchronize". The queued flag
15787 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
15788 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
15791 @node Outgoing Messages
15792 @subsection Outgoing Messages
15794 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
15795 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
15796 after posting, and edit them at will.
15798 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
15799 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
15800 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
15801 messages in the draft group.
15805 @node Agent Variables
15806 @subsection Agent Variables
15809 @item gnus-agent-directory
15810 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
15811 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
15812 @file{~/News/agent/}.
15814 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
15815 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
15816 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
15817 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
15818 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
15821 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
15822 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
15823 Hook run when connecting to the network.
15825 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
15826 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
15827 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
15832 @node Example Setup
15833 @subsection Example Setup
15835 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
15836 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
15837 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
15840 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @sc{nntp}
15841 ;;; from your ISP's server.
15842 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
15844 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
15845 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
15846 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
15848 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
15849 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
15851 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
15855 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
15856 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
15859 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
15860 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
15861 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
15862 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
15863 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
15866 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
15867 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
15868 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
15869 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
15870 back all the killed groups.)
15872 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
15873 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
15874 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
15877 @node Batching Agents
15878 @subsection Batching Agents
15880 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
15881 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
15882 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
15886 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
15890 @node Agent Caveats
15891 @subsection Agent Caveats
15893 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
15894 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
15898 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the
15903 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists
15904 in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
15910 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
15911 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP.
15918 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
15919 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
15920 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
15923 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
15924 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
15925 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
15926 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
15927 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
15929 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
15930 before generating the summary buffer.
15932 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
15933 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
15934 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
15936 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
15937 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
15938 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
15939 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
15942 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
15943 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
15944 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
15945 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
15946 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
15947 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
15948 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
15949 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
15950 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
15951 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
15952 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
15953 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
15954 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
15955 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
15956 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
15957 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
15958 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
15962 @node Summary Score Commands
15963 @section Summary Score Commands
15964 @cindex score commands
15966 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
15967 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
15968 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
15969 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
15970 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
15972 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
15973 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
15974 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
15975 score file the current one.
15977 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
15982 @kindex V s (Summary)
15983 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
15984 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
15987 @kindex V S (Summary)
15988 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
15989 Display the score of the current article
15990 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
15993 @kindex V t (Summary)
15994 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
15995 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
15996 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
15999 @kindex V R (Summary)
16000 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
16001 Run the current summary through the scoring process
16002 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
16003 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
16004 effect you're having.
16007 @kindex V c (Summary)
16008 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
16009 Make a different score file the current
16010 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
16013 @kindex V e (Summary)
16014 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
16015 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
16016 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
16020 @kindex V f (Summary)
16021 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
16022 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
16023 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
16026 @kindex V F (Summary)
16027 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
16028 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
16029 after editing score files.
16032 @kindex V C (Summary)
16033 @findex gnus-score-customize
16034 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
16035 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
16039 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
16044 @kindex V m (Summary)
16045 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
16046 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
16047 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
16050 @kindex V x (Summary)
16051 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
16052 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
16053 expunge all articles below this score
16054 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
16057 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
16058 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
16061 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
16062 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
16066 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
16067 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
16069 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
16070 keys are available:
16074 Score on the author name.
16077 Score on the subject line.
16080 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
16083 Score on the @code{References} line.
16089 Score on the number of lines.
16092 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
16095 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
16096 the followups to this author. (Using this key leads to the creation of
16097 @file{ADAPT} files.)
16106 Score on thread. (Using this key leads to the creation of @file{ADAPT}
16112 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
16113 what headers you are scoring on.
16125 Substring matching.
16128 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
16157 Greater than number.
16162 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
16163 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
16164 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
16168 Temporary score entry.
16171 Permanent score entry.
16174 Immediately scoring.
16179 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
16180 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
16181 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
16182 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
16184 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
16185 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
16186 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
16187 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
16188 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
16190 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
16191 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
16192 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
16193 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
16194 current score file.
16196 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
16197 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
16198 pretend they are keymaps or not.
16201 @node Group Score Commands
16202 @section Group Score Commands
16203 @cindex group score commands
16205 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
16210 @kindex W f (Group)
16211 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
16212 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
16213 all the time. This command will flush the cache
16214 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
16218 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
16220 @findex gnus-batch-score
16221 @cindex batch scoring
16223 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
16227 @node Score Variables
16228 @section Score Variables
16229 @cindex score variables
16233 @item gnus-use-scoring
16234 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
16235 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
16236 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
16238 @item gnus-kill-killed
16239 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
16240 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
16241 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
16242 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
16243 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
16244 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
16245 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
16247 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
16248 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
16249 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
16250 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
16251 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
16253 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
16254 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
16255 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
16256 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
16258 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
16259 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
16260 @cindex score cache
16261 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
16262 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
16263 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
16264 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
16265 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
16266 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
16269 @item gnus-save-score
16270 @vindex gnus-save-score
16271 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
16272 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
16273 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
16275 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
16276 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
16277 across group visits.
16279 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
16280 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
16281 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
16282 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
16283 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
16284 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
16285 manually entered data.
16287 @item gnus-summary-default-score
16288 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
16289 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
16291 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
16292 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
16293 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
16294 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
16295 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
16296 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
16298 @item gnus-score-over-mark
16299 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
16300 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
16301 default. Default is @samp{+}.
16303 @item gnus-score-below-mark
16304 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
16305 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
16306 default. Default is @samp{-}.
16308 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
16309 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
16310 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
16311 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
16313 Predefined functions available are:
16316 @item gnus-score-find-single
16317 @findex gnus-score-find-single
16318 Only apply the group's own score file.
16320 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
16321 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
16322 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
16323 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
16324 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
16325 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
16326 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
16327 then a regexp match is done.
16329 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
16330 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
16332 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
16333 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
16334 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
16335 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
16337 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
16338 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
16339 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
16340 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
16341 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
16345 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all
16346 these functions will be called with the group name as argument, and
16347 all the returned lists of score files will be applied. These
16348 functions can also return lists of lists of score alists directly. In
16349 that case, the functions that return these non-file score alists
16350 should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file functions, to
16351 ensure that the last score file returned is the local score file.
16354 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
16355 overall score file, you could use the value
16357 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE"))
16358 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
16361 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
16362 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
16363 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
16364 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
16365 are expired. It's 7 by default.
16367 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
16368 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
16369 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
16370 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
16371 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
16372 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
16373 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
16376 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
16377 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
16378 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
16380 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
16381 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
16382 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
16383 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
16384 threading---according to the current value of
16385 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
16386 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
16387 simplified in this manner.
16392 @node Score File Format
16393 @section Score File Format
16394 @cindex score file format
16396 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
16397 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
16398 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
16400 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
16404 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
16406 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
16408 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
16410 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
16415 (mark-and-expunge -10)
16419 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
16420 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
16421 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
16422 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
16426 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
16427 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
16429 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
16430 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
16431 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
16433 Six keys are supported by this alist:
16438 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
16439 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
16440 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
16441 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
16442 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
16443 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
16444 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
16445 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
16446 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
16447 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
16448 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
16449 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
16450 to articles that matches these score entries.
16452 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
16453 score entry has one to four elements.
16457 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
16458 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
16462 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
16463 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
16464 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
16465 is successful. If this element is not present, the
16466 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
16467 instead. This is 1000 by default.
16470 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
16471 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
16472 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
16473 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
16474 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
16477 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
16478 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
16479 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
16480 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
16483 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
16484 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
16485 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
16486 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
16487 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
16488 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
16489 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
16490 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
16491 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
16492 instead, if you feel like.
16495 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
16496 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
16498 These predicates are true if
16501 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
16504 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
16505 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
16512 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
16513 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
16514 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
16515 it's not. I think.)
16517 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some backends (like
16518 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
16519 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
16520 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
16523 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
16524 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
16525 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
16526 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
16527 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
16528 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
16529 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
16533 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
16534 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
16535 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
16536 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
16537 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
16538 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
16539 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
16540 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
16543 @item Head, Body, All
16544 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
16548 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
16549 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
16550 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
16551 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
16552 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
16553 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
16554 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
16558 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
16559 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
16560 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
16561 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
16562 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
16563 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
16564 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
16565 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
16566 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
16567 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
16568 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
16572 @cindex Score File Atoms
16574 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
16575 lower than this number will be marked as read.
16578 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
16579 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
16581 @item mark-and-expunge
16582 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
16583 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
16586 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
16587 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
16588 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
16589 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
16590 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
16593 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
16594 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
16597 @item exclude-files
16598 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
16599 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
16603 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
16604 ignored when handling global score files.
16607 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
16608 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
16609 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
16610 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
16613 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
16614 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
16615 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
16616 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
16618 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
16622 (mark-and-expunge -100)
16625 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
16626 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
16627 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
16628 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
16629 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
16631 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where a few
16632 interesting threads which can't be found automatically by ordinary
16633 scoring rules exist.
16636 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
16637 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
16638 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
16639 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
16640 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
16641 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
16642 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
16643 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
16644 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
16645 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
16646 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
16650 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
16651 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
16652 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
16653 file for a number of groups.
16656 @cindex local variables
16657 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
16658 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
16659 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
16660 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
16661 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
16665 @node Score File Editing
16666 @section Score File Editing
16668 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
16669 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
16670 with a mode for that.
16672 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
16673 additional commands:
16678 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
16679 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
16680 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
16681 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
16684 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
16685 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
16686 Insert the current date in numerical format
16687 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
16688 you were wondering.
16691 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
16692 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
16693 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
16694 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
16695 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
16700 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
16702 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
16703 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
16705 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
16706 e} to begin editing score files.
16709 @node Adaptive Scoring
16710 @section Adaptive Scoring
16711 @cindex adaptive scoring
16713 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
16714 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
16715 stupidity, to be precise.
16717 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
16718 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
16719 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
16720 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
16721 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
16722 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
16723 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
16724 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
16725 variable to @code{(word line)}.
16727 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
16728 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
16729 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
16730 might look something like this:
16733 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
16734 '((gnus-unread-mark)
16735 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
16736 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
16737 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
16738 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
16739 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
16740 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
16741 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
16742 (gnus-ancient-mark)
16743 (gnus-low-score-mark)
16744 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
16747 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
16748 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
16749 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
16750 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
16751 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
16752 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
16755 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
16756 will be applied to each article.
16758 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
16759 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
16760 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
16761 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
16763 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
16764 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
16765 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
16766 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
16768 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
16769 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
16770 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
16771 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
16773 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
16774 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
16775 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
16776 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
16777 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
16778 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
16780 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
16781 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
16782 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
16783 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
16784 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
16785 aspirins afterwards.)
16787 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
16788 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
16789 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
16791 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
16792 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
16793 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
16795 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
16796 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
16797 let you use different rules in different groups.
16799 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
16800 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
16801 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
16804 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
16805 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
16806 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
16807 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
16808 the length of the match is less than
16809 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
16810 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
16813 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
16814 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
16815 headers. If you adapt on words, the
16816 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
16817 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
16820 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
16821 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
16822 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
16823 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
16824 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
16827 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
16828 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
16829 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
16830 score with 30 points.
16832 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
16833 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
16834 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
16835 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
16836 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
16838 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit
16839 Some may feel that short words shouldn't count when doing adaptive
16840 scoring. If so, you may set @code{gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit} to
16841 an integer. Words shorter than this number will be ignored. This
16842 variable defaults til @code{nil}.
16844 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
16845 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
16846 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
16847 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
16849 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
16850 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
16851 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
16852 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
16854 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
16855 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
16856 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
16857 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
16858 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
16860 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
16861 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
16862 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
16864 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
16865 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
16866 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
16867 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
16870 @node Home Score File
16871 @section Home Score File
16873 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
16874 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
16875 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
16876 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
16878 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
16879 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
16880 could perhaps use the same home score file.
16882 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
16883 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
16888 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
16892 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
16893 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
16897 A list. The elements in this list can be:
16901 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
16902 group name, the @var{file-name} will be used as the home score file.
16905 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
16906 the home score file.
16909 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
16912 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
16917 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
16920 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16921 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
16924 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
16925 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
16927 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
16929 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16930 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
16933 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
16934 Other functions include
16937 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
16938 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
16939 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
16940 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
16944 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
16945 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
16946 their own home score files:
16949 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16950 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
16951 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
16952 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
16953 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
16956 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
16957 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
16958 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
16959 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
16960 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
16962 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
16963 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
16964 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
16965 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
16966 precedence over this variable.
16969 @node Followups To Yourself
16970 @section Followups To Yourself
16972 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
16973 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
16974 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
16975 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
16976 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
16977 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
16981 @item gnus-score-followup-article
16982 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
16983 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
16986 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
16987 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
16988 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
16992 @vindex message-sent-hook
16993 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
16994 @code{message-sent-hook}, like this:
16996 (add-hook 'message-sent-hook 'gnus-score-followup-thread)
17000 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
17001 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
17005 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
17006 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
17009 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
17010 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
17015 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore\\.no>"
17019 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
17020 is system-dependent.
17023 @node Scoring On Other Headers
17024 @section Scoring On Other Headers
17025 @cindex scoring on other headers
17027 Gnus is quite fast when scoring the ``traditional''
17028 headers---@samp{From}, @samp{Subject} and so on. However, scoring
17029 other headers requires writing a @code{head} scoring rule, which means
17030 that Gnus has to request every single article from the backend to find
17031 matches. This takes a long time in big groups.
17033 Now, there's not much you can do about this for news groups, but for
17034 mail groups, you have greater control. In the @pxref{To From
17035 Newsgroups} section of the manual, it's explained in greater detail what
17036 this mechanism does, but here's a cookbook example for @code{nnml} on
17037 how to allow scoring on the @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers.
17039 Put the following in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
17042 (setq gnus-extra-headers '(To Cc Newsgroups Keywords)
17043 nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
17046 Restart Gnus and rebuild your @code{nnml} overview files with the
17047 @kbd{M-x nnml-generate-nov-databases} command. This will take a long
17048 time if you have much mail.
17050 Now you can score on @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} as ``extra headers'' like
17051 so: @kbd{I e s p To RET <your name> RET}.
17057 @section Scoring Tips
17058 @cindex scoring tips
17064 @cindex scoring crossposts
17065 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
17066 the @code{Xref} header.
17068 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
17071 @item Multiple crossposts
17072 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
17073 more than, say, 3 groups:
17076 ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+"
17080 @item Matching on the body
17081 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
17082 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
17083 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
17084 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
17085 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
17086 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
17087 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
17090 @item Marking as read
17091 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
17092 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
17093 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
17097 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
17099 @item Negated character classes
17100 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
17101 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
17102 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
17106 @node Reverse Scoring
17107 @section Reverse Scoring
17108 @cindex reverse scoring
17110 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
17111 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
17112 like this in your score file:
17116 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
17121 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
17122 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
17125 @node Global Score Files
17126 @section Global Score Files
17127 @cindex global score files
17129 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
17130 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
17131 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
17133 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
17134 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
17135 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
17137 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
17138 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
17139 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
17140 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
17141 files are applicable to which group.
17143 To use the score file
17144 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
17145 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory,
17149 (setq gnus-global-score-files
17150 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
17151 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
17154 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
17156 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
17157 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
17158 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
17159 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
17161 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
17162 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
17164 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
17165 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
17166 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
17167 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
17168 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
17169 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
17171 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
17177 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
17179 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
17181 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
17183 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
17184 lowered out of existence.
17186 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
17187 articles completely.
17190 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
17191 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
17192 old articles for a long time.
17195 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
17196 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
17197 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
17198 holding our breath yet?
17202 @section Kill Files
17205 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
17206 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
17207 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
17209 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
17210 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
17211 files into score files.
17213 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
17214 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
17215 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
17216 that isn't a very good idea.
17218 Normal kill files look like this:
17221 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
17222 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
17226 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
17227 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
17229 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
17230 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
17233 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
17238 @kindex M-k (Summary)
17239 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
17240 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
17243 @kindex M-K (Summary)
17244 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
17245 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
17248 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
17253 @kindex M-k (Group)
17254 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
17255 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
17258 @kindex M-K (Group)
17259 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
17260 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
17263 Kill file variables:
17266 @item gnus-kill-file-name
17267 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
17268 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
17269 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
17270 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
17271 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
17272 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
17274 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
17275 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
17276 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
17277 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
17280 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
17281 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
17282 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
17283 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
17284 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
17285 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
17286 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
17287 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
17288 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
17290 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
17291 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
17292 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
17297 @node Converting Kill Files
17298 @section Converting Kill Files
17300 @cindex converting kill files
17302 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
17303 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
17304 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
17307 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
17308 You can fetch it from
17309 @uref{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
17311 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
17312 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
17313 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
17321 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
17322 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
17323 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
17325 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
17326 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
17327 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
17328 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
17329 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
17330 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
17331 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
17332 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
17336 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
17337 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
17338 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
17339 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
17343 @node Using GroupLens
17344 @subsection Using GroupLens
17346 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
17348 @uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
17349 better bit in town at the moment.
17351 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
17355 @item gnus-use-grouplens
17356 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
17357 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
17358 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
17360 @item grouplens-pseudonym
17361 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
17362 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
17363 with the Better Bit Bureau.
17365 @item grouplens-newsgroups
17366 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
17367 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
17371 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
17372 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
17373 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
17374 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
17375 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
17376 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
17379 @node Rating Articles
17380 @subsection Rating Articles
17382 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
17383 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
17384 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
17385 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
17388 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
17393 @kindex r (GroupLens)
17394 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
17395 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
17398 @kindex k (GroupLens)
17399 @findex grouplens-score-thread
17400 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
17401 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
17402 threads in rec.humor.
17406 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
17407 the score of the article you're reading.
17412 @kindex n (GroupLens)
17413 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
17414 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
17417 @kindex , (GroupLens)
17418 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
17419 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
17423 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
17424 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
17427 @node Displaying Predictions
17428 @subsection Displaying Predictions
17430 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
17431 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
17432 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
17433 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
17434 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
17436 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
17437 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
17438 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
17439 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
17440 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
17441 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
17442 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
17443 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
17444 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
17445 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
17446 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
17447 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
17448 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
17450 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
17451 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
17452 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
17453 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
17455 The following are valid values for that variable.
17458 @item prediction-spot
17459 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
17462 @item confidence-interval
17463 A numeric confidence interval.
17465 @item prediction-bar
17466 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
17468 @item confidence-bar
17469 Numerical confidence.
17471 @item confidence-spot
17472 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
17474 @item prediction-num
17475 Plain-old numeric value.
17477 @item confidence-plus-minus
17478 Prediction +/- confidence.
17483 @node GroupLens Variables
17484 @subsection GroupLens Variables
17488 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
17489 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
17490 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
17491 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%)
17494 @item grouplens-bbb-host
17495 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
17498 @item grouplens-bbb-port
17499 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
17501 @item grouplens-score-offset
17502 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
17503 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
17506 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
17507 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
17508 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
17513 @node Advanced Scoring
17514 @section Advanced Scoring
17516 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
17517 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
17518 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
17519 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
17520 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
17522 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
17526 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
17527 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
17528 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
17532 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
17533 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
17535 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
17536 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
17537 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
17538 non-@code{nil} value.
17540 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
17541 operator, and various match operators.
17548 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
17549 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
17550 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
17555 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
17556 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
17557 then this operator will return @code{false}.
17562 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
17563 logical negation of the value of its argument.
17567 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
17568 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
17569 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
17570 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
17571 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
17572 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
17573 the ancestry you want to go.
17575 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
17576 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
17577 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
17578 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
17579 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
17582 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
17583 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
17585 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
17586 when he's talking about Gnus:
17590 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
17591 ("subject" "Gnus"))
17597 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
17601 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
17608 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
17609 really don't want to read what he's written:
17613 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
17614 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
17618 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
17619 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
17620 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
17627 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
17628 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
17629 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
17630 ("body" "white.*socks"))
17634 The possibilities are endless.
17637 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
17638 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
17640 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
17641 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
17642 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
17643 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
17644 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
17645 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
17646 @samp{subject}) first.
17648 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
17649 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
17660 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
17661 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
17667 ("subject" "Gnus")))
17674 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
17675 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
17680 @section Score Decays
17681 @cindex score decays
17684 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
17685 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
17686 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
17687 use them in any sensible way.
17689 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
17690 @findex gnus-decay-score
17691 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
17692 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
17693 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
17694 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
17695 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
17696 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
17697 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
17698 definition of that function:
17701 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
17703 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
17704 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
17707 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
17709 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
17711 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
17714 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
17715 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
17716 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
17717 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
17721 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
17724 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
17727 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
17731 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
17732 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
17733 the new score, which should be an integer.
17735 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
17736 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
17743 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
17744 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
17745 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
17746 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
17747 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
17748 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
17749 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
17750 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
17751 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
17752 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
17753 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
17754 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
17755 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
17756 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
17757 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
17758 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
17759 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
17760 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
17764 @node Process/Prefix
17765 @section Process/Prefix
17766 @cindex process/prefix convention
17768 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
17769 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
17771 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
17772 command to be performed on.
17776 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
17777 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
17778 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
17779 with the current one.
17781 @vindex transient-mark-mode
17782 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
17783 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
17785 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
17786 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
17789 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
17790 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
17792 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
17795 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
17796 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
17797 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
17798 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
17800 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
17801 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
17802 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
17803 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
17804 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
17805 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
17806 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
17807 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
17809 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
17810 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
17811 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
17812 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
17813 expirable, you could say `M P b M-& E'.
17817 @section Interactive
17818 @cindex interaction
17822 @item gnus-novice-user
17823 @vindex gnus-novice-user
17824 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
17825 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
17826 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
17827 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
17830 @item gnus-expert-user
17831 @vindex gnus-expert-user
17832 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
17833 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
17834 matter how strange.
17836 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
17837 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
17838 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
17839 is @code{t} by default.
17841 @item gnus-interactive-exit
17842 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
17843 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
17848 @node Symbolic Prefixes
17849 @section Symbolic Prefixes
17850 @cindex symbolic prefixes
17852 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
17853 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
17854 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
17855 rule of 900 to the current article.
17857 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
17858 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
17859 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
17860 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
17861 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
17862 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
17863 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
17865 @kindex M-i (Summary)
17866 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
17867 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
17868 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
17869 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
17870 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a M-C-u} means ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u}
17871 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b M-C-u} means
17872 ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
17873 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
17875 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
17876 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
17877 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
17879 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
17883 @node Formatting Variables
17884 @section Formatting Variables
17885 @cindex formatting variables
17887 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
17888 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
17889 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
17890 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
17891 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
17894 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
17895 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
17896 lots of percentages everywhere.
17899 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
17900 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
17901 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
17902 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
17903 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
17904 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
17905 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
17906 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
17909 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
17910 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
17911 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
17912 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
17913 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
17914 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
17915 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
17916 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
17918 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
17919 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
17921 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
17922 @findex gnus-update-format
17923 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
17924 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
17925 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
17926 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
17930 @node Formatting Basics
17931 @subsection Formatting Basics
17933 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
17934 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
17935 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
17937 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
17938 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
17939 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
17940 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
17941 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
17944 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
17945 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
17946 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
17947 less than 4 characters wide.
17950 @node Mode Line Formatting
17951 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
17953 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
17954 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
17955 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
17956 with the following two differences:
17961 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
17964 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
17965 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
17966 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
17967 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
17968 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
17969 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
17970 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
17975 @node Advanced Formatting
17976 @subsection Advanced Formatting
17978 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
17979 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
17980 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
17981 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
17983 These are the valid modifiers:
17988 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
17992 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
17997 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
18000 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
18005 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
18008 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
18011 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
18014 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
18018 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
18019 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
18020 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
18021 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
18022 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
18023 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
18024 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
18026 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
18027 last operation, padding.
18029 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
18030 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
18031 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
18032 @xref{Compilation}.
18035 @node User-Defined Specs
18036 @subsection User-Defined Specs
18038 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
18039 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
18040 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
18041 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
18042 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
18043 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
18044 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
18045 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
18046 should protect against that.
18048 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
18049 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
18050 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
18051 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
18055 @node Formatting Fonts
18056 @subsection Formatting Fonts
18058 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
18059 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
18060 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
18061 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
18064 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
18065 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
18066 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
18067 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
18068 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
18069 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
18071 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
18072 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you
18073 say @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
18074 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or symbols
18075 naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
18076 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
18077 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
18078 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
18080 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
18083 ;; Create three face types.
18084 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
18085 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
18087 ;; We want the article count to be in
18088 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
18089 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
18090 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
18092 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
18093 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
18095 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
18096 (setq gnus-group-line-format
18097 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
18100 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
18101 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
18103 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
18104 mode-line variables.
18106 @node Positioning Point
18107 @subsection Positioning Point
18109 Gnus usually moves point to a pre-defined place on each line in most
18110 buffers. By default, point move to the first colon character on the
18111 line. You can customize this behaviour in three different ways.
18113 You can move the colon character to somewhere else on the line.
18115 @findex gnus-goto-colon
18116 You can redefine the function that moves the point to the colon. The
18117 function is called @code{gnus-goto-colon}.
18119 But perhaps the most convenient way to deal with this, if you don't want
18120 to have a colon in your line, is to use the @samp{%C} specifier. If you
18121 put a @samp{%C} somewhere in your format line definition, Gnus will
18126 @subsection Tabulation
18128 You can usually line up your displays by padding and cutting your
18129 strings. However, when combining various strings of different size, it
18130 can often be more convenient to just output the strings, and then worry
18131 about lining up the following text afterwards.
18133 To do that, Gnus supplies tabulator specs--@samp{%=}. There are two
18134 different types---@dfn{hard tabulators} and @dfn{soft tabulators}.
18136 @samp{%50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
18137 50. If the text is already past column 50, nothing will be inserted.
18138 This is the soft tabulator.
18140 @samp{%-50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
18141 50. If the text is already past column 50, the excess text past column
18142 50 will be removed. This is the hard tabulator.
18145 @node Wide Characters
18146 @subsection Wide Characters
18148 Proportional fonts in most countries have characters of the same width.
18149 Some countries, however, use Latin characters mixed with wider
18150 characters---most notable East Asian countries.
18152 The problem is that when formatting, Gnus assumes that if a string is 10
18153 characters wide, it'll be 10 Latin characters wide on the screen. In
18154 these coutries, that's not true.
18156 @vindex gnus-use-correct-string-widths
18157 To help fix this, you can set @code{gnus-use-correct-string-widths} to
18158 @code{t}. This makes buffer generation slower, but the results will be
18159 prettieer. The default value is @code{nil}.
18163 @node Window Layout
18164 @section Window Layout
18165 @cindex window layout
18167 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
18169 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
18170 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
18171 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
18172 @code{t} by default.
18174 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
18175 glitches. Use at your own peril.
18177 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
18178 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
18179 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
18182 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
18183 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
18184 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
18188 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
18189 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
18190 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
18191 possible names is listed below.
18193 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
18194 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
18197 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
18201 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
18202 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
18203 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
18204 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
18205 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
18206 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
18207 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
18208 size spec per split.
18210 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
18211 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
18212 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
18213 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
18214 present) gets focus.
18216 Here's a more complicated example:
18219 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
18220 (summary 0.25 point)
18221 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
18225 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
18226 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
18227 occupy, not a percentage.
18229 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
18230 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
18231 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
18232 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
18233 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
18236 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
18239 (article (horizontal 1.0
18244 (summary 0.25 point)
18249 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
18250 @code{horizontal} thingie?
18252 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
18253 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
18254 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
18255 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
18256 the screen is to be given to this strip.
18258 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
18259 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
18260 lines from the splits.
18262 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
18266 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
18267 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
18268 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
18269 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
18270 buffer = "(" buf-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
18271 size = number | frame-params
18272 buf-name = group | article | summary ...
18275 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
18276 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
18277 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
18278 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
18280 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
18281 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
18282 @cindex window height
18283 @cindex window width
18284 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
18285 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
18286 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
18287 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
18288 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
18289 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
18291 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
18292 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
18293 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
18294 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
18296 @findex gnus-configure-frame
18297 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
18298 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
18299 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
18300 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
18301 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
18302 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
18303 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
18304 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
18305 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
18306 configuration list.
18309 (gnus-configure-frame
18313 (article 0.3 point))
18321 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
18322 @code{frame} split:
18325 (gnus-configure-frame
18328 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
18330 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
18331 (user-position . t)
18332 (left . -1) (top . 1))
18337 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
18338 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
18339 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
18340 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
18341 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
18342 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
18343 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
18344 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
18346 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
18347 be found in its default value.
18349 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
18350 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
18351 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
18355 (message (horizontal 1.0
18356 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
18358 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
18363 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
18364 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
18365 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
18370 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
18371 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
18372 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
18373 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
18374 (name . "Message"))
18375 (message 1.0 point))))
18378 @findex gnus-add-configuration
18379 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
18380 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
18381 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
18382 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
18385 (gnus-add-configuration
18386 '(article (vertical 1.0
18388 (summary .25 point)
18392 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
18393 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
18394 Gnus has been loaded.
18396 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
18397 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
18398 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
18399 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
18400 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
18402 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
18403 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
18404 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
18407 @subsection Example Window Configurations
18411 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
18412 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
18427 (gnus-add-configuration
18430 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
18432 (summary 0.16 point)
18435 (gnus-add-configuration
18438 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
18439 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
18445 @node Faces and Fonts
18446 @section Faces and Fonts
18451 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
18452 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
18453 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
18458 @section Compilation
18459 @cindex compilation
18460 @cindex byte-compilation
18462 @findex gnus-compile
18464 Remember all those line format specification variables?
18465 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
18466 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
18467 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
18468 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
18469 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
18472 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
18473 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
18474 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
18475 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
18476 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
18477 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
18478 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
18482 @section Mode Lines
18485 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
18486 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
18487 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
18488 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
18489 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
18490 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
18491 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
18494 @cindex display-time
18496 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
18497 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
18498 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
18499 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
18500 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
18501 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
18502 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
18503 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
18506 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
18508 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
18509 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
18511 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
18512 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
18513 (length display-time-string)))))
18516 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
18517 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
18518 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
18519 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
18520 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
18523 @node Highlighting and Menus
18524 @section Highlighting and Menus
18526 @cindex highlighting
18529 @vindex gnus-visual
18530 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
18531 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
18532 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
18535 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
18536 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
18539 @item group-highlight
18540 Do highlights in the group buffer.
18541 @item summary-highlight
18542 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
18543 @item article-highlight
18544 Do highlights in the article buffer.
18546 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
18548 Create menus in the group buffer.
18550 Create menus in the summary buffers.
18552 Create menus in the article buffer.
18554 Create menus in the browse buffer.
18556 Create menus in the server buffer.
18558 Create menus in the score buffers.
18560 Create menus in all buffers.
18563 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
18564 buffers, you could say something like:
18567 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
18570 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
18573 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
18576 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
18577 in all Gnus buffers.
18579 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
18582 @item gnus-mouse-face
18583 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
18584 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
18585 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
18589 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
18593 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
18594 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
18595 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
18597 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
18598 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
18599 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
18601 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
18602 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
18603 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
18605 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
18606 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
18607 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
18609 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
18610 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
18611 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
18613 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
18614 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
18615 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
18626 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
18627 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
18628 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
18629 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
18630 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
18634 @vindex gnus-carpal
18635 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
18636 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
18637 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
18642 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
18643 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
18644 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
18646 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
18647 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
18648 Face used on buttons.
18650 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
18651 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
18652 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
18654 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
18655 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
18656 Buttons in the group buffer.
18658 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
18659 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
18660 Buttons in the summary buffer.
18662 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
18663 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
18664 Buttons in the server buffer.
18666 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
18667 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
18668 Buttons in the browse buffer.
18671 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
18672 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
18673 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
18681 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
18682 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
18683 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
18684 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
18685 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
18687 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
18688 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
18689 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
18691 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
18692 been idle for thirty minutes:
18695 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
18698 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
18702 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
18705 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
18706 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
18707 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
18709 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
18710 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
18711 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
18712 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
18714 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
18715 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
18716 @var{idle} minutes.
18718 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
18719 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
18722 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
18723 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
18724 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
18726 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
18727 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
18728 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
18729 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
18731 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
18732 your @file{.gnus} file:
18734 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
18736 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
18739 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
18740 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
18741 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
18742 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
18743 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
18744 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
18745 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
18746 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
18747 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
18748 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
18749 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
18751 @findex gnus-demon-init
18752 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
18753 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
18754 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
18755 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
18756 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
18758 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
18759 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
18760 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
18769 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
18770 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
18772 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
18773 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
18774 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
18775 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
18778 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
18779 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
18780 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
18781 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
18783 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
18784 this will make spam disappear.
18786 There are some variables to customize, of course:
18789 @item gnus-use-nocem
18790 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
18791 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
18794 @item gnus-nocem-groups
18795 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
18796 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
18797 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
18798 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
18800 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
18801 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
18802 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
18803 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
18804 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
18805 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
18807 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
18808 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
18810 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
18811 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
18812 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
18813 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
18814 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
18815 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
18816 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
18817 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
18818 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
18819 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
18821 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
18822 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
18825 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
18828 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
18829 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
18832 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
18835 The specs are applied left-to-right.
18838 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
18839 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
18841 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
18842 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
18843 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
18844 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
18846 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
18847 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
18850 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
18852 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
18860 This might be dangerous, though.
18862 @item gnus-nocem-directory
18863 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
18864 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
18865 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
18867 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
18868 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
18869 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
18870 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
18871 might then see old spam.
18873 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
18874 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
18875 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
18876 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
18877 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
18880 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
18881 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
18882 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
18883 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
18887 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
18888 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
18889 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
18890 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
18897 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
18898 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
18899 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
18901 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
18902 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
18903 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
18904 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
18905 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
18906 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
18907 @code{undo} function.
18909 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
18910 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
18911 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
18912 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
18913 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
18914 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
18915 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
18916 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
18917 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
18918 never be totally undoable.
18920 @findex gnus-undo-mode
18921 @vindex gnus-use-undo
18923 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
18924 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
18925 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo}
18926 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
18931 @section Moderation
18934 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
18935 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
18936 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
18939 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
18943 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
18946 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
18948 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
18953 You split your incoming mail by matching on
18954 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
18955 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
18958 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
18959 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
18962 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
18963 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
18967 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
18970 (setq gnus-moderated-list
18971 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
18975 @node XEmacs Enhancements
18976 @section XEmacs Enhancements
18979 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
18983 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
18984 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
18985 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
18986 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
18999 So@dots{} You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
19000 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
19001 over your shoulder as you read news.
19004 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
19005 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
19006 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
19007 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
19008 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
19013 @subsubsection Picon Basics
19015 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
19024 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
19025 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
19026 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
19027 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
19028 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
19029 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
19030 @code{GIF} formats.
19033 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
19034 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
19035 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
19036 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
19037 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
19039 @vindex gnus-picons-database
19040 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
19041 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
19042 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
19043 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
19044 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
19047 @node Picon Requirements
19048 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
19050 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
19051 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
19054 Additionally, you must have @code{x} support compiled into XEmacs. To
19055 display color picons which are much nicer than the black & white one,
19056 you also need one of @code{xpm} or @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
19058 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
19059 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
19060 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
19061 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
19062 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
19066 @subsubsection Easy Picons
19068 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
19069 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
19072 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
19073 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
19076 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
19077 containing the Picons databases.
19079 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
19082 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
19083 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
19088 @subsubsection Hard Picons
19096 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
19097 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
19098 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
19099 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
19100 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
19105 @item gnus-picons-database
19106 @vindex gnus-picons-database
19107 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
19108 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
19109 subdirectories. This is only useful if
19110 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
19111 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
19113 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
19114 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
19115 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
19116 engine is @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
19117 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
19118 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
19119 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
19121 @item gnus-picons-display-where
19122 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
19123 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
19124 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
19125 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
19126 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
19127 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
19128 routines---@pxref{Window Layout}.
19130 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
19131 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
19132 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
19137 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
19138 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
19140 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
19141 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
19144 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
19146 @item gnus-article-display-picons
19147 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
19148 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
19149 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
19151 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
19152 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
19153 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
19159 @node Picon Useless Configuration
19160 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
19168 The following variables offer further control over how things are
19169 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
19170 don't need to worry about.
19174 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
19175 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
19176 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
19177 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
19179 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
19180 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
19181 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
19182 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
19184 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
19185 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
19186 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
19187 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
19188 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
19190 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
19191 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
19192 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
19193 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
19194 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
19195 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
19196 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
19198 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
19199 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
19200 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
19201 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
19203 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
19204 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
19205 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
19206 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
19207 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
19208 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
19209 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
19211 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
19212 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
19213 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
19214 Defaults to @code{nil}.
19216 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
19217 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
19218 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
19219 Defaults to @code{t}.
19221 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
19222 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
19223 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
19224 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
19226 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
19227 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
19228 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
19230 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
19231 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
19232 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
19233 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
19235 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
19236 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the default.
19238 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
19239 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
19240 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
19241 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
19242 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
19243 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
19244 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
19245 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
19256 @subsection Smileys
19261 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/BigFace.ps,height=20cm}}
19266 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
19267 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
19269 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
19270 @file{.gnus.el} file:
19273 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
19276 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
19277 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
19278 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
19279 text and maps that to file names.
19281 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
19282 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
19283 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
19284 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
19285 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
19286 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
19288 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
19289 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
19291 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
19292 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
19293 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
19295 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
19296 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
19300 @item smiley-data-directory
19301 @vindex smiley-data-directory
19302 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
19304 @item smiley-flesh-color
19305 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
19306 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
19308 @item smiley-features-color
19309 @vindex smiley-features-color
19310 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
19312 @item smiley-tongue-color
19313 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
19314 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
19316 @item smiley-circle-color
19317 @vindex smiley-circle-color
19318 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
19320 @item smiley-mouse-face
19321 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
19322 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
19328 @subsection Toolbar
19338 @item gnus-use-toolbar
19339 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
19340 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
19341 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
19342 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
19344 @item gnus-group-toolbar
19345 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
19346 The toolbar in the group buffer.
19348 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
19349 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
19350 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
19352 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
19353 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
19354 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
19360 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
19363 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
19364 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
19365 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
19366 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
19367 unusual directory structure.
19369 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
19370 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
19371 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
19372 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
19374 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
19375 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
19376 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
19377 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
19378 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
19379 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
19381 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
19382 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
19383 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
19397 @node Fuzzy Matching
19398 @section Fuzzy Matching
19399 @cindex fuzzy matching
19401 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
19402 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
19404 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
19405 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
19406 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
19408 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
19409 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
19410 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
19411 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
19412 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
19415 @node Thwarting Email Spam
19416 @section Thwarting Email Spam
19420 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
19422 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
19423 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
19424 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
19425 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
19426 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
19427 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
19428 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
19429 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
19432 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
19433 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
19434 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
19435 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
19436 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
19437 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
19441 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
19442 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
19444 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
19445 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
19446 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
19447 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
19448 sysadmin whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
19449 part of the mail address.)
19452 (setq message-default-news-headers
19453 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
19456 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
19457 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
19462 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
19463 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
19464 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
19470 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
19471 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
19472 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
19473 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
19475 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
19476 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
19477 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
19478 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
19479 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
19480 your fancy split rule in this way:
19485 (to "larsi" "misc")
19489 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
19490 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
19491 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
19492 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
19493 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
19495 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
19496 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
19497 at @* @uref{http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html}.
19498 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
19499 cosmic balance somewhat.
19501 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
19502 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
19503 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
19504 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
19507 @node Various Various
19508 @section Various Various
19514 @item gnus-home-directory
19515 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
19516 defaults to @file{~/}.
19518 @item gnus-directory
19519 @vindex gnus-directory
19520 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
19521 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
19522 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
19524 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
19525 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
19526 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
19527 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
19529 @item gnus-default-directory
19530 @vindex gnus-default-directory
19531 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
19532 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
19533 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
19534 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
19535 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
19536 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
19539 @vindex gnus-verbose
19540 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
19541 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
19542 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
19543 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
19544 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
19546 @item gnus-verbose-backends
19547 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
19548 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
19549 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
19551 @item nnheader-max-head-length
19552 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
19553 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
19554 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
19555 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
19556 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
19557 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
19558 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
19559 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
19560 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
19562 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
19563 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
19564 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
19565 read when doing the operation described above.
19567 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
19568 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
19570 @cindex invalid characters in file names
19571 @cindex characters in file names
19572 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
19573 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
19574 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
19577 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
19581 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
19582 Windows (phooey) systems.
19584 @item gnus-hidden-properties
19585 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
19586 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
19587 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
19588 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
19590 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
19591 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
19592 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
19593 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
19594 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
19596 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
19597 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
19598 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
19600 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
19601 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
19603 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
19604 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
19605 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
19606 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
19609 @sc{imap} users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
19618 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
19619 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
19621 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
19623 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
19629 Not because of victories @*
19632 but for the common sunshine,@*
19634 the largess of the spring.
19638 but for the day's work done@*
19639 as well as I was able;@*
19640 not for a seat upon the dais@*
19641 but at the common table.@*
19646 @chapter Appendices
19649 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
19650 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
19651 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
19652 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
19653 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
19654 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
19655 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
19656 * Frequently Asked Questions::
19664 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
19665 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
19667 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
19668 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
19669 @uref{http://quimby.gnus.org/}. This is also the primary
19670 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
19671 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
19673 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
19674 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
19675 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
19676 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
19677 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
19678 appropriate name, don't you think?)
19680 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
19681 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
19682 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
19683 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
19686 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
19687 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
19688 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
19689 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
19690 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
19691 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
19692 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
19693 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
19694 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
19698 @node Gnus Versions
19699 @subsection Gnus Versions
19700 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
19702 @cindex September Gnus
19703 @cindex Quassia Gnus
19705 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
19706 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
19707 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
19709 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
19710 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
19712 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
19713 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
19715 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
19716 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
19718 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
19719 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
19722 On the 26th of October 2000, Oort Gnus was begun.
19724 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
19725 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'',
19726 ``Pterodactyl Gnus'', ``Oort Gnus'' -- don't panic. Don't let it know
19727 that you're frightened. Back away. Slowly. Whatever you do, don't
19728 run. Walk away, calmly, until you're out of its reach. Find a proper
19729 released version of Gnus and snuggle up to that instead.
19732 @node Other Gnus Versions
19733 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
19736 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
19737 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
19738 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
19739 @sc{mime} capabilities.
19741 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
19742 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
19743 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
19744 @sc{mime} and multilingualization things, especially important for
19751 What's the point of Gnus?
19753 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
19754 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
19755 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
19756 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
19757 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
19758 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
19759 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
19760 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
19761 keep track of millions of people who post?
19763 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
19764 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
19765 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
19766 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
19767 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
19768 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
19769 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
19770 every one of you to explore and invent.
19772 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
19773 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
19776 @node Compatibility
19777 @subsection Compatibility
19779 @cindex compatibility
19780 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
19781 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
19782 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
19787 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
19791 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
19794 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
19797 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
19798 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
19799 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
19800 important variables have their values copied into their global
19801 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
19802 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
19804 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
19805 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
19806 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
19807 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
19808 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
19812 @cindex highlighting
19813 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
19814 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
19815 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
19816 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
19817 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
19818 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
19821 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
19822 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
19823 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
19824 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
19826 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
19827 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
19828 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
19829 to stop doing it the old way.
19831 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
19833 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
19835 @cindex reporting bugs
19837 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
19838 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
19839 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
19841 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
19842 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
19843 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
19844 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
19849 @subsection Conformity
19851 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
19852 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
19859 There are no known breaches of this standard.
19863 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
19865 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
19866 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
19867 We do have some breaches to this one.
19873 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
19874 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
19875 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
19876 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
19877 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
19882 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
19883 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
19884 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
19885 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
19889 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
19890 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
19895 @subsection Emacsen
19901 Gnus should work on :
19909 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
19913 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
19914 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
19917 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
19918 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
19919 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
19923 @node Gnus Development
19924 @subsection Gnus Development
19926 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
19927 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
19928 propose changes and new features, post patches and new backends. This
19929 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
19930 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
19931 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
19932 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
19933 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
19935 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
19936 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
19937 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
19938 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
19939 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
19942 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
19943 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
19944 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
19945 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
19946 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
19948 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
19949 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
19950 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
19951 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
19952 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
19953 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
19954 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
19955 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
19956 usually keep up with these rapid changes, while people on the newsgroup
19957 can't be assumed to do so.
19962 @subsection Contributors
19963 @cindex contributors
19965 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
19966 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
19967 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
19968 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
19969 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
19970 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
19971 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
19972 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
19973 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
19974 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
19976 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
19982 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
19985 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
19986 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @sc{mime} and
19987 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
19988 functionality and stuff.
19991 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
19992 well as numerous other things).
19995 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
19998 Justin Sheehy--the FAQ maintainer.
20001 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
20004 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
20005 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
20008 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
20011 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
20012 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
20015 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
20018 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
20021 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
20024 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
20027 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
20028 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
20031 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
20034 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
20037 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
20040 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
20044 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
20047 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
20050 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
20053 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
20054 well as autoconf support.
20058 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
20059 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
20061 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
20070 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
20074 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
20084 Alexei V. Barantsev,
20099 Massimo Campostrini,
20104 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
20105 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
20109 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
20112 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
20118 Michael Welsh Duggan,
20123 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
20127 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
20135 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
20137 Michelangelo Grigni,
20141 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
20143 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
20145 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
20152 François Felix Ingrand,
20153 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c ?
20154 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
20156 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
20167 Peter Skov Knudsen,
20168 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
20170 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
20171 Thor Kristoffersen,
20174 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
20192 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
20193 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
20200 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
20205 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
20209 John McClary Prevost,
20215 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
20220 Christian von Roques,
20223 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
20230 Philippe Schnoebelen,
20232 Randal L. Schwartz,
20246 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
20251 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
20267 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
20272 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
20273 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
20274 (550kB and counting).
20276 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
20279 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
20280 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
20284 @subsection New Features
20285 @cindex new features
20288 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
20289 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
20290 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
20291 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
20292 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
20295 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
20296 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
20297 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
20300 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
20302 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
20307 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
20308 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
20311 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
20312 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
20315 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
20318 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
20319 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
20320 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
20323 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
20324 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
20325 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
20326 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
20329 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
20330 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
20333 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
20334 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
20335 (@pxref{The Active File}).
20338 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
20339 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
20342 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
20343 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
20344 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
20347 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
20348 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
20349 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
20352 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
20353 the @file{.emacs} file.
20356 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
20357 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
20360 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
20361 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
20364 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
20365 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
20368 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
20369 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
20372 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
20373 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
20376 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
20379 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
20380 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
20383 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
20384 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
20387 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
20388 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
20391 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
20394 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
20395 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
20398 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
20402 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
20406 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
20407 configuration (@pxref{Window Layout}).
20410 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
20416 @node September Gnus
20417 @subsubsection September Gnus
20421 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/september.ps,height=20cm}}
20425 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
20430 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
20431 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
20435 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
20436 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
20440 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
20444 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
20445 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
20448 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
20452 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
20455 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
20458 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
20461 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
20465 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
20466 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
20469 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
20473 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
20477 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
20481 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
20485 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
20488 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
20489 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
20492 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
20496 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
20497 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
20500 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
20503 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
20504 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
20505 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
20508 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
20512 The Gnus cache is much faster.
20515 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
20519 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
20520 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
20523 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
20524 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
20527 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
20528 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
20531 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
20532 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
20533 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
20536 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
20537 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
20540 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
20543 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
20546 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
20549 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
20552 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
20553 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
20556 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Window
20560 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
20563 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}}
20568 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
20571 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
20575 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
20578 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
20582 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
20585 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
20588 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
20589 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
20592 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
20593 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
20597 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
20598 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
20601 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
20605 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
20606 buffer to allow easier treatment.
20609 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
20612 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
20616 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
20620 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
20621 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
20624 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
20628 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
20629 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
20632 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
20633 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
20636 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
20640 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
20643 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
20646 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
20652 @subsubsection Red Gnus
20654 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
20658 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/red.ps,height=20cm}}
20665 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
20668 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
20669 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
20672 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
20673 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
20677 Article washing status can be displayed in the
20678 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
20681 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
20684 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
20685 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
20688 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
20692 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
20693 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
20697 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
20698 Server Internals}).
20701 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
20705 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
20708 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
20709 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
20712 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
20713 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
20714 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
20717 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
20718 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
20721 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
20722 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
20725 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
20729 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
20730 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
20733 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
20734 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
20737 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
20741 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
20744 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
20748 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
20749 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
20752 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
20753 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
20756 A new command for reading collections of documents
20757 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
20758 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
20761 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
20765 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the @sc{nntp}
20766 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
20769 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
20770 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
20771 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
20774 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
20775 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
20779 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
20783 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
20787 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}}
20792 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
20796 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
20800 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
20801 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
20804 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
20810 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
20812 New features in Gnus 5.6:
20817 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
20818 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
20819 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
20822 The @code{nndraft} backend has returned, but works differently than
20823 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
20824 group, which is created automatically.
20827 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
20831 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
20834 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
20835 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
20838 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
20842 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
20845 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
20846 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
20849 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
20852 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
20853 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
20856 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
20857 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
20860 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
20861 control over simplification.
20864 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
20867 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
20871 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
20874 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
20877 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
20878 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
20879 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
20882 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
20883 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
20886 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
20890 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
20891 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
20894 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
20895 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
20898 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
20902 A history of where mails have been split is available.
20905 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
20908 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
20909 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
20912 A new function for citing in Message has been
20913 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
20916 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
20919 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
20923 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
20924 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
20927 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
20928 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
20931 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} backend.
20934 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
20938 @node Pterodactyl Gnus
20939 @subsubsection Pterodactyl Gnus
20941 New features in Gnus 5.8:
20945 @item The mail-fetching functions have changed. See the manual for the
20946 many details. In particular, all procmail fetching variables are gone.
20948 If you used procmail like in
20951 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
20952 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
20953 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/mail/incoming/")
20954 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "\\.in")
20957 this now has changed to
20961 '((directory :path "~/mail/incoming/"
20965 More information is available in the info doc at Select Methods ->
20966 Getting Mail -> Mail Sources
20968 @item Gnus is now a MIME-capable reader. This affects many parts of
20969 Gnus, and adds a slew of new commands. See the manual for details.
20971 @item Gnus has also been multilingualized. This also affects too
20972 many parts of Gnus to summarize here, and adds many new variables.
20974 @item @code{gnus-auto-select-first} can now be a function to be
20975 called to position point.
20977 @item The user can now decide which extra headers should be included in
20978 summary buffers and NOV files.
20980 @item @code{gnus-article-display-hook} has been removed. Instead, a number
20981 of variables starting with @code{gnus-treat-} have been added.
20983 @item The Gnus posting styles have been redone again and now works in a
20984 subtly different manner.
20986 @item New web-based backends have been added: @code{nnslashdot},
20987 @code{nnwarchive} and @code{nnultimate}. nnweb has been revamped,
20988 again, to keep up with ever-changing layouts.
20990 @item Gnus can now read IMAP mail via @code{nnimap}.
20998 @section The Manual
21002 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
21003 either @code{texi2dvi}
21005 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
21006 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
21008 to get what you hold in your hands now.
21010 The following conventions have been used:
21015 This is a @samp{string}
21018 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
21021 This is a @file{file}
21024 This is a @code{symbol}
21028 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
21032 (setq flargnoze "yes")
21035 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
21038 (setq flumphel 'yes)
21041 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
21042 ever get them confused.
21046 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
21047 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
21048 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
21049 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
21050 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
21051 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
21052 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
21058 @node On Writing Manuals
21059 @section On Writing Manuals
21061 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
21062 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
21063 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
21064 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
21065 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
21066 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
21069 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
21070 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
21071 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
21074 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
21075 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
21080 @section Terminology
21082 @cindex terminology
21087 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
21088 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
21089 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
21090 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
21091 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
21095 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
21096 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
21097 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
21098 not posting, and replying is not following up.
21102 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
21106 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
21111 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
21112 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
21113 is all done by the backends.
21117 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
21118 default, way of getting news.
21122 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
21123 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary backends for getting
21128 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
21129 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
21133 A message that has been posted as news.
21136 @cindex mail message
21137 A message that has been mailed.
21141 A mail message or news article
21145 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
21150 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
21155 A line from the head of an article.
21159 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
21160 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
21164 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
21165 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
21166 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
21167 normal @sc{head} format.
21171 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
21172 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
21173 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
21174 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
21175 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
21176 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
21178 @item killed groups
21179 @cindex killed groups
21180 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
21181 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
21183 @item zombie groups
21184 @cindex zombie groups
21185 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
21188 @cindex active file
21189 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
21190 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
21191 is rather large, as you might surmise.
21194 @cindex bogus groups
21195 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
21196 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
21197 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
21200 @cindex activating groups
21201 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
21202 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
21203 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
21207 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
21209 @item select method
21210 @cindex select method
21211 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
21214 @item virtual server
21215 @cindex virtual server
21216 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
21217 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
21218 whole is a virtual server.
21222 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
21223 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
21226 @item ephemeral groups
21227 @cindex ephemeral groups
21228 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
21229 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
21230 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
21233 @cindex solid groups
21234 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
21235 group buffer are solid groups.
21237 @item sparse articles
21238 @cindex sparse articles
21239 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
21240 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
21244 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
21245 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
21249 @cindex thread root
21250 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
21251 articles in the thread.
21255 An article that has responses.
21259 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
21263 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
21264 specified by RFC 1153.
21270 @node Customization
21271 @section Customization
21272 @cindex general customization
21274 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
21275 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
21276 for some quite common situations.
21279 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
21280 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
21281 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
21282 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
21286 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
21287 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
21289 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
21290 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
21291 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
21295 @item gnus-read-active-file
21296 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
21297 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
21298 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
21299 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
21300 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
21302 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
21303 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
21304 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
21305 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
21309 @node Slow Terminal Connection
21310 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
21312 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
21313 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
21314 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
21318 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
21319 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
21320 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
21321 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
21322 horizontal and vertical recentering.
21324 @item gnus-visible-headers
21325 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
21326 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
21327 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
21328 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
21330 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
21332 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
21333 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
21334 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
21337 @item gnus-use-full-window
21338 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
21339 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
21340 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
21341 want to read them anyway.
21343 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
21344 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
21347 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
21348 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
21349 lines, which might save some time.
21353 @node Little Disk Space
21354 @subsection Little Disk Space
21357 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
21358 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
21362 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
21363 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
21364 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
21365 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
21368 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
21369 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
21370 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
21371 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
21374 @item gnus-save-killed-list
21375 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
21376 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
21377 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
21378 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
21384 @subsection Slow Machine
21385 @cindex slow machine
21387 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
21388 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
21390 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
21391 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
21393 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
21394 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
21395 summary buffer faster.
21399 @node Troubleshooting
21400 @section Troubleshooting
21401 @cindex troubleshooting
21403 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
21411 Make sure your computer is switched on.
21414 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
21415 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
21419 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
21420 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
21421 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
21422 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
21425 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
21429 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
21430 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
21431 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
21432 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
21433 something like that.
21436 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
21439 @cindex reporting bugs
21441 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
21443 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
21444 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
21445 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
21446 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
21448 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
21449 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
21450 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
21451 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
21454 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
21455 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
21456 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
21457 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
21458 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
21459 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
21461 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
21462 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
21463 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
21467 If you would like to contribute a patch to fix bugs or make
21468 improvements, please produce the patch using @samp{diff -u}.
21470 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
21471 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
21473 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
21474 @cindex ding mailing list
21475 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
21476 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
21480 @node Gnus Reference Guide
21481 @section Gnus Reference Guide
21483 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
21484 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
21485 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
21486 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
21489 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
21490 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
21491 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
21492 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
21493 and general methods of operation.
21496 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
21497 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
21498 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
21499 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
21500 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
21501 * Group Info:: The group info format.
21502 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
21503 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
21504 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
21508 @node Gnus Utility Functions
21509 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
21510 @cindex Gnus utility functions
21511 @cindex utility functions
21513 @cindex internal variables
21515 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
21516 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
21517 Below is a list of the most common ones.
21521 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
21522 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
21523 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
21525 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
21526 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
21527 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
21529 @item gnus-group-real-name
21530 @findex gnus-group-real-name
21531 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
21534 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
21535 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
21536 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
21537 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
21539 @item gnus-get-info
21540 @findex gnus-get-info
21541 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
21543 @item gnus-group-unread
21544 @findex gnus-group-unread
21545 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
21549 @findex gnus-active
21550 The active entry for @var{group}.
21552 @item gnus-set-active
21553 @findex gnus-set-active
21554 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
21556 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
21557 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
21558 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
21561 @item gnus-continuum-version
21562 @findex gnus-continuum-version
21563 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
21564 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
21567 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
21568 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
21569 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
21571 @item gnus-news-group-p
21572 @findex gnus-news-group-p
21573 Says whether @var{group} came from a news backend.
21575 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
21576 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
21577 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
21579 @item gnus-server-to-method
21580 @findex gnus-server-to-method
21581 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
21583 @item gnus-server-equal
21584 @findex gnus-server-equal
21585 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
21587 @item gnus-group-native-p
21588 @findex gnus-group-native-p
21589 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
21591 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
21592 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
21593 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
21595 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
21596 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
21597 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
21599 @item group-group-find-parameter
21600 @findex group-group-find-parameter
21601 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
21602 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
21604 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
21605 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
21606 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
21608 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
21609 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
21610 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
21612 @item gnus-check-backend-function
21613 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
21614 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the backend
21615 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
21618 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
21622 @item gnus-read-method
21623 @findex gnus-read-method
21624 Prompts the user for a select method.
21629 @node Backend Interface
21630 @subsection Backend Interface
21632 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
21633 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
21634 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
21635 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
21636 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
21637 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
21639 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
21640 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
21641 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
21642 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
21643 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
21644 been opened, the function should fail.
21646 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
21647 name. Take this example:
21651 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
21652 (nntp-port-number 4324))
21655 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
21656 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
21658 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
21659 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
21660 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
21662 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
21663 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
21664 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
21666 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
21667 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
21668 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
21669 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
21670 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
21671 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
21674 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
21675 some might be said not to be. The latter are backends that generally
21676 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
21677 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
21680 Gnus identifies each message by way of group name and article number. A
21681 few remarks about these article numbers might be useful. First of all,
21682 the numbers are positive integers. Secondly, it is normally not
21683 possible for later articles to `re-use' older article numbers without
21684 confusing Gnus. That is, if a group has ever contained a message
21685 numbered 42, then no other message may get that number, or Gnus will get
21686 mightily confused.@footnote{See the function
21687 @code{nnchoke-request-update-info}, @ref{Optional Backend Functions}.}
21688 Third, article numbers must be assigned in order of arrival in the
21689 group; this is not necessarily the same as the date of the message.
21691 The previous paragraph already mentions all the `hard' restrictions that
21692 article numbers must fulfill. But it seems that it might be useful to
21693 assign @emph{consecutive} article numbers, for Gnus gets quite confused
21694 if there are holes in the article numbering sequence. However, due to
21695 the `no-reuse' restriction, holes cannot be avoided altogether. It's
21696 also useful for the article numbers to start at 1 to avoid running out
21697 of numbers as long as possible.
21699 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
21702 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
21705 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
21706 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
21707 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
21708 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
21709 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
21710 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
21714 @node Required Backend Functions
21715 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
21719 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
21721 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
21722 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
21723 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
21724 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
21726 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
21727 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
21728 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
21729 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
21731 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
21732 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
21733 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
21734 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
21735 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
21736 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
21737 number, do maximum fetches.
21739 Here's an example HEAD:
21742 221 1056 Article retrieved.
21743 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
21744 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
21745 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
21746 Subject: Re: Something very droll
21747 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
21748 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
21750 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
21751 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
21752 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
21756 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
21757 these in the data buffer.
21759 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
21763 head = error / valid-head
21764 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
21765 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
21766 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
21767 header = <text> eol
21770 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
21771 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
21775 nov-buffer = *nov-line
21776 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
21777 field = <text except TAB>
21780 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
21784 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
21786 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
21787 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
21789 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
21790 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
21791 server. In fact, it should do so.
21793 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
21794 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
21797 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
21799 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
21800 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
21803 There should be no data returned.
21806 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
21808 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
21809 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
21810 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
21811 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
21813 There should be no data returned.
21816 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
21818 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
21819 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
21820 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
21821 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
21823 There should be no data returned.
21826 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
21828 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
21830 There should be no data returned.
21833 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
21835 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
21836 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
21837 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
21838 it would be nice if that were possible.
21840 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
21841 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
21842 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
21843 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
21844 into its article buffer.
21846 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
21847 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
21848 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
21849 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
21850 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
21851 on successful article retrieval.
21854 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
21856 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
21857 making @var{group} the current group.
21859 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
21862 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
21865 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
21868 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
21869 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
21870 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
21871 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
21872 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
21873 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
21874 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
21875 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
21878 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
21879 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
21880 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
21884 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
21886 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
21887 a no-op on most backends.
21889 There should be no data returned.
21892 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
21894 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
21897 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
21900 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
21901 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
21904 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
21905 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
21908 active-file = *active-line
21909 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
21911 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
21914 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
21915 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
21916 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
21919 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
21921 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
21922 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
21923 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
21924 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
21925 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
21926 clear if the posting could not be completed.
21928 There should be no result data from this function.
21933 @node Optional Backend Functions
21934 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
21938 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
21940 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
21941 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
21942 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
21944 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
21945 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
21946 former is in the same format as the data from
21947 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
21948 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
21951 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
21955 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
21957 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
21958 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
21959 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
21960 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
21961 should return the (altered) group info.
21963 There should be no result data from this function.
21966 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
21968 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
21969 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
21970 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
21971 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
21972 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
21973 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
21974 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
21975 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
21977 There should be no result data from this function.
21980 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
21982 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
21983 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
21984 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some backends (such as @sc{imap}) however carry
21985 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
21986 propagate the mark information to the server.
21988 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
21991 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
21994 RANGE is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. ACTION is
21995 @code{add} or @code{del}, used to add marks or remove marks
21996 (preserving all marks not mentioned). MARK is a list of marks; where
21997 each mark is a symbol. Currently used marks are @code{read},
21998 @code{tick}, @code{reply}, @code{expire}, @code{killed},
21999 @code{dormant}, @code{save}, @code{download}, @code{unsend},
22000 @code{forward} and @code{recent}, but your backend should, if
22001 possible, not limit itself to these.
22003 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
22004 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
22005 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
22006 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
22008 An example action list:
22011 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
22012 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
22013 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
22016 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
22017 mark on (currently not used for anything).
22019 There should be no result data from this function.
22021 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
22023 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
22024 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
22025 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
22026 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
22027 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
22029 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
22030 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
22031 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
22034 There should be no result data from this function.
22037 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
22039 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
22040 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
22041 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
22042 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
22043 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
22044 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
22045 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
22047 There should be no result data from this function.
22050 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
22052 The result data from this function should be a description of
22056 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
22058 description = <text>
22061 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
22063 The result data from this function should be the description of all
22064 groups available on the server.
22067 description-buffer = *description-line
22071 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
22073 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
22074 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
22075 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
22078 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
22080 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
22082 There should be no return data.
22085 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
22087 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
22088 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
22089 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
22090 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
22091 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
22094 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
22097 There should be no result data returned.
22100 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
22103 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
22104 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
22106 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
22107 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
22108 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
22109 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
22110 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
22111 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
22113 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
22114 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
22117 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
22118 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
22120 There should be no data returned.
22123 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
22125 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
22126 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
22127 this function in short order.
22129 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
22130 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
22132 There should be no data returned.
22135 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
22137 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
22138 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
22140 There should be no data returned.
22143 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
22145 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
22146 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
22147 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
22149 There should be no data returned.
22152 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
22154 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
22155 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
22157 There should be no data returned.
22162 @node Error Messaging
22163 @subsubsection Error Messaging
22165 @findex nnheader-report
22166 @findex nnheader-get-report
22167 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
22168 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
22169 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
22170 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
22171 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
22172 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
22175 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
22177 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
22180 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
22181 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
22182 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
22183 takes one argument---the server symbol.
22185 Internally, these functions access @var{backend}@code{-status-string},
22186 so the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
22187 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
22190 @node Writing New Backends
22191 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
22193 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
22194 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
22195 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
22196 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
22197 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
22200 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
22201 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
22202 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
22204 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
22205 package called @code{nnoo}.
22207 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
22208 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
22214 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
22215 parameters. For instance:
22218 (nnoo-declare nndir
22222 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
22223 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
22226 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
22227 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
22228 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
22230 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
22231 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
22232 a function in those backends.
22235 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
22236 "Where nndir will look for groups."
22237 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
22240 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
22241 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
22242 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
22244 @item nnoo-define-basics
22245 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
22249 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
22253 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
22254 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
22255 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
22257 @item nnoo-map-functions
22258 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
22259 functions from the parent backends.
22262 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
22263 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
22264 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
22267 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
22268 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
22269 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
22270 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
22273 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
22274 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
22275 haven't already been defined.
22281 nnmh-request-newgroups)
22285 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
22286 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
22287 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
22292 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
22295 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
22296 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
22300 (require 'nnheader)
22304 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
22306 (nnoo-declare nndir
22309 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
22310 "Where nndir will look for groups."
22311 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
22313 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
22314 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
22317 (defvoo nndir-current-group ""
22319 nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
22320 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
22321 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
22323 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
22324 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
22326 ;;; Interface functions.
22328 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
22330 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
22331 (setq nndir-directory
22332 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
22334 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
22335 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
22336 (push `(nndir-current-group
22337 ,(file-name-nondirectory
22338 (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
22340 (push `(nndir-top-directory
22341 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
22343 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
22345 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
22346 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
22347 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
22348 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
22349 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
22353 nnmh-status-message
22355 nnmh-request-newgroups))
22361 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
22362 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
22364 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
22365 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
22366 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
22367 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
22369 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
22370 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
22375 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
22378 The abilities can be:
22382 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
22384 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
22386 This backend supports both mail and news.
22388 This is neither a post nor mail backend---it's something completely
22391 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
22392 articles and groups.
22394 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
22395 true for almost all backends.
22396 @item prompt-address
22397 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
22398 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
22399 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
22403 @node Mail-like Backends
22404 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
22406 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
22407 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
22408 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
22409 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
22412 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
22413 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
22414 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
22417 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
22418 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
22421 This function takes four parameters.
22425 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
22428 @item exit-function
22429 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
22431 @item temp-directory
22432 Where the temporary files should be stored.
22435 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
22436 performed for one group only.
22439 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
22440 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
22441 find the article number assigned to this article.
22443 The function also uses the following variables:
22444 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
22445 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
22446 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
22447 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
22451 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
22452 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
22456 @node Score File Syntax
22457 @subsection Score File Syntax
22459 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
22460 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
22461 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
22463 Here's a typical score file:
22467 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
22474 BNF definition of a score file:
22477 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
22478 element = rule / atom
22479 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
22480 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
22481 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
22482 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
22484 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
22485 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
22486 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
22487 date-header = "date"
22488 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
22489 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
22490 score = "nil" / <integer>
22491 date = "nil" / <natural number>
22492 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
22493 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
22494 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
22495 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
22496 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
22497 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
22498 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
22499 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
22500 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
22501 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
22502 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
22503 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
22504 exclude-files / read-only / touched
22505 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
22506 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
22507 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
22508 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
22509 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
22510 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
22511 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
22512 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
22513 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
22514 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
22515 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
22516 eval = "eval" space <form>
22517 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
22520 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
22523 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
22524 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
22525 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
22526 one looong line, then that's ok.
22528 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
22529 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
22533 @subsection Headers
22535 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
22536 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
22537 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
22538 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
22540 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
22541 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
22542 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
22543 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
22544 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
22545 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
22546 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
22548 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
22549 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
22550 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
22551 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
22552 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
22554 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
22555 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
22561 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
22562 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
22564 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
22565 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
22566 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
22567 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
22569 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
22573 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
22576 is transformed into
22579 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
22582 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
22583 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
22586 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
22589 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
22590 is slightly tricky:
22593 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
22599 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
22602 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
22608 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
22615 and is equal to the previous range.
22617 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
22618 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
22619 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
22623 range = simple-range / normal-range
22624 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
22625 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
22626 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
22627 number *[ " " contents ]
22630 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
22631 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
22632 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
22633 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
22634 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
22639 @subsection Group Info
22641 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
22642 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
22643 describes the group.
22645 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
22646 second is a more complex one:
22649 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
22651 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
22652 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
22654 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
22657 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
22658 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
22659 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
22660 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
22661 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
22662 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
22663 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
22664 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
22665 this section is about.
22667 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
22668 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
22669 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
22671 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
22674 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
22675 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
22676 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
22677 group = quote <string> quote
22678 ralevel = rank / level
22679 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
22680 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
22681 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
22683 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
22684 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
22685 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
22686 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
22689 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
22690 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
22693 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
22694 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
22697 @item gnus-info-group
22698 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
22699 @findex gnus-info-group
22700 @findex gnus-info-set-group
22701 Get/set the group name.
22703 @item gnus-info-rank
22704 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
22705 @findex gnus-info-rank
22706 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
22707 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
22709 @item gnus-info-level
22710 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
22711 @findex gnus-info-level
22712 @findex gnus-info-set-level
22713 Get/set the group level.
22715 @item gnus-info-score
22716 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
22717 @findex gnus-info-score
22718 @findex gnus-info-set-score
22719 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
22721 @item gnus-info-read
22722 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
22723 @findex gnus-info-read
22724 @findex gnus-info-set-read
22725 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
22727 @item gnus-info-marks
22728 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
22729 @findex gnus-info-marks
22730 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
22731 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
22733 @item gnus-info-method
22734 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
22735 @findex gnus-info-method
22736 @findex gnus-info-set-method
22737 Get/set the group select method.
22739 @item gnus-info-params
22740 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
22741 @findex gnus-info-params
22742 @findex gnus-info-set-params
22743 Get/set the group parameters.
22746 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
22747 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
22749 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
22750 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
22751 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
22752 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
22755 @node Extended Interactive
22756 @subsection Extended Interactive
22757 @cindex interactive
22758 @findex gnus-interactive
22760 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
22761 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
22762 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
22765 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
22766 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
22771 The best thing to do would have been to implement
22772 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
22773 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
22774 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
22775 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
22776 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
22777 @code{interactive}.
22779 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
22784 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
22785 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
22789 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
22790 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
22791 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
22794 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
22798 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
22802 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
22808 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
22809 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
22813 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
22814 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
22815 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
22817 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
22818 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
22819 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
22820 Gnus, that's very useful.
22822 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
22823 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
22824 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
22825 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
22826 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
22827 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
22828 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
22829 following function:
22832 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
22836 (,function ,@@args))
22840 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
22841 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
22842 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
22845 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
22846 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
22847 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
22849 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
22850 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
22851 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
22854 @node Various File Formats
22855 @subsection Various File Formats
22858 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
22859 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
22863 @node Active File Format
22864 @subsubsection Active File Format
22866 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
22867 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
22870 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
22873 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
22874 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
22875 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
22876 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
22877 no.general 1000 900 y
22880 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
22883 active = *group-line
22884 group-line = group spc high-number spc low-number spc flag <NEWLINE>
22885 group = <non-white-space string>
22887 high-number = <non-negative integer>
22888 low-number = <positive integer>
22889 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
22892 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
22893 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
22896 @node Newsgroups File Format
22897 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
22899 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
22900 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
22901 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
22904 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
22905 Here's the definition:
22909 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
22910 group = <non-white-space string>
22912 description = <string>
22917 @node Emacs for Heathens
22918 @section Emacs for Heathens
22920 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
22921 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
22922 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
22923 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
22924 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
22925 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
22926 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
22930 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
22931 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
22936 @subsection Keystrokes
22940 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
22943 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
22946 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
22947 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
22948 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
22949 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
22950 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
22951 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
22953 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
22954 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
22955 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
22956 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
22957 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
22958 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
22959 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
22961 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
22962 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
22963 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
22964 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
22965 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
22966 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
22967 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
22969 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
22970 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
22971 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
22972 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
22973 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
22979 @subsection Emacs Lisp
22981 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
22982 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
22983 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
22984 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
22986 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
22987 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
22988 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
22989 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
22990 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
22991 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
22992 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
22995 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
22996 write the following:
22999 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
23002 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
23003 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
23004 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
23007 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
23008 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
23009 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
23010 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
23011 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
23013 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
23014 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
23015 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
23019 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
23023 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
23026 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
23027 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
23030 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
23033 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
23034 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
23037 @include gnus-faq.texi
23058 % LocalWords: Backend BNF mucho Backends backends detailmenu cindex kindex kbd
23059 % LocalWords: findex Gnusae vindex dfn dfn samp nntp setq nnspool nntpserver
23060 % LocalWords: nnmbox backend newusers Blllrph NEWGROUPS dingnusdingnusdingnus
23061 % LocalWords: pre fab rec comp nnslashdot regex ga ga sci nnml nnbabyl nnmh
23062 % LocalWords: nnfolder emph looong eld newsreaders defun init elc pxref