1 \input texinfo @c -*-texinfo-*-
4 @settitle Message (Oort) Manual
10 * Message: (message). Mail and news composition mode that goes with Gnus.
15 @setchapternewpage odd
19 This file documents Message, the Emacs message composition mode.
21 Copyright (C) 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003
22 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
24 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
25 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
26 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
27 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
28 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
29 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
30 License'' in the Emacs manual.
32 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
33 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
34 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
36 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
37 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
38 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
39 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
45 @title Message (Oort) Manual
47 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
50 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
51 Copyright @copyright{} 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
52 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
54 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
55 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
56 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
57 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
58 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
59 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
60 License'' in the Emacs manual.
62 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
63 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
64 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
66 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
67 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
68 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
69 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
78 All message composition from Gnus (both mail and news) takes place in
82 * Interface:: Setting up message buffers.
83 * Commands:: Commands you can execute in message mode buffers.
84 * Variables:: Customizing the message buffers.
85 * Compatibility:: Making Message backwards compatible.
86 * Appendices:: More technical things.
87 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
88 * Key Index:: List of Message mode keys.
91 This manual corresponds to Oort Message. Message is distributed with
92 the Gnus distribution bearing the same version number as this manual.
98 When a program (or a person) wants to respond to a message -- reply,
99 follow up, forward, cancel -- the program (or person) should just put
100 point in the buffer where the message is and call the required command.
101 @code{Message} will then pop up a new @code{message} mode buffer with
102 appropriate headers filled out, and the user can edit the message before
106 * New Mail Message:: Editing a brand new mail message.
107 * New News Message:: Editing a brand new news message.
108 * Reply:: Replying via mail.
109 * Wide Reply:: Responding to all people via mail.
110 * Followup:: Following up via news.
111 * Canceling News:: Canceling a news article.
112 * Superseding:: Superseding a message.
113 * Forwarding:: Forwarding a message via news or mail.
114 * Resending:: Resending a mail message.
115 * Bouncing:: Bouncing a mail message.
116 * Mailing Lists:: Send mail to mailing lists.
120 @node New Mail Message
121 @section New Mail Message
124 The @code{message-mail} command pops up a new message buffer.
126 Two optional parameters are accepted: The first will be used as the
127 @code{To} header and the second as the @code{Subject} header. If these
128 are @code{nil}, those two headers will be empty.
131 @node New News Message
132 @section New News Message
135 The @code{message-news} command pops up a new message buffer.
137 This function accepts two optional parameters. The first will be used
138 as the @code{Newsgroups} header and the second as the @code{Subject}
139 header. If these are @code{nil}, those two headers will be empty.
145 @findex message-reply
146 The @code{message-reply} function pops up a message buffer that's a
147 reply to the message in the current buffer.
149 @vindex message-reply-to-function
150 Message uses the normal methods to determine where replies are to go
151 (@pxref{Responses}), but you can change the behavior to suit your needs
152 by fiddling with the @code{message-reply-to-function} variable.
154 If you want the replies to go to the @code{Sender} instead of the
155 @code{From}, you could do something like this:
158 (setq message-reply-to-function
160 (cond ((equal (mail-fetch-field "from") "somebody")
161 (list (cons 'To (mail-fetch-field "sender"))))
166 This function will be called narrowed to the head of the article that is
169 As you can see, this function should return a string if it has an
170 opinion as to what the To header should be. If it does not, it should
171 just return @code{nil}, and the normal methods for determining the To
174 This function can also return a list. In that case, each list element
175 should be a cons, where the car should be the name of an header
176 (eg. @code{Cc}) and the cdr should be the header value
177 (eg. @samp{larsi@@ifi.uio.no}). All these headers will be inserted into
178 the head of the outgoing mail.
184 @findex message-wide-reply
185 The @code{message-wide-reply} pops up a message buffer that's a wide
186 reply to the message in the current buffer. A @dfn{wide reply} is a
187 reply that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From}
188 (or @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
190 @vindex message-wide-reply-to-function
191 Message uses the normal methods to determine where wide replies are to go,
192 but you can change the behavior to suit your needs by fiddling with the
193 @code{message-wide-reply-to-function}. It is used in the same way as
194 @code{message-reply-to-function} (@pxref{Reply}).
196 @vindex message-dont-reply-to-names
197 Addresses that match the @code{message-dont-reply-to-names} regular
198 expression will be removed from the @code{Cc} header.
200 @vindex message-wide-reply-confirm-recipients
201 If @code{message-wide-reply-confirm-recipients} is non-@code{nil} you
202 will be asked to confirm that you want to reply to multiple
203 recipients. The default is @code{nil}.
208 @findex message-followup
209 The @code{message-followup} command pops up a message buffer that's a
210 followup to the message in the current buffer.
212 @vindex message-followup-to-function
213 Message uses the normal methods to determine where followups are to go,
214 but you can change the behavior to suit your needs by fiddling with the
215 @code{message-followup-to-function}. It is used in the same way as
216 @code{message-reply-to-function} (@pxref{Reply}).
218 @vindex message-use-followup-to
219 The @code{message-use-followup-to} variable says what to do about
220 @code{Followup-To} headers. If it is @code{use}, always use the value.
221 If it is @code{ask} (which is the default), ask whether to use the
222 value. If it is @code{t}, use the value unless it is @samp{poster}. If
223 it is @code{nil}, don't use the value.
227 @section Canceling News
229 @findex message-cancel-news
230 The @code{message-cancel-news} command cancels the article in the
233 @vindex message-cancel-message
234 The value of @code{message-cancel-message} is inserted in the body of
235 the cancel message. The default is @samp{I am canceling my own
239 @vindex message-insert-canlock
241 When Message posts news messages, it inserts @code{Cancel-Lock}
242 headers by default. This is a cryptographic header that ensures that
243 only you can cancel your own messages, which is nice. The downside
244 is that if you lose your @file{.emacs} file (which is where Gnus
245 stores the secret cancel lock password (which is generated
246 automatically the first time you use this feature)), you won't be
247 able to cancel your message.
249 Whether to insert the header or not is controlled by the
250 @code{message-insert-canlock} variable.
252 Not many news servers respect the @code{Cancel-Lock} header yet, but
253 this is expected to change in the future.
259 @findex message-supersede
260 The @code{message-supersede} command pops up a message buffer that will
261 supersede the message in the current buffer.
263 @vindex message-ignored-supersedes-headers
264 Headers matching the @code{message-ignored-supersedes-headers} are
265 removed before popping up the new message buffer. The default is@*
266 @samp{^Path:\\|^Date\\|^NNTP-Posting-Host:\\|^Xref:\\|^Lines:\\|@*
267 ^Received:\\|^X-From-Line:\\|Return-Path:\\|^Supersedes:}.
274 @findex message-forward
275 The @code{message-forward} command pops up a message buffer to forward
276 the message in the current buffer. If given a prefix, forward using
280 @item message-forward-ignored-headers
281 @vindex message-forward-ignored-headers
282 All headers that match this regexp will be deleted when forwarding a message.
284 @item message-make-forward-subject-function
285 @vindex message-make-forward-subject-function
286 A list of functions that are called to generate a subject header for
287 forwarded messages. The subject generated by the previous function is
288 passed into each successive function.
290 The provided functions are:
293 @item message-forward-subject-author-subject
294 @findex message-forward-subject-author-subject
295 Source of article (author or newsgroup), in brackets followed by the
298 @item message-forward-subject-fwd
299 Subject of article with @samp{Fwd:} prepended to it.
302 @item message-wash-forwarded-subjects
303 @vindex message-wash-forwarded-subjects
304 If this variable is @code{t}, the subjects of forwarded messages have
305 the evidence of previous forwards (such as @samp{Fwd:}, @samp{Re:},
306 @samp{(fwd)}) removed before the new subject is
307 constructed. The default value is @code{nil}.
309 @item message-forward-as-mime
310 @vindex message-forward-as-mime
311 If this variable is @code{t} (the default), forwarded messages are
312 included as inline @sc{mime} RFC822 parts. If it's @code{nil}, forwarded
313 messages will just be copied inline to the new message, like previous,
314 non @sc{mime}-savvy versions of gnus would do.
316 @item message-forward-before-signature
317 @vindex message-forward-before-signature
318 If non-@code{nil}, put forwarded message before signature, else after.
326 @findex message-resend
327 The @code{message-resend} command will prompt the user for an address
328 and resend the message in the current buffer to that address.
330 @vindex message-ignored-resent-headers
331 Headers that match the @code{message-ignored-resent-headers} regexp will
332 be removed before sending the message. The default is
333 @samp{^Return-receipt}.
339 @findex message-bounce
340 The @code{message-bounce} command will, if the current buffer contains a
341 bounced mail message, pop up a message buffer stripped of the bounce
342 information. A @dfn{bounced message} is typically a mail you've sent
343 out that has been returned by some @code{mailer-daemon} as
346 @vindex message-ignored-bounced-headers
347 Headers that match the @code{message-ignored-bounced-headers} regexp
348 will be removed before popping up the buffer. The default is
349 @samp{^\\(Received\\|Return-Path\\):}.
353 @section Mailing Lists
355 Sometimes while posting to mailing lists, the poster needs to direct
356 followups to the post to specific places. The Mail-Followup-To (MFT)
357 was created to enable just this. Two example scenarios where this is
362 A mailing list poster can use MFT to express that responses should be
363 sent to just the list, and not the poster as well. This will happen
364 if the poster is already subscribed to the list.
367 A mailing list poster can use MFT to express that responses should be
368 sent to the list and the poster as well. This will happen if the poster
369 is not subscribed to the list.
372 If a message is posted to several mailing lists, MFT may also be used
373 to direct the following discussion to one list only, because
374 discussions that are spread over several lists tend to be fragmented
375 and very difficult to follow.
379 Gnus honors the MFT header in other's messages (i.e. while following
380 up to someone else's post) and also provides support for generating
381 sensible MFT headers for outgoing messages as well.
384 @c * Honoring an MFT post:: What to do when one already exists
385 @c * Composing with a MFT header:: Creating one from scratch.
388 @c @node Composing with a MFT header
389 @subsection Composing a correct MFT header automagically
391 The first step in getting Gnus to automagically generate a MFT header
392 in posts you make is to give Gnus a list of the mailing lists
393 addresses you are subscribed to. You can do this in more than one
394 way. The following variables would come in handy.
398 @vindex message-subscribed-addresses
399 @item message-subscribed-addresses
400 This should be a list of addresses the user is subscribed to. Its
401 default value is @code{nil}. Example:
403 (setq message-subscribed-addresses
404 '("ding@@gnus.org" "bing@@noose.org"))
407 @vindex message-subscribed-regexps
408 @item message-subscribed-regexps
409 This should be a list of regexps denoting the addresses of mailing
410 lists subscribed to. Default value is @code{nil}. Example: If you
411 want to achieve the same result as above:
413 (setq message-subscribed-regexps
414 '("\\(ding@@gnus\\)\\|\\(bing@@noose\\)\\.org")
417 @vindex message-subscribed-address-functions
418 @item message-subscribed-address-functions
419 This can be a list of functions to be called (one at a time!!) to
420 determine the value of MFT headers. It is advisable that these
421 functions not take any arguments. Default value is @code{nil}.
423 There is a pre-defined function in Gnus that is a good candidate for
424 this variable. @code{gnus-find-subscribed-addresses} is a function
425 that returns a list of addresses corresponding to the groups that have
426 the @code{subscribed} (@pxref{(gnus)subscribed})
427 group parameter set to a non-nil value. This is how you would do it.
430 (setq message-subscribed-address-functions
431 '(gnus-find-subscribed-addresses))
434 @vindex message-subscribed-address-file
435 @item message-subscribed-address-file
436 You might be one organised human freak and have a list of addresses of
437 all subscribed mailing lists in a separate file! Then you can just
438 set this variable to the name of the file and life would be good.
442 You can use one or more of the above variables. All their values are
443 ``added'' in some way that works :-)
445 Now you are all set. Just start composing a message as you normally do.
446 And just send it; as always. Just before the message is sent out, Gnus'
447 MFT generation thingy kicks in and checks if the message already has a
448 MFT field. If there is one, it is left alone. (Except if it's empty -
449 in that case, the field is removed and is not replaced with an
450 automatically generated one. This lets you disable MFT generation on a
451 per-message basis.) If there is none, then the list of recipient
452 addresses (in the To: and Cc: headers) is checked to see if one of them
453 is a list address you are subscribed to. If none of them is a list
454 address, then no MFT is generated; otherwise, a MFT is added to the
455 other headers and set to the value of all addresses in To: and Cc:
458 @findex message-generate-unsubscribed-mail-followup-to
460 @findex message-goto-mail-followup-to
461 Hm. ``So'', you ask, ``what if I send an email to a list I am not
462 subscribed to? I want my MFT to say that I want an extra copy.'' (This
463 is supposed to be interpreted by others the same way as if there were no
464 MFT, but you can use an explicit MFT to override someone else's
465 to-address group parameter.) The function
466 @code{message-generate-unsubscribed-mail-followup-to} might come in
467 handy. It is bound to @kbd{C-c C-f C-a} by default. In any case, you
468 can insert a MFT of your own choice; @kbd{C-c C-f C-m}
469 (@code{message-goto-mail-followup-to}) will help you get started.
471 @c @node Honoring an MFT post
472 @subsection Honoring an MFT post
474 @vindex message-use-mail-followup-to
475 When you followup to a post on a mailing list, and the post has a MFT
476 header, Gnus' action will depend on the value of the variable
477 @code{message-use-mail-followup-to}. This variable can be one of:
481 Always honor MFTs. The To: and Cc: headers in your followup will be
482 derived from the MFT header of the original post. This is the default.
485 Always dishonor MFTs (just ignore the darned thing)
488 Gnus will prompt you for an action.
492 It is considered good nettiquette to honor MFT, as it is assumed the
493 fellow who posted a message knows where the followups need to go
500 * Buffer Entry:: Commands after entering a Message buffer.
501 * Header Commands:: Commands for moving headers or changing headers.
502 * Movement:: Moving around in message buffers.
503 * Insertion:: Inserting things into message buffers.
504 * MIME:: @sc{mime} considerations.
505 * Security:: Signing and encrypting messages.
506 * Various Commands:: Various things.
507 * Sending:: Actually sending the message.
508 * Mail Aliases:: How to use mail aliases.
509 * Spelling:: Having Emacs check your spelling.
514 @section Buffer Entry
518 You most often end up in a Message buffer when responding to some other
519 message of some sort. Message does lots of handling of quoted text, and
520 may remove signatures, reformat the text, or the like---depending on
521 which used settings you're using. Message usually gets things right,
522 but sometimes it stumbles. To help the user unwind these stumblings,
523 Message sets the undo boundary before each major automatic action it
524 takes. If you press the undo key (usually located at @kbd{C-_}) a few
525 times, you will get back the un-edited message you're responding to.
528 @node Header Commands
529 @section Header Commands
531 @subsection Commands for moving to headers
533 These following commands move to the header in question. If it doesn't
534 exist, it will be inserted.
540 @findex describe-mode
541 Describe the message mode.
545 @findex message-goto-to
546 Go to the @code{To} header (@code{message-goto-to}).
550 @findex message-goto-from
551 Go to the @code{From} header (@code{message-goto-from}). (The ``o''
552 in the key binding is for Originator.)
556 @findex message-goto-bcc
557 Go to the @code{Bcc} header (@code{message-goto-bcc}).
561 @findex message-goto-fcc
562 Go to the @code{Fcc} header (@code{message-goto-fcc}).
566 @findex message-goto-cc
567 Go to the @code{Cc} header (@code{message-goto-cc}).
571 @findex message-goto-subject
572 Go to the @code{Subject} header (@code{message-goto-subject}).
576 @findex message-goto-reply-to
577 Go to the @code{Reply-To} header (@code{message-goto-reply-to}).
581 @findex message-goto-newsgroups
582 Go to the @code{Newsgroups} header (@code{message-goto-newsgroups}).
586 @findex message-goto-distribution
587 Go to the @code{Distribution} header (@code{message-goto-distribution}).
591 @findex message-goto-followup-to
592 Go to the @code{Followup-To} header (@code{message-goto-followup-to}).
596 @findex message-goto-keywords
597 Go to the @code{Keywords} header (@code{message-goto-keywords}).
601 @findex message-goto-summary
602 Go to the @code{Summary} header (@code{message-goto-summary}).
606 @findex message-insert-or-toggle-importance
607 This inserts the @samp{Importance:} header with a value of
608 @samp{high}. This header is used to signal the importance of the
609 message to the receiver. If the header is already present in the
610 buffer, it cycles between the three valid values according to RFC
611 1376: @samp{low}, @samp{normal} and @samp{high}.
615 @findex message-generate-unsubscribed-mail-followup-to
616 Insert a reasonable @samp{Mail-Followup-To:} header
617 (@pxref{Mailing Lists}) in a post to an
618 unsubscribed list. When making original posts to a mailing list you are
619 not subscribed to, you have to type in a @samp{Mail-Followup-To:} header
620 by hand. The contents, usually, are the addresses of the list and your
621 own address. This function inserts such a header automatically. It
622 fetches the contents of the @samp{To:} header in the current mail
623 buffer, and appends the current @code{user-mail-address}.
625 If the optional argument @code{include-cc} is non-nil, the addresses in
626 the @samp{Cc:} header are also put into the @samp{Mail-Followup-To:}
631 @subsection Commands to change headers
637 @findex message-sort-headers
638 @vindex message-header-format-alist
639 Sort headers according to @code{message-header-format-alist}
640 (@code{message-sort-headers}).
644 @findex message-insert-to
645 Insert a @code{To} header that contains the @code{Reply-To} or
646 @code{From} header of the message you're following up
647 (@code{message-insert-to}).
651 @findex message-insert-newsgroups
652 Insert a @code{Newsgroups} header that reflects the @code{Followup-To}
653 or @code{Newsgroups} header of the article you're replying to
654 (@code{message-insert-newsgroups}).
658 @findex message-to-list-only
659 Send a message to the list only. Remove all addresses but the list
660 address from @code{To:} and @code{Cc:} headers.
664 @findex message-insert-disposition-notification-to
665 Insert a request for a disposition
666 notification. (@code{message-insert-disposition-notification-to}).
667 This means that if the recipient support RFC 2298 she might send you a
668 notification that she received the message.
670 @item M-x message-insert-importance-high
671 @kindex M-x message-insert-importance-high
672 @findex message-insert-importance-high
674 Insert an @samp{Importance} header with a value of @samp{high},
675 deleting headers if necessary.
677 @item M-x message-insert-importance-low
678 @kindex M-x message-insert-importance-low
679 @findex message-insert-importance-low
681 Insert an @samp{Importance} header with a value of @samp{low}, deleting
682 headers if necessary.
686 @findex message-change-subject
688 Change the current @samp{Subject} header. Ask for new @samp{Subject}
689 header and append @code{(was: <Old Subject>)}. The old subject can be
690 stripped on replying, see @code{message-subject-trailing-was-query}
691 (@pxref{Message Headers}).
695 @findex message-cross-post-followup-to
696 @vindex message-cross-post-default
699 Ask for an additional @samp{Newsgroups} and @samp{FollowUp-To} for a
700 cross-post. @code{message-cross-post-followup-to} mangles
701 @samp{FollowUp-To} and @samp{Newsgroups} header to point to group.
702 If @code{message-cross-post-default} is @code{nil} or if called with a
703 prefix-argument @samp{Follow-Up} is set, but the message is not
708 @findex message-reduce-to-to-cc
709 Replace contents of @samp{To} header with contents of @samp{Cc} or
714 @findex message-insert-wide-reply
715 Insert @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers as if you were doing a wide
720 @findex message-add-archive-header
721 @vindex message-archive-header
722 @vindex message-archive-note
724 Insert @samp{X-No-Archive: Yes} in the header and a note in the body.
725 The header and the note can be customized using
726 @code{message-archive-header} and @code{message-archive-note}. When
727 called with a prefix argument, ask for a text to insert. If you don't
728 want the note in the body, set @code{message-archive-note} to
740 @findex message-goto-body
741 Move to the beginning of the body of the message
742 (@code{message-goto-body}).
746 @findex message-goto-signature
747 Move to the signature of the message (@code{message-goto-signature}).
751 @findex message-beginning-of-line
752 @vindex message-beginning-of-line
753 If at beginning of header value, go to beginning of line, else go to
754 beginning of header value. (The header value comes after the header
755 name and the colon.) This behaviour can be disabled by toggling
756 the variable @code{message-beginning-of-line}.
768 @findex message-yank-original
769 Yank the message that's being replied to into the message buffer
770 (@code{message-yank-original}).
774 @findex message-yank-buffer
775 Prompt for a buffer name and yank the contents of that buffer into the
776 message buffer (@code{message-yank-buffer}).
780 @findex message-fill-yanked-message
781 Fill the yanked message (@code{message-fill-yanked-message}). Warning:
782 Can severely mess up the yanked text if its quoting conventions are
783 strange. You'll quickly get a feel for when it's safe, though. Anyway,
784 just remember that @kbd{C-x u} (@code{undo}) is available and you'll be
789 @findex message-insert-signature
790 Insert a signature at the end of the buffer
791 (@code{message-insert-signature}).
795 @findex message-insert-headers
796 Insert the message headers (@code{message-insert-headers}).
800 @findex message-mark-inserted-region
801 Mark some region in the current article with enclosing tags.
802 See @code{message-mark-insert-begin} and @code{message-mark-insert-end}.
806 @findex message-mark-insert-file
807 Insert a file in the current article with enclosing tags.
808 See @code{message-mark-insert-begin} and @code{message-mark-insert-end}.
820 Message is a @sc{mime}-compliant posting agent. The user generally
821 doesn't have to do anything to make the @sc{mime} happen---Message will
822 automatically add the @code{Content-Type} and
823 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} headers.
825 The most typical thing users want to use the multipart things in
826 @sc{mime} for is to add ``attachments'' to mail they send out. This can
827 be done with the @kbd{C-c C-a} command, which will prompt for a file
828 name and a @sc{mime} type.
830 You can also create arbitrarily complex multiparts using the MML
831 language (@pxref{Composing, , Composing, emacs-mime, The Emacs MIME
844 Using the MML language, Message is able to create digitally signed and
845 digitally encrypted messages. Message (or rather MML) currently
846 support PGP (RFC 1991), @sc{pgp/mime} (RFC 2015/3156) and @sc{s/mime}.
847 Instructing MML to perform security operations on a @sc{mime} part is
848 done using the @kbd{C-c C-m s} key map for signing and the @kbd{C-c
849 C-m c} key map for encryption, as follows.
855 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-smime
857 Digitally sign current message using @sc{s/mime}.
861 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
863 Digitally sign current message using PGP.
867 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgpmime
869 Digitally sign current message using @sc{pgp/mime}.
873 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-smime
875 Digitally encrypt current message using @sc{s/mime}.
879 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgp
881 Digitally encrypt current message using PGP.
885 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgpmime
887 Digitally encrypt current message using @sc{pgp/mime}.
891 @findex mml-unsecure-message
892 Remove security related MML tags from message.
896 These commands do not immediately sign or encrypt the message, they
897 merely insert the proper MML secure tag to instruct the MML engine to
898 perform that operation when the message is actually sent. They may
899 perform other operations too, such as locating and retrieving a
900 @sc{s/mime} certificate of the person you wish to send encrypted mail
901 to. When the mml parsing engine converts your MML into a properly
902 encoded @sc{mime} message, the secure tag will be replaced with either
903 a part or a multipart tag. If your message contains other mml parts,
904 a multipart tag will be used; if no other parts are present in your
905 message a single part tag will be used. This way, message mode will
906 do the Right Thing (TM) with signed/encrypted multipart messages.
908 @vindex mml-signencrypt-style-alist
909 By default, when encrypting a message, Gnus will use the "signencrypt"
910 mode. If you would like to disable this for a particular message,
911 give the mml-secure-message-encrypt-* command a prefix argument. (for
912 example, C-u C-c C-m c p). Additionally, by default Gnus will
913 separately sign, then encrypt a message which has the mode
914 signencrypt. If you would like to change this behavior you can
915 customize the @code{mml-signencrypt-style-alist} variable. For
920 (setq mml-signencrypt-style-alist '(("smime" combined)
922 ("pgpmime" combined)))
925 Will cause Gnus to sign and encrypt in one pass, thus generating a
926 single signed and encrypted part. Note that combined sign and encrypt
927 does not work with all supported OpenPGP implementations (in
928 particular, PGP version 2 do not support this).
930 Since signing and especially encryption often is used when sensitive
931 information is sent, you may want to have some way to ensure that your
932 mail is actually signed or encrypted. After invoking the above
933 sign/encrypt commands, it is possible to preview the raw article by
934 using @kbd{C-u C-c RET P} (@code{mml-preview}). Then you can
935 verify that your long rant about what your ex-significant other or
936 whomever actually did with that funny looking person at that strange
937 party the other night, actually will be sent encrypted.
939 @emph{Note!} Neither @sc{pgp/mime} nor @sc{s/mime} encrypt/signs
940 RFC822 headers. They only operate on the @sc{mime} object. Keep this
941 in mind before sending mail with a sensitive Subject line.
943 Actually using the security commands above is not very difficult. At
944 least not compared with making sure all involved programs talk with each
945 other properly. Thus, we now describe what external libraries or
946 programs are required to make things work, and some small general hints.
948 @subsection Using S/MIME
950 @emph{Note!} This section assume you have a basic familiarity with
951 modern cryptography, @sc{s/mime}, various PKCS standards, OpenSSL and
954 The @sc{s/mime} support in Message (and MML) require OpenSSL. OpenSSL
955 perform the actual @sc{s/mime} sign/encrypt operations. OpenSSL can
956 be found at @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL 0.9.6 and later
957 should work. Version 0.9.5a cannot extract mail addresses from
958 certificates, and it insert a spurious CR character into @sc{mime}
959 separators so you may wish to avoid it if you would like to avoid
960 being regarded as someone who send strange mail. (Although by sending
961 @sc{s/mime} messages you've probably already lost that contest.)
963 To be able to send encrypted mail, a personal certificate is not
964 required. Message (MML) need a certificate for the person to whom you
965 wish to communicate with though. You're asked for this when you type
966 @kbd{C-c C-m c s}. Currently there are two ways to retrieve this
967 certificate, from a local file or from DNS. If you chose a local
968 file, it need to contain a X.509 certificate in PEM format. If you
969 chose DNS, you're asked for the domain name where the certificate is
970 stored, the default is a good guess. To my belief, Message (MML) is
971 the first mail agent in the world to support retrieving @sc{s/mime}
972 certificates from DNS, so you're not likely to find very many
973 certificates out there. At least there should be one, stored at the
974 domain @code{simon.josefsson.org}. LDAP is a more popular method of
975 distributing certificates, support for it is planned. (Meanwhile, you
976 can use @code{ldapsearch} from the command line to retrieve a
977 certificate into a file and use it.)
979 As for signing messages, OpenSSL can't perform signing operations
980 without some kind of configuration. Especially, you need to tell it
981 where your private key and your certificate is stored. MML uses an
982 Emacs interface to OpenSSL, aptly named @code{smime.el}, and it
983 contain a @code{custom} group used for this configuration. So, try
984 @kbd{M-x customize-group RET smime RET} and look around.
986 Currently there is no support for talking to a CA (or RA) to create
987 your own certificate. None is planned either. You need to do this
988 manually with OpenSSL or using some other program. I used Netscape
989 and got a free @sc{s/mime} certificate from one of the big CA's on the
990 net. Netscape is able to export your private key and certificate in
991 PKCS #12 format. Use OpenSSL to convert this into a plain X.509
992 certificate in PEM format as follows.
995 $ openssl pkcs12 -in ns.p12 -clcerts -nodes > key+cert.pem
998 The @file{key+cert.pem} file should be pointed to from the
999 @code{smime-keys} variable. You should now be able to send signed mail.
1001 @emph{Note!} Your private key is store unencrypted in the file, so take
1002 care in handling it.
1004 @subsection Using PGP/MIME
1006 @sc{pgp/mime} requires an external OpenPGP implementation, such as GNU
1007 Privacy Guard (@uref{http://www.gnupg.org/}). One Emacs interface to
1008 OpenPGP implementations, PGG (@pxref{Top, ,PGG, pgg, PGG Manual}), is
1009 included, but Mailcrypt and Florian Weimer's @code{gpg.el} are also
1012 @vindex gpg-temp-directory
1013 Note, if you are using the @code{gpg.el} you must make sure that the
1014 directory specified by @code{gpg-temp-directory} have permissions 0700.
1016 Creating your own OpenPGP key is described in detail in the
1017 documentation of your OpenPGP implementation, so we refer to it.
1019 @node Various Commands
1020 @section Various Commands
1026 @findex message-caesar-buffer-body
1027 Caesar rotate (aka. rot13) the current message
1028 (@code{message-caesar-buffer-body}). If narrowing is in effect, just
1029 rotate the visible portion of the buffer. A numerical prefix says how
1030 many places to rotate the text. The default is 13.
1034 @findex message-elide-region
1035 @vindex message-elide-ellipsis
1036 Elide the text between point and mark (@code{message-elide-region}).
1037 The text is killed and replaced with the contents of the variable
1038 @code{message-elide-ellipsis}. The default value is to use an ellipsis
1043 @findex message-kill-to-signature
1044 Kill all the text up to the signature, or if that's missing, up to the
1045 end of the message (@code{message-kill-to-signature}).
1049 @findex message-delete-not-region
1050 Delete all text in the body of the message that is outside the region
1051 (@code{message-delete-not-region}).
1055 @findex message-newline-and-reformat
1056 Insert four newlines, and then reformat if inside quoted text.
1061 > This is some quoted text. And here's more quoted text.
1064 If point is before @samp{And} and you press @kbd{M-RET}, you'll get:
1067 > This is some quoted text.
1071 > And here's more quoted text.
1074 @samp{*} says where point will be placed.
1078 @findex message-rename-buffer
1079 Rename the buffer (@code{message-rename-buffer}). If given a prefix,
1080 prompt for a new buffer name.
1085 @vindex message-tab-body-function
1086 If non-@code{nil} execute the function specified in
1087 @code{message-tab-body-function}. Otherwise use the function bound to
1088 @kbd{TAB} in @code{text-mode-map} or @code{global-map}.
1099 @findex message-send-and-exit
1100 Send the message and bury the current buffer
1101 (@code{message-send-and-exit}).
1105 @findex message-send
1106 Send the message (@code{message-send}).
1110 @findex message-dont-send
1111 Bury the message buffer and exit (@code{message-dont-send}).
1115 @findex message-kill-buffer
1116 Kill the message buffer and exit (@code{message-kill-buffer}).
1123 @section Mail Aliases
1124 @cindex mail aliases
1127 @vindex message-mail-alias-type
1128 The @code{message-mail-alias-type} variable controls what type of mail
1129 alias expansion to use. Currently only one form is supported---Message
1130 uses @code{mailabbrev} to handle mail aliases. If this variable is
1131 @code{nil}, no mail alias expansion will be performed.
1133 @code{mailabbrev} works by parsing the @file{/etc/mailrc} and
1134 @file{~/.mailrc} files. These files look like:
1137 alias lmi "Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@ifi.uio.no>"
1138 alias ding "ding@@ifi.uio.no (ding mailing list)"
1141 After adding lines like this to your @file{~/.mailrc} file, you should
1142 be able to just write @samp{lmi} in the @code{To} or @code{Cc} (and so
1143 on) headers and press @kbd{SPC} to expand the alias.
1145 No expansion will be performed upon sending of the message---all
1146 expansions have to be done explicitly.
1152 @findex ispell-message
1154 There are two popular ways to have Emacs spell-check your messages:
1155 @code{ispell} and @code{flyspell}. @code{ispell} is the older and
1156 probably more popular package. You typically first write the message,
1157 and then run the entire thing through @code{ispell} and fix all the
1158 typos. To have this happen automatically when you send a message, put
1159 something like the following in your @file{.emacs} file:
1162 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
1165 @vindex ispell-message-dictionary-alist
1166 If you're in the habit of writing in different languages, this can be
1167 controlled by the @code{ispell-message-dictionary-alist} variable:
1170 (setq ispell-message-dictionary-alist
1171 '(("^Newsgroups:.*\\bde\\." . "deutsch8")
1172 (".*" . "default")))
1175 @code{ispell} depends on having the external @samp{ispell} command
1178 The other popular method is using @code{flyspell}. This package checks
1179 your spelling while you're writing, and marks any mis-spelled words in
1182 To use @code{flyspell}, put something like the following in your
1186 (defun my-message-setup-routine ()
1188 (add-hook 'message-setup-hook 'my-message-setup-routine)
1191 @code{flyspell} depends on having the external @samp{ispell} command
1199 * Message Headers:: General message header stuff.
1200 * Mail Headers:: Customizing mail headers.
1201 * Mail Variables:: Other mail variables.
1202 * News Headers:: Customizing news headers.
1203 * News Variables:: Other news variables.
1204 * Insertion Variables:: Customizing how things are inserted.
1205 * Various Message Variables:: Other message variables.
1206 * Sending Variables:: Variables for sending.
1207 * Message Buffers:: How Message names its buffers.
1208 * Message Actions:: Actions to be performed when exiting.
1212 @node Message Headers
1213 @section Message Headers
1215 Message is quite aggressive on the message generation front. It has to
1216 be -- it's a combined news and mail agent. To be able to send combined
1217 messages, it has to generate all headers itself (instead of letting the
1218 mail/news system do it) to ensure that mail and news copies of messages
1219 look sufficiently similar.
1223 @item message-generate-headers-first
1224 @vindex message-generate-headers-first
1225 If @code{t}, generate all required headers before starting to
1226 compose the message. This can also be a list of headers to generate:
1229 (setq message-generate-headers-first
1233 @vindex message-required-headers
1234 The variables @code{message-required-headers},
1235 @code{message-required-mail-headers} and
1236 @code{message-required-news-headers} specify which headers are
1239 Note that some headers will be removed and re-generated before posting,
1240 because of the variable @code{message-deletable-headers} (see below).
1242 @item message-draft-headers
1243 @vindex message-draft-headers
1244 When running Message from Gnus, the message buffers are associated
1245 with a draft group. @code{message-draft-headers} says which headers
1246 should be generated when a draft is written to the draft group.
1248 @item message-from-style
1249 @vindex message-from-style
1250 Specifies how @code{From} headers should look. There are four valid
1255 Just the address -- @samp{king@@grassland.com}.
1258 @samp{king@@grassland.com (Elvis Parsley)}.
1261 @samp{Elvis Parsley <king@@grassland.com>}.
1264 Look like @code{angles} if that doesn't require quoting, and
1265 @code{parens} if it does. If even @code{parens} requires quoting, use
1266 @code{angles} anyway.
1270 @item message-deletable-headers
1271 @vindex message-deletable-headers
1272 Headers in this list that were previously generated by Message will be
1273 deleted before posting. Let's say you post an article. Then you decide
1274 to post it again to some other group, you naughty boy, so you jump back
1275 to the @code{*post-buf*} buffer, edit the @code{Newsgroups} line, and
1276 ship it off again. By default, this variable makes sure that the old
1277 generated @code{Message-ID} is deleted, and a new one generated. If
1278 this isn't done, the entire empire would probably crumble, anarchy would
1279 prevail, and cats would start walking on two legs and rule the world.
1282 @item message-default-headers
1283 @vindex message-default-headers
1284 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
1287 @item message-subject-re-regexp
1288 @vindex message-subject-re-regexp
1292 Responses to messages have subjects that start with @samp{Re: }. This
1293 is @emph{not} an abbreviation of the English word ``response'', but is
1294 Latin, and means ``in response to''. Some illiterate nincompoops have
1295 failed to grasp this fact, and have ``internationalized'' their software
1296 to use abonimations like @samp{Aw: } (``antwort'') or @samp{Sv: }
1297 (``svar'') instead, which is meaningless and evil. However, you may
1298 have to deal with users that use these evil tools, in which case you may
1299 set this variable to a regexp that matches these prefixes. Myself, I
1300 just throw away non-compliant mail.
1302 Here's an example of a value to deal with these headers when
1303 responding to a message:
1306 (setq message-subject-re-regexp
1307 "^\\(\\(\\([Rr][Ee]\\|[Ss][Vv]\\|[Aa][Ww]\\): *\\)+\\)")
1310 @item message-subject-trailing-was-query
1311 @vindex message-subject-trailing-was-query
1312 @vindex message-subject-trailing-was-ask-regexp
1313 @vindex message-subject-trailing-was-regexp
1314 Controls what to do with trailing @samp{(was: <old subject>)} in subject
1315 lines. If @code{nil}, leave the subject unchanged. If it is the symbol
1316 @code{ask}, query the user what do do. In this case, the subject is
1317 matched against @code{message-subject-trailing-was-ask-regexp}. If
1318 @code{message-subject-trailing-was-query} is t, always strip the
1319 trailing old subject. In this case,
1320 @code{message-subject-trailing-was-regexp} is used.
1322 @item message-alternative-emails
1323 @vindex message-alternative-emails
1324 A regexp to match the alternative email addresses. The first matched
1325 address (not primary one) is used in the @code{From} field.
1327 @item message-allow-no-recipients
1328 @vindex message-allow-no-recipients
1329 Specifies what to do when there are no recipients other than
1330 @code{Gcc} or @code{Fcc}. If it is @code{always}, the posting is
1331 allowed. If it is @code{never}, the posting is not allowed. If it is
1332 @code{ask} (the default), you are prompted.
1338 @section Mail Headers
1341 @item message-required-mail-headers
1342 @vindex message-required-mail-headers
1343 @xref{News Headers}, for the syntax of this variable. It is
1344 @code{(From Date Subject (optional . In-Reply-To) Message-ID Lines
1345 (optional . User-Agent))} by default.
1347 @item message-ignored-mail-headers
1348 @vindex message-ignored-mail-headers
1349 Regexp of headers to be removed before mailing. The default is
1350 @samp{^[GF]cc:\\|^Resent-Fcc:\\|^Xref:\\|^X-Draft-From:}.
1352 @item message-default-mail-headers
1353 @vindex message-default-mail-headers
1354 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
1355 buffers that are initialized as mail.
1360 @node Mail Variables
1361 @section Mail Variables
1364 @item message-send-mail-function
1365 @vindex message-send-mail-function
1366 @findex message-send-mail-with-sendmail
1367 @findex message-send-mail-with-mh
1368 @findex message-send-mail-with-qmail
1369 @findex message-smtpmail-send-it
1370 @findex smtpmail-send-it
1371 @findex feedmail-send-it
1372 Function used to send the current buffer as mail. The default is
1373 @code{message-send-mail-with-sendmail}. Other valid values include
1374 @code{message-send-mail-with-mh}, @code{message-send-mail-with-qmail},
1375 @code{message-smtpmail-send-it}, @code{smtpmail-send-it} and
1376 @code{feedmail-send-it}.
1378 @item message-mh-deletable-headers
1379 @vindex message-mh-deletable-headers
1380 Most versions of MH doesn't like being fed messages that contain the
1381 headers in this variable. If this variable is non-@code{nil} (which is
1382 the default), these headers will be removed before mailing when sending
1383 messages via MH. Set it to @code{nil} if your MH can handle these
1386 @item message-qmail-inject-program
1387 @vindex message-qmail-inject-program
1389 Location of the qmail-inject program.
1391 @item message-qmail-inject-args
1392 @vindex message-qmail-inject-args
1393 Arguments passed to qmail-inject programs.
1394 This should be a list of strings, one string for each argument. It
1395 may also be a function.
1397 For e.g., if you wish to set the envelope sender address so that bounces
1398 go to the right place or to deal with listserv's usage of that address, you
1399 might set this variable to @code{'("-f" "you@@some.where")}.
1401 @item message-sendmail-f-is-evil
1402 @vindex message-sendmail-f-is-evil
1404 Non-@code{nil} means don't add @samp{-f username} to the sendmail
1405 command line. Doing so would be even more evil than leaving it out.
1407 @item message-mailer-swallows-blank-line
1408 @vindex message-mailer-swallows-blank-line
1409 Set this to non-@code{nil} if the system's mailer runs the header and
1410 body together. (This problem exists on Sunos 4 when sendmail is run
1411 in remote mode.) The value should be an expression to test whether
1412 the problem will actually occur.
1414 @item message-send-mail-partially-limit
1415 @vindex message-send-mail-partially-limit
1416 @cindex split large message
1417 The limitation of messages sent as message/partial. The lower bound
1418 of message size in characters, beyond which the message should be sent
1419 in several parts. If it is @code{nil}, the size is unlimited.
1425 @section News Headers
1427 @vindex message-required-news-headers
1428 @code{message-required-news-headers} a list of header symbols. These
1429 headers will either be automatically generated, or, if that's
1430 impossible, they will be prompted for. The following symbols are valid:
1436 @findex user-full-name
1437 @findex user-mail-address
1438 This required header will be filled out with the result of the
1439 @code{message-make-from} function, which depends on the
1440 @code{message-from-style}, @code{user-full-name},
1441 @code{user-mail-address} variables.
1445 This required header will be prompted for if not present already.
1449 This required header says which newsgroups the article is to be posted
1450 to. If it isn't present already, it will be prompted for.
1453 @cindex organization
1454 @vindex message-user-organization
1455 @vindex message-user-organization-file
1456 This optional header will be filled out depending on the
1457 @code{message-user-organization} variable.
1458 @code{message-user-organization-file} will be used if this variable is
1459 @code{t}. This variable can also be a string (in which case this string
1460 will be used), or it can be a function (which will be called with no
1461 parameters and should return a string to be used).
1465 This optional header will be computed by Message.
1469 @vindex message-user-fqdn
1470 @vindex mail-host-address
1471 @vindex user-mail-address
1474 @cindex i-did-not-set--mail-host-address--so-tickle-me
1475 This required header will be generated by Message. A unique ID will be
1476 created based on the date, time, user name and system name. For the
1477 domain part, message will look (in this order) at
1478 @code{message-user-fqdn}, @code{system-name}, @code{mail-host-address}
1479 and @code{message-user-mail-address} (i.e. @code{user-mail-address})
1480 until a probably valid fully qualified domain name (FQDN) was found.
1484 This optional header will be filled out according to the
1485 @code{message-newsreader} local variable.
1488 This optional header is filled out using the @code{Date} and @code{From}
1489 header of the article being replied to.
1493 @vindex message-expires
1494 This extremely optional header will be inserted according to the
1495 @code{message-expires} variable. It is highly deprecated and shouldn't
1496 be used unless you know what you're doing.
1499 @cindex Distribution
1500 @vindex message-distribution-function
1501 This optional header is filled out according to the
1502 @code{message-distribution-function} variable. It is a deprecated and
1503 much misunderstood header.
1507 @vindex message-user-path
1508 This extremely optional header should probably never be used.
1509 However, some @emph{very} old servers require that this header is
1510 present. @code{message-user-path} further controls how this
1511 @code{Path} header is to look. If it is @code{nil}, use the server name
1512 as the leaf node. If it is a string, use the string. If it is neither
1513 a string nor @code{nil}, use the user name only. However, it is highly
1514 unlikely that you should need to fiddle with this variable at all.
1518 @cindex Mime-Version
1519 In addition, you can enter conses into this list. The car of this cons
1520 should be a symbol. This symbol's name is the name of the header, and
1521 the cdr can either be a string to be entered verbatim as the value of
1522 this header, or it can be a function to be called. This function should
1523 return a string to be inserted. For instance, if you want to insert
1524 @code{Mime-Version: 1.0}, you should enter @code{(Mime-Version . "1.0")}
1525 into the list. If you want to insert a funny quote, you could enter
1526 something like @code{(X-Yow . yow)} into the list. The function
1527 @code{yow} will then be called without any arguments.
1529 If the list contains a cons where the car of the cons is
1530 @code{optional}, the cdr of this cons will only be inserted if it is
1533 If you want to delete an entry from this list, the following Lisp
1534 snippet might be useful. Adjust accordingly if you want to remove
1538 (setq message-required-news-headers
1539 (delq 'Message-ID message-required-news-headers))
1542 Other variables for customizing outgoing news articles:
1546 @item message-syntax-checks
1547 @vindex message-syntax-checks
1548 Controls what syntax checks should not be performed on outgoing posts.
1549 To disable checking of long signatures, for instance, add
1552 (signature . disabled)
1561 Check the subject for commands.
1564 Insert a new @code{Sender} header if the @code{From} header looks odd.
1565 @item multiple-headers
1566 Check for the existence of multiple equal headers.
1569 Check for the existence of version and sendsys commands.
1571 Check whether the @code{Message-ID} looks ok.
1573 Check whether the @code{From} header seems nice.
1576 Check for too long lines.
1578 Check for invalid characters.
1580 Check for excessive size.
1582 Check whether there is any new text in the messages.
1584 Check the length of the signature.
1587 Check whether the article has an @code{Approved} header, which is
1588 something only moderators should include.
1590 Check whether the article is empty.
1591 @item invisible-text
1592 Check whether there is any invisible text in the buffer.
1594 Check whether any of the headers are empty.
1595 @item existing-newsgroups
1596 Check whether the newsgroups mentioned in the @code{Newsgroups} and
1597 @code{Followup-To} headers exist.
1598 @item valid-newsgroups
1599 Check whether the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-to} headers
1600 are valid syntactically.
1601 @item repeated-newsgroups
1602 Check whether the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-to} headers
1603 contains repeated group names.
1604 @item shorten-followup-to
1605 Check whether to add a @code{Followup-to} header to shorten the number
1606 of groups to post to.
1609 All these conditions are checked by default.
1611 @item message-ignored-news-headers
1612 @vindex message-ignored-news-headers
1613 Regexp of headers to be removed before posting. The default is@*
1614 @samp{^NNTP-Posting-Host:\\|^Xref:\\|^[BGF]cc:\\|^Resent-Fcc:\\|^X-Draft-From:}.
1616 @item message-default-news-headers
1617 @vindex message-default-news-headers
1618 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
1619 buffers that are initialized as news.
1624 @node News Variables
1625 @section News Variables
1628 @item message-send-news-function
1629 @vindex message-send-news-function
1630 Function used to send the current buffer as news. The default is
1631 @code{message-send-news}.
1633 @item message-post-method
1634 @vindex message-post-method
1635 Gnusish @dfn{select method} (see the Gnus manual for details) used for
1636 posting a prepared news message.
1641 @node Insertion Variables
1642 @section Insertion Variables
1645 @item message-ignored-cited-headers
1646 @vindex message-ignored-cited-headers
1647 All headers that match this regexp will be removed from yanked
1648 messages. The default is @samp{.}, which means that all headers will be
1651 @item message-cite-prefix-regexp
1652 @vindex message-cite-prefix-regexp
1653 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
1655 @item message-citation-line-function
1656 @vindex message-citation-line-function
1657 @cindex attribution line
1658 Function called to insert the citation line. The default is
1659 @code{message-insert-citation-line}, which will lead to citation lines
1663 Hallvard B Furuseth <h.b.furuseth@@usit.uio.no> writes:
1666 Point will be at the beginning of the body of the message when this
1669 Note that Gnus provides a feature where clicking on `writes:' hides the
1670 cited text. If you change the citation line too much, readers of your
1671 messages will have to adjust their Gnus, too. See the variable
1672 @code{gnus-cite-attribution-suffix}. @xref{Article Highlighting, ,
1673 Article Highlighting, gnus}, for details.
1675 @item message-yank-prefix
1676 @vindex message-yank-prefix
1679 When you are replying to or following up an article, you normally want
1680 to quote the person you are answering. Inserting quoted text is done
1681 by @dfn{yanking}, and each line you yank will have
1682 @code{message-yank-prefix} prepended to it (except for quoted and
1683 empty lines which uses @code{message-yank-cited-prefix}). The default
1686 @item message-yank-cited-prefix
1687 @vindex message-yank-cited-prefix
1691 When yanking text from a article which contains no text or already
1692 cited text, each line will be prefixed with the contents of this
1693 variable. The default is @samp{>}. See also
1694 @code{message-yank-prefix}.
1696 @item message-indentation-spaces
1697 @vindex message-indentation-spaces
1698 Number of spaces to indent yanked messages.
1700 @item message-cite-function
1701 @vindex message-cite-function
1702 @findex message-cite-original
1703 @findex sc-cite-original
1704 @findex message-cite-original-without-signature
1706 Function for citing an original message. The default is
1707 @code{message-cite-original}, which simply inserts the original message
1708 and prepends @samp{> } to each line.
1709 @code{message-cite-original-without-signature} does the same, but elides
1710 the signature. You can also set it to @code{sc-cite-original} to use
1713 @item message-indent-citation-function
1714 @vindex message-indent-citation-function
1715 Function for modifying a citation just inserted in the mail buffer.
1716 This can also be a list of functions. Each function can find the
1717 citation between @code{(point)} and @code{(mark t)}. And each function
1718 should leave point and mark around the citation text as modified.
1720 @item message-mark-insert-begin
1721 @vindex message-mark-insert-begin
1722 String to mark the beginning of some inserted text.
1724 @item message-mark-insert-end
1725 @vindex message-mark-insert-end
1726 String to mark the end of some inserted text.
1728 @item message-signature
1729 @vindex message-signature
1730 String to be inserted at the end of the message buffer. If @code{t}
1731 (which is the default), the @code{message-signature-file} file will be
1732 inserted instead. If a function, the result from the function will be
1733 used instead. If a form, the result from the form will be used instead.
1734 If this variable is @code{nil}, no signature will be inserted at all.
1736 @item message-signature-file
1737 @vindex message-signature-file
1738 File containing the signature to be inserted at the end of the buffer.
1739 The default is @file{~/.signature}.
1741 @item message-signature-insert-empty-line
1742 @vindex message-signature-insert-empty-line
1743 If @code{t} (the default value) an empty line is inserted before the
1744 signature separator.
1748 Note that RFC1036bis says that a signature should be preceded by the three
1749 characters @samp{-- } on a line by themselves. This is to make it
1750 easier for the recipient to automatically recognize and process the
1751 signature. So don't remove those characters, even though you might feel
1752 that they ruin your beautiful design, like, totally.
1754 Also note that no signature should be more than four lines long.
1755 Including ASCII graphics is an efficient way to get everybody to believe
1756 that you are silly and have nothing important to say.
1759 @node Various Message Variables
1760 @section Various Message Variables
1763 @item message-default-charset
1764 @vindex message-default-charset
1766 Symbol naming a @sc{mime} charset. Non-ASCII characters in messages are
1767 assumed to be encoded using this charset. The default is @code{nil},
1768 which means ask the user. (This variable is used only on non-@sc{mule}
1770 @xref{Charset Translation, , Charset Translation, emacs-mime,
1771 Emacs MIME Manual}, for details on the @sc{mule}-to-@sc{mime}
1772 translation process.
1774 @item message-signature-separator
1775 @vindex message-signature-separator
1776 Regexp matching the signature separator. It is @samp{^-- *$} by
1779 @item mail-header-separator
1780 @vindex mail-header-separator
1781 String used to separate the headers from the body. It is @samp{--text
1782 follows this line--} by default.
1784 @item message-directory
1785 @vindex message-directory
1786 Directory used by many mailey things. The default is @file{~/Mail/}.
1788 @item message-auto-save-directory
1789 @vindex message-auto-save-directory
1790 Directory where Message auto-saves buffers if Gnus isn't running. If
1791 @code{nil}, Message won't auto-save. The default is @file{~/Mail/drafts/}.
1793 @item message-signature-setup-hook
1794 @vindex message-signature-setup-hook
1795 Hook run when initializing the message buffer. It is run after the
1796 headers have been inserted but before the signature has been inserted.
1798 @item message-setup-hook
1799 @vindex message-setup-hook
1800 Hook run as the last thing when the message buffer has been initialized,
1801 but before yanked text is inserted.
1803 @item message-header-setup-hook
1804 @vindex message-header-setup-hook
1805 Hook called narrowed to the headers after initializing the headers.
1807 For instance, if you're running Gnus and wish to insert a
1808 @samp{Mail-Copies-To} header in all your news articles and all messages
1809 you send to mailing lists, you could do something like the following:
1812 (defun my-message-header-setup-hook ()
1813 (let ((group (or gnus-newsgroup-name "")))
1814 (when (or (message-fetch-field "newsgroups")
1815 (gnus-group-find-parameter group 'to-address)
1816 (gnus-group-find-parameter group 'to-list))
1817 (insert "Mail-Copies-To: never\n"))))
1819 (add-hook 'message-header-setup-hook
1820 'my-message-header-setup-hook)
1823 @item message-send-hook
1824 @vindex message-send-hook
1825 Hook run before sending messages.
1827 If you want to add certain headers before sending, you can use the
1828 @code{message-add-header} function in this hook. For instance:
1829 @findex message-add-header
1832 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'my-message-add-content)
1833 (defun my-message-add-content ()
1834 (message-add-header "X-In-No-Sense: Nonsense")
1835 (message-add-header "X-Whatever: no"))
1838 This function won't add the header if the header is already present.
1840 @item message-send-mail-hook
1841 @vindex message-send-mail-hook
1842 Hook run before sending mail messages. This hook is run very late --
1843 just before the message is actually sent as mail.
1845 @item message-send-news-hook
1846 @vindex message-send-news-hook
1847 Hook run before sending news messages. This hook is run very late --
1848 just before the message is actually sent as news.
1850 @item message-sent-hook
1851 @vindex message-sent-hook
1852 Hook run after sending messages.
1854 @item message-cancel-hook
1855 @vindex message-cancel-hook
1856 Hook run when cancelling news articles.
1858 @item message-mode-syntax-table
1859 @vindex message-mode-syntax-table
1860 Syntax table used in message mode buffers.
1862 @item message-strip-special-text-properties
1863 @vindex message-strip-special-text-properties
1864 Emacs has a number of special text properties which can break message
1865 composing in various ways. If this option is set, message will strip
1866 these properties from the message composition buffer. However, some
1867 packages requires these properties to be present in order to work. If
1868 you use one of these packages, turn this option off, and hope the
1869 message composition doesn't break too bad.
1871 @item message-send-method-alist
1872 @vindex message-send-method-alist
1874 Alist of ways to send outgoing messages. Each element has the form
1877 (TYPE PREDICATE FUNCTION)
1882 A symbol that names the method.
1885 A function called without any parameters to determine whether the
1886 message is a message of type @var{type}.
1889 A function to be called if @var{predicate} returns non-@code{nil}.
1890 @var{function} is called with one parameter -- the prefix.
1894 ((news message-news-p message-send-via-news)
1895 (mail message-mail-p message-send-via-mail))
1904 @node Sending Variables
1905 @section Sending Variables
1909 @item message-fcc-handler-function
1910 @vindex message-fcc-handler-function
1911 A function called to save outgoing articles. This function will be
1912 called with the name of the file to store the article in. The default
1913 function is @code{message-output} which saves in Unix mailbox format.
1915 @item message-courtesy-message
1916 @vindex message-courtesy-message
1917 When sending combined messages, this string is inserted at the start of
1918 the mailed copy. If the string contains the format spec @samp{%s}, the
1919 newsgroups the article has been posted to will be inserted there. If
1920 this variable is @code{nil}, no such courtesy message will be added.
1921 The default value is @samp{"The following message is a courtesy copy of
1922 an article\\nthat has been posted to %s as well.\\n\\n"}.
1924 @item message-fcc-externalize-attachments
1925 @vindex message-fcc-externalize-attachments
1926 If @code{nil}, attach files as normal parts in Fcc copies; if it is
1927 non-@code{nil}, attach local files as external parts.
1929 @item message-interactive
1930 @vindex message-interactive
1931 If non-@code{nil} wait for and display errors when sending a message;
1932 if @code{nil} let the mailer mail back a message to report errors.
1937 @node Message Buffers
1938 @section Message Buffers
1940 Message will generate new buffers with unique buffer names when you
1941 request a message buffer. When you send the message, the buffer isn't
1942 normally killed off. Its name is changed and a certain number of old
1943 message buffers are kept alive.
1946 @item message-generate-new-buffers
1947 @vindex message-generate-new-buffers
1948 If non-@code{nil}, generate new buffers. The default is @code{t}. If
1949 this is a function, call that function with three parameters: The type,
1950 the to address and the group name. (Any of these may be @code{nil}.)
1951 The function should return the new buffer name.
1953 @item message-max-buffers
1954 @vindex message-max-buffers
1955 This variable says how many old message buffers to keep. If there are
1956 more message buffers than this, the oldest buffer will be killed. The
1957 default is 10. If this variable is @code{nil}, no old message buffers
1958 will ever be killed.
1960 @item message-send-rename-function
1961 @vindex message-send-rename-function
1962 After sending a message, the buffer is renamed from, for instance,
1963 @samp{*reply to Lars*} to @samp{*sent reply to Lars*}. If you don't
1964 like this, set this variable to a function that renames the buffer in a
1965 manner you like. If you don't want to rename the buffer at all, you can
1969 (setq message-send-rename-function 'ignore)
1972 @item message-kill-buffer-on-exit
1973 @findex message-kill-buffer-on-exit
1974 If non-@code{nil}, kill the buffer immediately on exit.
1979 @node Message Actions
1980 @section Message Actions
1982 When Message is being used from a news/mail reader, the reader is likely
1983 to want to perform some task after the message has been sent. Perhaps
1984 return to the previous window configuration or mark an article as
1987 @vindex message-kill-actions
1988 @vindex message-postpone-actions
1989 @vindex message-exit-actions
1990 @vindex message-send-actions
1991 The user may exit from the message buffer in various ways. The most
1992 common is @kbd{C-c C-c}, which sends the message and exits. Other
1993 possibilities are @kbd{C-c C-s} which just sends the message, @kbd{C-c
1994 C-d} which postpones the message editing and buries the message buffer,
1995 and @kbd{C-c C-k} which kills the message buffer. Each of these actions
1996 have lists associated with them that contains actions to be executed:
1997 @code{message-send-actions}, @code{message-exit-actions},
1998 @code{message-postpone-actions}, and @code{message-kill-actions}.
2000 Message provides a function to interface with these lists:
2001 @code{message-add-action}. The first parameter is the action to be
2002 added, and the rest of the arguments are which lists to add this action
2003 to. Here's an example from Gnus:
2007 `(set-window-configuration ,(current-window-configuration))
2008 'exit 'postpone 'kill)
2011 This restores the Gnus window configuration when the message buffer is
2012 killed, postponed or exited.
2014 An @dfn{action} can be either: a normal function, or a list where the
2015 @code{car} is a function and the @code{cdr} is the list of arguments, or
2016 a form to be @code{eval}ed.
2020 @chapter Compatibility
2021 @cindex compatibility
2023 Message uses virtually only its own variables---older @code{mail-}
2024 variables aren't consulted. To force Message to take those variables
2025 into account, you can put the following in your @file{.emacs} file:
2028 (require 'messcompat)
2031 This will initialize many Message variables from the values in the
2032 corresponding mail variables.
2039 * Responses:: Standard rules for determining where responses go.
2046 To determine where a message is to go, the following algorithm is used
2051 A @dfn{reply} is when you want to respond @emph{just} to the person who
2052 sent the message via mail. There will only be one recipient. To
2053 determine who the recipient will be, the following headers are
2064 A @dfn{wide reply} is a mail response that includes @emph{all} entities
2065 mentioned in the message you are responded to. All mailboxes from the
2066 following headers will be concatenated to form the outgoing
2067 @code{To}/@code{Cc} headers:
2071 (unless there's a @code{Reply-To}, in which case that is used instead).
2078 If a @code{Mail-Copies-To} header is present, it will also be included
2079 in the list of mailboxes. If this header is @samp{never}, that means
2080 that the @code{From} (or @code{Reply-To}) mailbox will be suppressed.
2084 A @dfn{followup} is a response sent via news. The following headers
2085 (listed in order of precedence) determine where the response is to be
2096 If a @code{Mail-Copies-To} header is present, it will be used as the
2097 basis of the new @code{Cc} header, except if this header is