1 \input texinfo @c -*-texinfo-*-
4 @settitle Message Manual
9 This file documents Message, the Emacs message composition mode.
11 Copyright @copyright{} 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003,
12 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
15 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
16 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or
17 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
18 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU Manual'',
19 and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the license
20 is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation License''.
22 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have the freedom to copy and
23 modify this GNU manual. Buying copies from the FSF supports it in
24 developing GNU and promoting software freedom.''
30 * Message: (message). Mail and news composition mode that
40 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
43 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
57 All message composition from Gnus (both mail and news) takes place in
61 * Interface:: Setting up message buffers.
62 * Commands:: Commands you can execute in message mode buffers.
63 * Variables:: Customizing the message buffers.
64 * Compatibility:: Making Message backwards compatible.
65 * Appendices:: More technical things.
66 * GNU Free Documentation License:: The license for this documentation.
67 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
68 * Key Index:: List of Message mode keys.
71 @c Adjust ../Makefile.in if you change the following lines:
72 Message is distributed with Gnus. The Gnus distribution
74 corresponding to this manual is No Gnus v0.11.
80 When a program (or a person) wants to respond to a message---reply,
81 follow up, forward, cancel---the program (or person) should just put
82 point in the buffer where the message is and call the required command.
83 @code{Message} will then pop up a new @code{message} mode buffer with
84 appropriate headers filled out, and the user can edit the message before
88 * New Mail Message:: Editing a brand new mail message.
89 * New News Message:: Editing a brand new news message.
90 * Reply:: Replying via mail.
91 * Wide Reply:: Responding to all people via mail.
92 * Followup:: Following up via news.
93 * Canceling News:: Canceling a news article.
94 * Superseding:: Superseding a message.
95 * Forwarding:: Forwarding a message via news or mail.
96 * Resending:: Resending a mail message.
97 * Bouncing:: Bouncing a mail message.
98 * Mailing Lists:: Send mail to mailing lists.
101 You can customize the Message Mode tool bar, see @kbd{M-x
102 customize-apropos RET message-tool-bar}. This feature is only available
105 @node New Mail Message
106 @section New Mail Message
109 The @code{message-mail} command pops up a new message buffer.
111 Two optional parameters are accepted: The first will be used as the
112 @code{To} header and the second as the @code{Subject} header. If these
113 are @code{nil}, those two headers will be empty.
116 @node New News Message
117 @section New News Message
120 The @code{message-news} command pops up a new message buffer.
122 This function accepts two optional parameters. The first will be used
123 as the @code{Newsgroups} header and the second as the @code{Subject}
124 header. If these are @code{nil}, those two headers will be empty.
130 @findex message-reply
131 The @code{message-reply} function pops up a message buffer that's a
132 reply to the message in the current buffer.
134 @vindex message-reply-to-function
135 Message uses the normal methods to determine where replies are to go
136 (@pxref{Responses}), but you can change the behavior to suit your needs
137 by fiddling with the @code{message-reply-to-function} variable.
139 If you want the replies to go to the @code{Sender} instead of the
140 @code{From}, you could do something like this:
143 (setq message-reply-to-function
145 (cond ((equal (mail-fetch-field "from") "somebody")
146 (list (cons 'To (mail-fetch-field "sender"))))
151 This function will be called narrowed to the head of the article that is
154 As you can see, this function should return a list. In this case, it
155 returns @code{((To . "Whom"))} if it has an opinion as to what the To
156 header should be. If it does not, it should just return @code{nil}, and
157 the normal methods for determining the To header will be used.
159 Each list element should be a cons, where the @sc{car} should be the
160 name of a header (e.g. @code{Cc}) and the @sc{cdr} should be the header
161 value (e.g. @samp{larsi@@ifi.uio.no}). All these headers will be
162 inserted into the head of the outgoing mail.
168 @findex message-wide-reply
169 The @code{message-wide-reply} pops up a message buffer that's a wide
170 reply to the message in the current buffer. A @dfn{wide reply} is a
171 reply that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From}
172 (or @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
174 @vindex message-wide-reply-to-function
175 Message uses the normal methods to determine where wide replies are to go,
176 but you can change the behavior to suit your needs by fiddling with the
177 @code{message-wide-reply-to-function}. It is used in the same way as
178 @code{message-reply-to-function} (@pxref{Reply}).
180 @vindex message-dont-reply-to-names
181 Addresses that match the @code{message-dont-reply-to-names} regular
182 expression (or list of regular expressions) will be removed from the
183 @code{Cc} header. A value of @code{nil} means exclude your name only.
185 @vindex message-prune-recipient-rules
186 @code{message-prune-recipient-rules} is used to prune the addresses
187 used when doing a wide reply. It's meant to be used to remove
188 duplicate addresses and the like. It's a list of lists, where the
189 first element is a regexp to match the address to trigger the rule,
190 and the second is a regexp that will be expanded based on the first,
191 to match addresses to be pruned.
193 It's complicated to explain, but it's easy to use.
195 For instance, if you get an email from @samp{foo@@example.org}, but
196 @samp{foo@@zot.example.org} is also in the @code{Cc} list, then your
197 wide reply will go out to both these addresses, since they are unique.
199 To avoid this, do something like the following:
202 (setq message-prune-recipient-rules
203 '(("^\\([^@@]+\\)@@\\(.*\\)" "\\1@@.*[.]\\2")))
206 If, for instance, you want all wide replies that involve messages from
207 @samp{cvs@@example.org} to go to that address, and nowhere else (i.e.,
208 remove all other recipients if @samp{cvs@@example.org} is in the
212 (setq message-prune-recipient-rules
213 '(("cvs@@example.org" ".")))
216 @vindex message-wide-reply-confirm-recipients
217 If @code{message-wide-reply-confirm-recipients} is non-@code{nil} you
218 will be asked to confirm that you want to reply to multiple
219 recipients. The default is @code{nil}.
224 @findex message-followup
225 The @code{message-followup} command pops up a message buffer that's a
226 followup to the message in the current buffer.
228 @vindex message-followup-to-function
229 Message uses the normal methods to determine where followups are to go,
230 but you can change the behavior to suit your needs by fiddling with the
231 @code{message-followup-to-function}. It is used in the same way as
232 @code{message-reply-to-function} (@pxref{Reply}).
234 @vindex message-use-followup-to
235 The @code{message-use-followup-to} variable says what to do about
236 @code{Followup-To} headers. If it is @code{use}, always use the value.
237 If it is @code{ask} (which is the default), ask whether to use the
238 value. If it is @code{t}, use the value unless it is @samp{poster}. If
239 it is @code{nil}, don't use the value.
243 @section Canceling News
245 @findex message-cancel-news
246 The @code{message-cancel-news} command cancels the article in the
249 @vindex message-cancel-message
250 The value of @code{message-cancel-message} is inserted in the body of
251 the cancel message. The default is @samp{I am canceling my own
255 @vindex message-insert-canlock
257 When Message posts news messages, it inserts @code{Cancel-Lock}
258 headers by default. This is a cryptographic header that ensures that
259 only you can cancel your own messages, which is nice. The downside
260 is that if you lose your @file{.emacs} file (which is where Gnus
261 stores the secret cancel lock password (which is generated
262 automatically the first time you use this feature)), you won't be
263 able to cancel your message. If you want to manage a password yourself,
264 you can put something like the following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
267 (setq canlock-password "geheimnis"
268 canlock-password-for-verify canlock-password)
271 Whether to insert the header or not is controlled by the
272 @code{message-insert-canlock} variable.
274 Not many news servers respect the @code{Cancel-Lock} header yet, but
275 this is expected to change in the future.
281 @findex message-supersede
282 The @code{message-supersede} command pops up a message buffer that will
283 supersede the message in the current buffer.
285 @vindex message-ignored-supersedes-headers
286 Headers matching the @code{message-ignored-supersedes-headers} are
287 removed before popping up the new message buffer. The default is@*
288 @samp{^Path:\\|^Date\\|^NNTP-Posting-Host:\\|^Xref:\\|^Lines:\\|@*
289 ^Received:\\|^X-From-Line:\\|^X-Trace:\\|^X-Complaints-To:\\|@*
290 Return-Path:\\|^Supersedes:\\|^NNTP-Posting-Date:\\|^X-Trace:\\|@*
291 ^X-Complaints-To:\\|^Cancel-Lock:\\|^Cancel-Key:\\|^X-Hashcash:\\|@*
292 ^X-Payment:\\|^Approved:}.
299 @findex message-forward
300 The @code{message-forward} command pops up a message buffer to forward
301 the message in the current buffer. If given a prefix, forward using
305 @item message-forward-ignored-headers
306 @vindex message-forward-ignored-headers
307 All headers that match this regexp will be deleted when forwarding a message.
309 @item message-make-forward-subject-function
310 @vindex message-make-forward-subject-function
311 A list of functions that are called to generate a subject header for
312 forwarded messages. The subject generated by the previous function is
313 passed into each successive function.
315 The provided functions are:
318 @item message-forward-subject-author-subject
319 @findex message-forward-subject-author-subject
320 Source of article (author or newsgroup), in brackets followed by the
323 @item message-forward-subject-fwd
324 Subject of article with @samp{Fwd:} prepended to it.
327 @item message-wash-forwarded-subjects
328 @vindex message-wash-forwarded-subjects
329 If this variable is @code{t}, the subjects of forwarded messages have
330 the evidence of previous forwards (such as @samp{Fwd:}, @samp{Re:},
331 @samp{(fwd)}) removed before the new subject is
332 constructed. The default value is @code{nil}.
334 @item message-forward-as-mime
335 @vindex message-forward-as-mime
336 If this variable is @code{t} (the default), forwarded messages are
337 included as inline @acronym{MIME} RFC822 parts. If it's @code{nil}, forwarded
338 messages will just be copied inline to the new message, like previous,
339 non @acronym{MIME}-savvy versions of Gnus would do.
341 @item message-forward-before-signature
342 @vindex message-forward-before-signature
343 If non-@code{nil}, put forwarded message before signature, else after.
351 @findex message-resend
352 The @code{message-resend} command will prompt the user for an address
353 and resend the message in the current buffer to that address.
355 @vindex message-ignored-resent-headers
356 Headers that match the @code{message-ignored-resent-headers} regexp will
357 be removed before sending the message.
363 @findex message-bounce
364 The @code{message-bounce} command will, if the current buffer contains a
365 bounced mail message, pop up a message buffer stripped of the bounce
366 information. A @dfn{bounced message} is typically a mail you've sent
367 out that has been returned by some @code{mailer-daemon} as
370 @vindex message-ignored-bounced-headers
371 Headers that match the @code{message-ignored-bounced-headers} regexp
372 will be removed before popping up the buffer. The default is
373 @samp{^\\(Received\\|Return-Path\\|Delivered-To\\):}.
377 @section Mailing Lists
379 @cindex Mail-Followup-To
380 Sometimes while posting to mailing lists, the poster needs to direct
381 followups to the post to specific places. The Mail-Followup-To (MFT)
382 was created to enable just this. Three example scenarios where this is
387 A mailing list poster can use MFT to express that responses should be
388 sent to just the list, and not the poster as well. This will happen
389 if the poster is already subscribed to the list.
392 A mailing list poster can use MFT to express that responses should be
393 sent to the list and the poster as well. This will happen if the poster
394 is not subscribed to the list.
397 If a message is posted to several mailing lists, MFT may also be used
398 to direct the following discussion to one list only, because
399 discussions that are spread over several lists tend to be fragmented
400 and very difficult to follow.
404 Gnus honors the MFT header in other's messages (i.e. while following
405 up to someone else's post) and also provides support for generating
406 sensible MFT headers for outgoing messages as well.
409 @c * Honoring an MFT post:: What to do when one already exists
410 @c * Composing with a MFT header:: Creating one from scratch.
413 @c @node Composing with a MFT header
414 @subsection Composing a correct MFT header automagically
416 The first step in getting Gnus to automagically generate a MFT header
417 in posts you make is to give Gnus a list of the mailing lists
418 addresses you are subscribed to. You can do this in more than one
419 way. The following variables would come in handy.
423 @vindex message-subscribed-addresses
424 @item message-subscribed-addresses
425 This should be a list of addresses the user is subscribed to. Its
426 default value is @code{nil}. Example:
428 (setq message-subscribed-addresses
429 '("ding@@gnus.org" "bing@@noose.org"))
432 @vindex message-subscribed-regexps
433 @item message-subscribed-regexps
434 This should be a list of regexps denoting the addresses of mailing
435 lists subscribed to. Default value is @code{nil}. Example: If you
436 want to achieve the same result as above:
438 (setq message-subscribed-regexps
439 '("\\(ding@@gnus\\)\\|\\(bing@@noose\\)\\.org")
442 @vindex message-subscribed-address-functions
443 @item message-subscribed-address-functions
444 This can be a list of functions to be called (one at a time!!) to
445 determine the value of MFT headers. It is advisable that these
446 functions not take any arguments. Default value is @code{nil}.
448 There is a pre-defined function in Gnus that is a good candidate for
449 this variable. @code{gnus-find-subscribed-addresses} is a function
450 that returns a list of addresses corresponding to the groups that have
451 the @code{subscribed} (@pxref{Group Parameters, ,Group Parameters,
452 gnus, The Gnus Manual}) group parameter set to a non-@code{nil} value.
453 This is how you would do it.
456 (setq message-subscribed-address-functions
457 '(gnus-find-subscribed-addresses))
460 @vindex message-subscribed-address-file
461 @item message-subscribed-address-file
462 You might be one organized human freak and have a list of addresses of
463 all subscribed mailing lists in a separate file! Then you can just
464 set this variable to the name of the file and life would be good.
468 You can use one or more of the above variables. All their values are
469 ``added'' in some way that works :-)
471 Now you are all set. Just start composing a message as you normally do.
472 And just send it; as always. Just before the message is sent out, Gnus'
473 MFT generation thingy kicks in and checks if the message already has a
474 MFT field. If there is one, it is left alone. (Except if it's empty -
475 in that case, the field is removed and is not replaced with an
476 automatically generated one. This lets you disable MFT generation on a