10 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
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286 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
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295 Copyright \copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001,
297 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
300 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
301 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
302 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
303 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
304 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
305 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
306 License'' in the Emacs manual.
308 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
309 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
310 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
312 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
313 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
314 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
315 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
323 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
325 Copyright (C) 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003
326 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
328 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
329 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
330 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
331 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
332 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
333 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
334 License'' in the Emacs manual.
336 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
337 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
338 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
340 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
341 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
342 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
343 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
351 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
354 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
355 Copyright @copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001,
357 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
359 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
360 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
361 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
362 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
363 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
364 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
365 License'' in the Emacs manual.
367 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
368 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
369 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
371 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
372 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
373 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
374 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
383 @top The Gnus Newsreader
387 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
388 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@acronym{NNTP}, local
389 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
392 This manual corresponds to Oort Gnus v0.18.
403 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
404 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
406 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
407 being accused of plagiarism:
409 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
410 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
411 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
412 can even read news with it!
414 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
415 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
416 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
417 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
418 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
424 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
425 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
426 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
427 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
428 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
429 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
430 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
431 * Various:: General purpose settings.
432 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
433 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, @acronym{FAQ}, History, Internals.
434 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
435 * Key Index:: Key Index.
437 Other related manuals
439 * Message:(message). Composing messages.
440 * Emacs-MIME:(emacs-mime). Composing messages; @acronym{MIME}-specific parts.
441 * Sieve:(sieve). Managing Sieve scripts in Emacs.
442 * PGG:(pgg). @acronym{PGP/MIME} with Gnus.
445 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
449 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
450 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
451 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
452 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
453 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
454 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
455 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
456 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
457 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
458 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
459 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
463 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
464 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
465 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
469 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
470 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
471 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
472 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
473 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
474 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
475 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
476 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
477 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
478 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
479 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
480 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
481 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
482 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
483 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
484 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
485 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
489 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
490 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
491 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
495 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
496 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
497 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
498 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
499 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
503 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
504 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
505 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
506 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
507 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
511 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
512 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
513 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
514 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
515 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
516 * Delayed Articles:: Send articles at a later time.
517 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
518 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
519 * Threading:: How threads are made.
520 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
521 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
522 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
523 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
524 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
525 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
526 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
527 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
528 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
529 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
530 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
531 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
532 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
533 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
534 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
535 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
536 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
537 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
538 or reselecting the current group.
539 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
540 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
541 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
542 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
544 Summary Buffer Format
546 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
547 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
548 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
549 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
553 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
554 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
556 Reply, Followup and Post
558 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
559 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
560 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
561 * Canceling and Superseding::
565 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
566 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
567 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
569 * Generic Marking Commands::
570 * Setting Process Marks::
574 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
575 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
576 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
580 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
581 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
583 Customizing Threading
585 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
586 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
587 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
588 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over@dots{} but you were wrong!
592 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
593 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
594 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
595 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
596 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
597 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
601 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
602 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
603 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
607 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
608 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
609 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
610 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
611 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
612 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
613 * Article Button Levels:: Controlling appearance of buttons.
614 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
615 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
616 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
617 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
619 Alternative Approaches
621 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
622 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
624 Various Summary Stuff
626 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
627 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
628 * Summary Generation Commands::
629 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
633 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
634 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @acronym{MIME} before reading them.
635 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
636 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
637 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
641 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
642 * Posting Server:: What server should you post and mail via?
643 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
644 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
645 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
646 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
647 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
648 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
652 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
653 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
654 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
655 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
656 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @acronym{IMAP} client.
657 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
658 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
659 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
663 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
664 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
665 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
666 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
667 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
668 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
669 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
673 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @acronym{NNTP} server.
674 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
678 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
679 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
680 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
684 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
685 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
686 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
687 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
688 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
689 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
690 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
691 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
692 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
693 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
694 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
695 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
696 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
700 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
701 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
702 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
704 Choosing a Mail Back End
706 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
707 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the Rmail Babyl format.
708 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
709 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
710 * Maildir:: Another one-file-per-message format.
711 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
712 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
717 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
718 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
719 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
720 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
721 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
722 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
726 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
727 * Expiring in IMAP:: Expiring mail with nnimap.
728 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
729 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a ``compress mailbox'' button.
730 * A note on namespaces:: How to (not) use @acronym{IMAP} namespace in Gnus.
734 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
735 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
736 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
737 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
738 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
742 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
746 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
747 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
748 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
752 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
753 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
757 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
758 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
759 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
760 * Agent as Cache:: The Agent is a big cache too.
761 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
762 * Agent Regeneration:: How to recover from lost connections and other accidents.
763 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with @acronym{IMAP}.
764 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
765 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
766 * Example Setup:: An example @file{~/.gnus.el} file for offline people.
767 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
768 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
772 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
773 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
774 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
778 * Group Agent Commands:: Configure groups and fetch their contents.
779 * Summary Agent Commands:: Manually select then fetch specific articles.
780 * Server Agent Commands:: Select the servers that are supported by the agent.
784 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
785 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
786 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
787 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
788 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
789 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
790 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
791 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
792 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
793 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
794 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
795 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
796 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
797 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
798 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
799 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
800 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
804 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
805 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
806 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
807 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
811 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
812 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
813 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
817 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
818 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
819 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
820 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
821 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
822 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
823 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
824 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
825 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
826 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
827 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
828 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
829 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
830 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
831 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
832 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
833 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
834 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
835 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
839 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
840 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
841 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
842 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
843 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
844 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
845 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
846 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
850 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
851 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
852 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
853 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
857 * The problem of spam:: Some background, and some solutions
858 * Anti-Spam Basics:: Simple steps to reduce the amount of spam.
859 * SpamAssassin:: How to use external anti-spam tools.
860 * Hashcash:: Reduce spam by burning CPU time.
861 * Filtering Spam Using The Spam ELisp Package::
862 * Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat::
866 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
867 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
868 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
869 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
870 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
871 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
872 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
873 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
874 * Frequently Asked Questions::
878 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
879 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
880 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
881 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
882 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
883 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
884 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
885 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
886 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
890 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
891 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
892 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
893 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
894 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
898 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
899 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
900 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
901 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
905 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
906 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
907 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
908 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
909 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
910 * Group Info:: The group info format.
911 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
912 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
913 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
917 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
918 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
919 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
920 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
921 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
922 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
926 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
927 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
931 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
932 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
938 @chapter Starting Gnus
943 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
944 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
947 @findex gnus-other-frame
948 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
949 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
950 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
952 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
953 variables in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file. This file is similar to
954 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
956 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
957 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
960 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
961 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
962 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
963 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
964 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
965 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
966 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
967 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
968 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
969 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
970 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
974 @node Finding the News
975 @section Finding the News
978 @vindex gnus-select-method
980 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
981 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
982 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
983 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
986 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @acronym{NNTP} server is where
987 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
990 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
993 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
996 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
999 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
1000 certainly be much faster. But do not use the local spool if your
1001 server is running Leafnode; in this case, use @code{(nntp "localhost")}.
1003 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
1005 @cindex @acronym{NNTP} server
1006 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
1007 @env{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
1008 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
1009 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter.
1010 If that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs
1011 as an @acronym{NNTP} server. That's a long shot, though.
1013 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
1014 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
1015 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
1016 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
1018 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
1019 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
1020 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
1021 @acronym{NNTP} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
1022 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
1023 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
1024 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
1025 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
1026 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
1029 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
1031 However, if you use one @acronym{NNTP} server regularly and are just
1032 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
1033 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
1034 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
1035 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
1036 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
1038 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
1040 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
1041 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
1042 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
1043 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
1044 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
1045 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
1048 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} back end to read your mail,
1049 you would typically set this variable to
1052 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
1056 @node The First Time
1057 @section The First Time
1058 @cindex first time usage
1060 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
1061 be subscribed by default.
1063 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
1064 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
1065 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
1066 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1069 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1070 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1071 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1073 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
1074 help you with most common problems.
1076 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
1077 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1081 @node The Server is Down
1082 @section The Server is Down
1083 @cindex server errors
1085 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
1086 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1087 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
1089 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1090 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1091 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1092 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1093 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1094 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1095 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1097 @findex gnus-no-server
1098 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1100 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1101 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1102 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
1103 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1104 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1105 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1106 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1110 @section Slave Gnusae
1113 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
1114 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1115 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
1116 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1118 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1119 @file{.newsrc} file.
1121 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
1122 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1123 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1124 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1125 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1126 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1127 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1130 Anyway, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1131 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
1132 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1133 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1134 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
1135 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1136 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1137 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1139 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1140 information in the normal (i.e., master) @file{.newsrc} file.
1142 If the @file{.newsrc*} files have not been saved in the master when the
1143 slave starts, you may be prompted as to whether to read an auto-save
1144 file. If you answer ``yes'', the unsaved changes to the master will be
1145 incorporated into the slave. If you answer ``no'', the slave may see some
1146 messages as unread that have been read in the master.
1148 @node Fetching a Group
1149 @section Fetching a Group
1150 @cindex fetching a group
1152 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1153 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1154 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
1155 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1156 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1157 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1163 @cindex subscription
1165 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1166 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1167 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1168 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1169 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1170 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1171 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1172 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the back ends for new groups even
1173 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1176 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1177 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1178 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1182 @node Checking New Groups
1183 @subsection Checking New Groups
1185 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1186 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1187 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1188 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
1189 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1190 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1191 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1192 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1193 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1194 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1196 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1197 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1198 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1199 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1200 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1201 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
1202 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1203 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1204 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1205 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1206 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1208 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
1209 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1210 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1211 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1212 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1213 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1216 @node Subscription Methods
1217 @subsection Subscription Methods
1219 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1220 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1221 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1223 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1224 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1226 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1230 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1231 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1232 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1233 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1234 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1236 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1237 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1238 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1239 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1241 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1242 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1243 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1245 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1246 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1247 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1248 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1249 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1250 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1251 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1252 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1253 up. Or something like that.
1255 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1256 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1257 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
1258 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1259 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1261 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1262 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1263 Kill all new groups.
1265 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1266 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1267 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1268 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1269 topic parameter that looks like
1275 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1278 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1283 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1284 A closely related variable is
1285 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1286 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
1287 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1288 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1291 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1292 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1293 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1294 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1297 @node Filtering New Groups
1298 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1300 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1301 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1302 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1305 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1308 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1309 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1310 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1311 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1312 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1313 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1314 subscribing these groups.
1315 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1316 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1318 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1319 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1320 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1321 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1322 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1323 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1324 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1325 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1327 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1328 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1329 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1330 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1331 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1332 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1333 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1334 that come from mail back ends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1335 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, @code{nnmh}, and @code{nnmaildir})
1336 subscribed. If you don't like that, just set this variable to
1339 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1340 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1343 @node Changing Servers
1344 @section Changing Servers
1345 @cindex changing servers
1347 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @acronym{NNTP} server to another.
1348 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1349 very flaky and you want to use another.
1351 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1352 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1356 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1357 @acronym{NNTP} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1358 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1359 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1362 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1363 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1364 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1365 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1367 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1368 @findex gnus-change-server
1369 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1370 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1371 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1372 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1373 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1375 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1376 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1377 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1378 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1379 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1381 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1382 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1383 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1384 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1385 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1386 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1388 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data
1389 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1390 Clear the data from the current group only---nix out marks and the
1391 list of read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1393 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1394 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1395 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1396 @code{gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} will ask you if you want
1397 to have it done automatically; for @code{gnus-group-clear-data}, you
1398 can use @kbd{M-x gnus-cache-move-cache} (but beware, it will move the
1399 cache for all groups).
1403 @section Startup Files
1404 @cindex startup files
1409 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1410 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1412 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1413 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1414 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1415 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1416 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1417 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1418 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1420 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1421 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1422 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1423 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1424 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1425 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1427 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1428 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1429 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1430 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1431 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
1432 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1433 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1434 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
1435 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1436 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1438 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1439 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1440 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1441 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1442 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1443 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1444 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1445 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1446 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1447 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1448 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1449 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1451 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1452 @vindex gnus-backup-startup-file
1453 @vindex version-control
1454 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1455 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1456 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1457 If you want version control for this file, set
1458 @code{gnus-backup-startup-file}. It respects the same values as the
1459 @code{version-control} variable.
1461 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1462 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1463 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1464 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1465 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1466 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1467 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1468 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1469 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1470 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1473 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1474 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1476 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1477 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1480 @vindex gnus-init-file
1481 @vindex gnus-site-init-file
1482 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1483 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1484 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1485 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1486 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1487 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1488 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1489 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1490 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1496 @cindex dribble file
1499 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
1500 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1501 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1502 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1503 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1506 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1507 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1510 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1511 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
1512 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1514 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1515 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1516 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
1517 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1518 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1519 file permissions as the @file{.newsrc} file.
1521 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1522 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1523 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1526 @node The Active File
1527 @section The Active File
1529 @cindex ignored groups
1531 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1532 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1533 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1535 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1536 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
1537 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1538 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
1539 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1540 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1541 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1544 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1545 @c if you set it to anything else.
1547 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1549 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1550 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
1551 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1553 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1554 you actually subscribe to.
1556 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1557 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
1558 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
1559 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1561 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1562 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1563 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1564 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1565 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1566 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1568 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1569 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1570 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1573 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
1574 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1575 @acronym{NNTP} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1576 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1577 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1578 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1580 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1581 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1583 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1584 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1586 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1587 secondary select methods.
1590 @node Startup Variables
1591 @section Startup Variables
1595 @item gnus-load-hook
1596 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1597 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1598 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1599 times you start Gnus.
1601 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1602 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1603 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1605 @item gnus-startup-hook
1606 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1607 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1609 @item gnus-started-hook
1610 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1611 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1614 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1615 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1616 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1617 generating the group buffer.
1619 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1620 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1621 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1622 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1623 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1624 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1625 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1626 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1628 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1629 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1630 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1631 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1632 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1633 @file{~/.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @file{.emacs} instead.
1635 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1636 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1637 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1639 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1640 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1641 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1643 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1644 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1645 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1646 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1652 @chapter Group Buffer
1653 @cindex group buffer
1655 @c Alex Schroeder suggests to rearrange this as follows:
1657 @c <kensanata> ok, just save it for reference. I'll go to bed in a minute.
1658 @c 1. Selecting a Group, 2. (new) Finding a Group, 3. Group Levels,
1659 @c 4. Subscription Commands, 5. Group Maneuvering, 6. Group Data,
1660 @c 7. Group Score, 8. Group Buffer Format
1661 @c <kensanata> Group Levels should have more information on levels 5 to 9. I
1662 @c suggest to split the 4th paragraph ("Gnus considers groups...") as follows:
1663 @c <kensanata> First, "Gnus considers groups... (default 9)."
1664 @c <kensanata> New, a table summarizing what levels 1 to 9 mean.
1665 @c <kensanata> Third, "Gnus treats subscribed ... reasons of efficiency"
1666 @c <kensanata> Then expand the next paragraph or add some more to it.
1667 @c This short one sentence explains levels 1 and 2, therefore I understand
1668 @c that I should keep important news at 3 and boring news at 4.
1669 @c Say so! Then go on to explain why I should bother with levels 6 to 9.
1670 @c Maybe keep those that you don't want to read temporarily at 6,
1671 @c those that you never want to read at 8, those that offend your
1672 @c human rights at 9...
1675 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1676 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1677 long as Gnus is active.
1681 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1682 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group,height=9cm}}
1683 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1684 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1685 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1686 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1687 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1688 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1694 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1695 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1696 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1697 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1698 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1699 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1700 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1701 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1702 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1703 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1704 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1705 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1706 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1707 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1708 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1709 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1710 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1714 @node Group Buffer Format
1715 @section Group Buffer Format
1718 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1719 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1720 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1724 @node Group Line Specification
1725 @subsection Group Line Specification
1726 @cindex group buffer format
1728 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1729 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1731 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1734 25: news.announce.newusers
1735 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1740 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1741 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1742 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1743 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1745 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1746 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1747 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1748 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1749 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1750 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1752 @samp{%M%S%5y:%B%(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1754 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1755 the colon after performing an operation. @xref{Positioning
1756 Point}. Nothing else is required---not even the group name. All
1757 displayed text is just window dressing, and is never examined by Gnus.
1758 Gnus stores all real information it needs using text properties.
1760 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1761 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1762 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1764 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1769 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1772 Whether the group is subscribed.
1775 Level of subscribedness.
1778 Number of unread articles.
1781 Number of dormant articles.
1784 Number of ticked articles.
1787 Number of read articles.
1790 Number of unseen articles.
1793 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1794 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1796 Gnus uses this estimation because the @acronym{NNTP} protocol provides
1797 efficient access to @var{max-number} and @var{min-number} but getting
1798 the true unread message count is not possible efficiently. For
1799 hysterical raisins, even the mail back ends, where the true number of
1800 unread messages might be available efficiently, use the same limited
1801 interface. To remove this restriction from Gnus means that the back
1802 end interface has to be changed, which is not an easy job. If you
1803 want to work on this, please contact the Gnus mailing list.
1806 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1809 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1818 Group comment (@pxref{Group Parameters}) or group name if there is no
1819 comment element in the group parameters.
1822 Newsgroup description. You need to read the group descriptions
1823 before these will appear, and to do that, you either have to set
1824 @code{gnus-read-active-file} or use the group buffer @kbd{M-d}
1828 @samp{m} if moderated.
1831 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1837 If the summary buffer for the group is open or not.
1843 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1847 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1850 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1851 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1852 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1853 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1854 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1857 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1859 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1863 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1866 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1870 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1871 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1872 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1873 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1874 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1875 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1880 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1881 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1882 group, or a bogus native group.
1885 @node Group Modeline Specification
1886 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1887 @cindex group modeline
1889 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1890 The mode line can be changed by setting
1891 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1892 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1896 The native news server.
1898 The native select method.
1902 @node Group Highlighting
1903 @subsection Group Highlighting
1904 @cindex highlighting
1905 @cindex group highlighting
1907 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1908 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1909 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1910 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1911 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1913 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1917 (cond (window-system
1918 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1919 (defface my-group-face-1
1920 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1921 (defface my-group-face-2
1922 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1923 (defface my-group-face-3
1924 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1925 (defface my-group-face-4
1926 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1927 (defface my-group-face-5
1928 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1930 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1931 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1932 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1933 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1934 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1935 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1938 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1940 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1947 The number of unread articles in the group.
1951 Whether the group is a mail group.
1953 The level of the group.
1955 The score of the group.
1957 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1959 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather,
1960 @var{max-number} minus @var{min-number} plus one.
1962 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1963 topic being inserted.
1966 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1967 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1968 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1970 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1971 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1972 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1973 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1974 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1977 @node Group Maneuvering
1978 @section Group Maneuvering
1979 @cindex group movement
1981 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1982 expected, hopefully.
1988 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1989 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1990 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1996 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1997 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1998 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
2002 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2003 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2007 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2008 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2012 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
2013 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
2014 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
2018 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
2019 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
2020 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
2023 Three commands for jumping to groups:
2029 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
2030 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
2031 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
2036 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
2037 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
2038 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
2042 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
2043 Jump to the first group with unread articles
2044 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
2047 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
2048 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
2049 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
2050 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
2054 @node Selecting a Group
2055 @section Selecting a Group
2056 @cindex group selection
2061 @kindex SPACE (Group)
2062 @findex gnus-group-read-group
2063 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
2064 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
2065 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
2066 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
2067 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{n}, @var{n}
2068 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{n} is
2069 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{n} newest articles, if @var{n} is
2070 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{n})} oldest articles.
2072 Thus, @kbd{SPC} enters the group normally, @kbd{C-u SPC} offers old
2073 articles, @kbd{C-u 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 newest articles, and @kbd{C-u
2074 - 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 oldest ones.
2076 When you are in the group (in the Summary buffer), you can type
2077 @kbd{M-g} to fetch new articles, or @kbd{C-u M-g} to also show the old
2082 @findex gnus-group-select-group
2083 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
2084 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
2085 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
2086 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
2090 @kindex M-RET (Group)
2091 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
2092 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
2093 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
2094 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
2095 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
2096 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
2097 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
2098 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
2099 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
2102 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
2103 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
2104 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
2105 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
2106 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
2109 @kindex C-M-RET (Group)
2110 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
2111 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
2112 doing any processing of its contents
2113 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
2114 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
2115 manner will have no permanent effects.
2119 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
2120 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
2121 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
2122 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
2123 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
2124 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
2125 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
2126 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
2129 @vindex gnus-large-ephemeral-newsgroup
2130 Same as @code{gnus-large-newsgroup}, but only used for ephemeral
2133 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
2134 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
2135 @vindex gnus-auto-select-subject
2136 If @code{gnus-auto-select-first} is non-@code{nil}, select an article
2137 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
2138 Which article this is is controlled by the
2139 @code{gnus-auto-select-subject} variable. Valid values for this
2145 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article.
2148 Place point on the subject line of the first article.
2151 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article.
2153 @item unseen-or-unread
2154 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article, and if
2155 there is no such article, place point on the subject line of the first
2159 Place point on the subject line of the highest-scored unread article.
2163 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function
2164 will be called to place point on a subject line.
2166 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2167 binary group with Huge articles) you can set the
2168 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} variable to @code{nil} in
2169 @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2173 @node Subscription Commands
2174 @section Subscription Commands
2175 @cindex subscription
2183 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2184 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2185 Toggle subscription to the current group
2186 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2192 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2193 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2194 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2195 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2201 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2202 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2203 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2209 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2210 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2213 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2214 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2215 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2216 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2217 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2223 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2224 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2228 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2229 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2232 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2233 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2234 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2235 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2236 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2237 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2238 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2239 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2240 @file{.newsrc} file.
2244 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2254 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2255 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2256 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2257 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2258 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2259 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2264 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2265 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2266 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2270 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2271 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2272 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2274 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2275 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2276 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2277 If you have switched from one @acronym{NNTP} server to another, all your marks
2278 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2279 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2286 @section Group Levels
2290 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2291 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2292 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2293 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2294 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2296 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2302 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2303 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2304 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2305 prompted for a level.
2308 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2309 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2310 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2311 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2312 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2313 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2314 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2315 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2316 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2317 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2318 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2319 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2320 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2321 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2322 reasons of efficiency.
2324 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2325 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2327 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2328 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2329 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2330 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2331 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2332 groups are hidden, in a way.
2334 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2335 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2336 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2337 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2338 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2339 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2341 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2342 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2343 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2344 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2345 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2346 list of killed groups.)
2348 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2349 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2350 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2352 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2353 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2354 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2355 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2356 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2357 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2358 relevant valid ranges.
2360 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2361 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2362 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2363 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2364 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2365 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2368 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2369 one with the best level.
2371 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2372 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2373 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2376 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2377 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2378 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2379 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2382 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2383 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2384 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2385 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2387 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2388 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2389 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2390 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2391 to 5. The default is 6.
2395 @section Group Score
2400 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2401 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2402 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2405 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2406 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2407 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2408 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2409 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2410 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2411 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2412 least significant part.))
2414 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2415 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2416 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2417 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2418 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2419 action after each summary exit, you can add
2420 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2421 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2422 slow things down somewhat.
2425 @node Marking Groups
2426 @section Marking Groups
2427 @cindex marking groups
2429 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2430 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2431 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2432 bidding on those groups.
2434 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2435 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2436 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2444 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2445 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2451 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2452 Remove the mark from the current group
2453 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2457 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2458 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2462 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2463 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2467 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2468 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2472 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2473 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2474 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2477 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2479 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2480 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2481 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2482 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2483 the command to be executed.
2486 @node Foreign Groups
2487 @section Foreign Groups
2488 @cindex foreign groups
2490 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2491 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2492 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2493 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2500 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2501 @cindex making groups
2502 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2503 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2504 to subscribe to @acronym{NNTP} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2508 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2509 @cindex renaming groups
2510 Rename the current group to something else
2511 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2512 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2518 @findex gnus-group-customize
2519 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2523 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2524 @cindex renaming groups
2525 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2526 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2530 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2531 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2532 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2536 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2537 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2538 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2542 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2544 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2545 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2550 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2551 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2555 @cindex (ding) archive
2556 @cindex archive group
2557 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2558 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2559 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2560 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2561 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2562 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2563 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2567 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2569 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2570 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2571 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2572 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2576 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2578 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2579 @code{nneething} back end (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2580 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2584 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2585 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2587 Make a group based on some file or other
2588 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2589 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2590 Currently supported types are @code{mbox}, @code{babyl},
2591 @code{digest}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward},
2592 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts},
2593 @code{standard-digest}, @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs},
2594 @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook}, @code{oe-dbx}, and @code{mailman}. If
2595 you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2596 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2600 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2601 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2602 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2603 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2607 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2611 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2612 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2613 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2614 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2615 include @code{google}, @code{dejanews}, and @code{gmane}.
2616 @xref{Web Searches}.
2618 If you use the @code{google} search engine, you can limit the search
2619 to a particular group by using a match string like
2620 @samp{shaving group:alt.sysadmin.recovery}.
2623 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2624 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2625 This function will delete the current group
2626 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2627 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2628 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2629 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2630 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2634 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2635 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2636 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2640 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2641 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2642 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2645 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2648 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2649 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2650 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2651 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2652 groups from different @acronym{NNTP} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2653 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2657 @node Group Parameters
2658 @section Group Parameters
2659 @cindex group parameters
2661 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2662 Here's an example group parameter list:
2665 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2669 We see that each element consists of a ``dotted pair''---the thing before
2670 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2671 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2672 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2674 Some parameters have correspondant customizable variables, each of which
2675 is an alist of regexps and values.
2677 The following group parameters can be used:
2682 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2685 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2688 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2689 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2690 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2691 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2692 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2694 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2695 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2696 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2697 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2698 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2699 list address instead.
2701 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-address-alist}.
2705 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2708 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2711 It is totally ignored
2712 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2713 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2715 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2716 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2717 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2718 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2719 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2721 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2722 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2723 sending the message.
2725 @findex gnus-mailing-list-mode
2726 @cindex Mail List Groups
2727 If this variable is set, @code{gnus-mailing-list-mode} is turned on when
2728 entering summary buffer.
2730 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-list-alist}.
2735 If this parameter is set to @code{t}, Gnus will consider the
2736 to-address and to-list parameters for this group as addresses of
2737 mailing lists you are subscribed to. Giving Gnus this information is
2738 (only) a first step in getting it to generate correct Mail-Followup-To
2739 headers for your posts to these lists. Look here @pxref{Mailing
2740 Lists, , Mailing Lists, message, The Message Manual} for a complete
2741 treatment of available MFT support.
2743 See also @code{gnus-find-subscribed-addresses}, the function that
2744 directly uses this group parameter.
2748 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2749 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2750 of whether it has any unread articles.
2752 @item broken-reply-to
2753 @cindex broken-reply-to
2754 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2755 headers in this group are to be ignored, and for the header to be hidden
2756 if @code{reply-to} is part of @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}. This
2757 can be useful if you're reading a mailing list group where the listserv
2758 has inserted @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv
2759 itself. That is broken behavior. So there!
2763 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2764 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2768 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2769 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2770 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2775 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2776 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2777 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2778 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2779 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2780 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2781 (@pxref{Archived Messages}). CAVEAT:: It yields an error putting
2782 @code{(gcc-self . t)} in groups of a @code{nntp} server or so, because
2783 a @code{nntp} server doesn't accept articles.
2787 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2788 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2789 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2791 See also @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups}.
2794 @cindex total-expire
2795 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2796 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2797 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2798 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2801 See also @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups}.
2805 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2806 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2807 @code{(expiry-wait . 10)}, this value will override any
2808 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function}
2809 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}) when expiring expirable messages. The value
2810 can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or the
2811 symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2814 @cindex score file group parameter
2815 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2816 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2817 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2820 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2821 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2822 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2823 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2826 @cindex admin-address
2827 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2828 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2829 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2830 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2834 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2835 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2839 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2842 Display the last @var{integer} articles in the group. This is the same as
2843 entering the group with @kbd{C-u @var{integer}}.
2846 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2850 Display articles that satisfy a predicate.
2852 Here are some examples:
2856 Display only unread articles.
2859 Display everything except expirable articles.
2861 @item [and (not reply) (not expire)]
2862 Display everything except expirable and articles you've already
2866 The available operators are @code{not}, @code{and} and @code{or}.
2867 Predicates include @code{tick}, @code{unsend}, @code{undownload},
2868 @code{unread}, @code{dormant}, @code{expire}, @code{reply},
2869 @code{killed}, @code{bookmark}, @code{score}, @code{save},
2870 @code{cache}, @code{forward}, @code{unseen} and @code{recent}.
2874 The @code{display} parameter works by limiting the summary buffer to
2875 the subset specified. You can pop the limit by using the @kbd{/ w}
2876 command (@pxref{Limiting}).
2880 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")} are
2881 arbitrary comments on the group. You can display comments in the
2882 group line (@pxref{Group Line Specification}).
2886 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2887 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2888 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2890 See also @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}.
2892 @item ignored-charsets
2893 @cindex ignored-charset
2894 Elements that look like @code{(ignored-charsets x-unknown iso-8859-1)}
2895 will make @code{iso-8859-1} and @code{x-unknown} ignored; that is, the
2896 default charset will be used for decoding articles.
2898 See also @code{gnus-group-ignored-charsets-alist}.
2901 @cindex posting-style
2902 You can store additional posting style information for this group
2903 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2904 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2905 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2906 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2908 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2909 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2910 like this in the group parameters:
2915 ("X-My-Header" "Funky Value")
2916 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2921 If it is set, the value is used as the method for posting message
2922 instead of @code{gnus-post-method}.
2926 An item like @code{(banner . @var{regexp})} causes any part of an article
2927 that matches the regular expression @var{regexp} to be stripped. Instead of
2928 @var{regexp}, you can also use the symbol @code{signature} which strips the
2929 last signature or any of the elements of the alist
2930 @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}.
2934 This parameter contains a Sieve test that should match incoming mail
2935 that should be placed in this group. From this group parameter, a
2936 Sieve @samp{IF} control structure is generated, having the test as the
2937 condition and @samp{fileinto "group.name";} as the body.
2939 For example, if the INBOX.list.sieve group has the @code{(sieve
2940 address "sender" "sieve-admin@@extundo.com")} group parameter, when
2941 translating the group parameter into a Sieve script (@pxref{Sieve
2942 Commands}) the following Sieve code is generated:
2945 if address \"sender\" \"sieve-admin@@extundo.com\" @{
2946 fileinto \"INBOX.list.sieve\";
2950 The Sieve language is described in RFC 3028. @xref{Top, , Top, sieve,
2953 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2954 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2955 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2956 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2957 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2958 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2959 @code{eval}ed there.
2961 Note that this feature sets the variable locally to the summary buffer.
2962 But some variables are evaluated in the article buffer, or in the
2963 message buffer (of a reply or followup or otherwise newly created
2964 message). As a workaround, it might help to add the variable in
2965 question to @code{gnus-newsgroup-variables}. @xref{Various Summary
2966 Stuff}. So if you want to set @code{message-from-style} via the group
2967 parameters, then you may need the following statement elsewhere in your
2968 @file{~/.gnus} file:
2970 (add-to-list 'gnus-newsgroup-variables 'message-from-style)
2973 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
2974 A use for this feature is to remove a mailing list identifier tag in
2975 the subject fields of articles. E.g. if the news group
2976 @samp{nntp+news.gnus.org:gmane.text.docbook.apps} has the tag
2977 @samp{DOC-BOOK-APPS:} in the subject of all articles, this tag can be
2978 removed from the article subjects in the summary buffer for the group by
2979 putting @code{(gnus-list-identifiers "DOCBOOK-APPS:")} into the group
2980 parameters for the group.
2982 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2983 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2984 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2985 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2986 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2990 Use the @kbd{G p} or the @kbd{G c} command to edit group parameters of a
2991 group. (@kbd{G p} presents you with a Lisp-based interface, @kbd{G c}
2992 presents you with a Customize-like interface. The latter helps avoid
2993 silly Lisp errors.) You might also be interested in reading about topic
2994 parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}).
2996 @vindex gnus-parameters
2997 Group parameters can be set via the @code{gnus-parameters} variable too.
2998 But some variables, such as @code{visible}, have no effect. For
3002 (setq gnus-parameters
3004 (gnus-show-threads nil)
3005 (gnus-use-scoring nil)
3006 (gnus-summary-line-format
3007 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%d:%ub%-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
3011 ("^nnimap:\\(foo.bar\\)$"
3015 (gnus-use-scoring t))
3019 (broken-reply-to . t))))
3022 String value of parameters will be subjected to regexp substitution, as
3023 the @code{to-group} example shows.
3026 @node Listing Groups
3027 @section Listing Groups
3028 @cindex group listing
3030 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
3038 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
3039 List all groups that have unread articles
3040 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
3041 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
3042 only lists groups of level five (i.e.,
3043 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
3050 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
3051 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
3052 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
3053 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
3054 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
3055 unsubscribed groups).
3059 @findex gnus-group-list-level
3060 List all unread groups on a specific level
3061 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
3062 with no unread articles.
3066 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
3067 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
3068 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
3069 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
3074 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
3075 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
3079 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
3080 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
3081 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
3085 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
3086 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
3090 @findex gnus-group-list-active
3091 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
3092 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
3093 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
3094 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
3095 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
3096 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
3097 Take the output with some grains of salt.
3101 @findex gnus-group-apropos
3102 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
3103 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
3107 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
3108 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
3109 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
3113 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
3114 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
3118 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
3119 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
3123 @findex gnus-group-list-limit
3124 List groups limited within the current selection
3125 (@code{gnus-group-list-limit}).
3129 @findex gnus-group-list-flush
3130 Flush groups from the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-flush}).
3134 @findex gnus-group-list-plus
3135 List groups plus the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-plus}).
3139 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3140 @cindex visible group parameter
3141 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
3142 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
3143 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
3144 get the same effect.
3146 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
3147 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
3148 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
3149 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
3150 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
3153 @node Sorting Groups
3154 @section Sorting Groups
3155 @cindex sorting groups
3157 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
3158 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
3159 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
3160 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
3161 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
3162 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
3167 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3168 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3169 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
3171 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3172 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3173 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
3175 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
3176 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
3177 Sort by group level.
3179 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
3180 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
3181 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
3183 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3184 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3185 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
3186 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
3188 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3189 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3190 Sort by number of unread articles.
3192 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
3193 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
3194 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
3196 @item gnus-group-sort-by-server
3197 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-server
3198 Sort alphabetically on the Gnus server name.
3203 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
3204 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
3208 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
3209 some sorting criteria:
3213 @kindex G S a (Group)
3214 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3215 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
3216 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3219 @kindex G S u (Group)
3220 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
3221 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
3222 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3225 @kindex G S l (Group)
3226 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
3227 Sort the group buffer by group level
3228 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
3231 @kindex G S v (Group)
3232 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
3233 Sort the group buffer by group score
3234 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3237 @kindex G S r (Group)
3238 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
3239 Sort the group buffer by group rank
3240 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3243 @kindex G S m (Group)
3244 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
3245 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by back end name
3246 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
3249 @kindex G S n (Group)
3250 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-real-name
3251 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by real (unprefixed) group name
3252 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-real-name}).
3256 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
3257 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3259 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
3260 commands will sort in reverse order.
3262 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
3266 @kindex G P a (Group)
3267 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
3268 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
3269 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
3272 @kindex G P u (Group)
3273 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
3274 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
3275 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
3278 @kindex G P l (Group)
3279 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
3280 Sort the groups by group level
3281 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
3284 @kindex G P v (Group)
3285 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
3286 Sort the groups by group score
3287 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3290 @kindex G P r (Group)
3291 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
3292 Sort the groups by group rank
3293 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3296 @kindex G P m (Group)
3297 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
3298 Sort the groups alphabetically by back end name
3299 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
3302 @kindex G P n (Group)
3303 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-real-name
3304 Sort the groups alphabetically by real (unprefixed) group name
3305 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-real-name}).
3308 @kindex G P s (Group)
3309 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups
3310 Sort the groups according to @code{gnus-group-sort-function}.
3314 And finally, note that you can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} to manually
3318 @node Group Maintenance
3319 @section Group Maintenance
3320 @cindex bogus groups
3325 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
3326 Find bogus groups and delete them
3327 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
3331 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
3332 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
3333 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
3334 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
3335 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
3339 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
3340 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
3341 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
3342 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}). That is, delete
3343 all expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
3344 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3347 @kindex C-c C-M-x (Group)
3348 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3349 Run all expirable articles in all groups through the expiry process
3350 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3355 @node Browse Foreign Server
3356 @section Browse Foreign Server
3357 @cindex foreign servers
3358 @cindex browsing servers
3363 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3364 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3365 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3366 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3369 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3370 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3371 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3372 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3374 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3379 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3380 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3384 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3385 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3388 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3389 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3390 Enter the current group and display the first article
3391 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3394 @kindex RET (Browse)
3395 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3396 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3400 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3401 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3402 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3408 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3409 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3413 @findex gnus-browse-describe-group
3414 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-browse-describe-group}).
3418 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3419 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3420 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3425 @section Exiting Gnus
3426 @cindex exiting Gnus
3428 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
3433 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3434 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
3435 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3436 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3440 @findex gnus-group-exit
3441 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3442 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3446 @findex gnus-group-quit
3447 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3448 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3451 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3452 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3453 @vindex gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook
3454 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
3455 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
3456 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3462 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3463 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3464 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3470 @section Group Topics
3473 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3474 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3475 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3476 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3477 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3478 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3482 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3483 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group-topic,height=9cm}}
3494 2: alt.religion.emacs
3497 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3499 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3500 13: comp.sources.unix
3503 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3505 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3506 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3507 is a toggling command.)
3509 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3510 dum@dots{} Nice tune, that@dots{} la la la@dots{} What, you're back?
3511 Yes, and now press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed
3512 under @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy?
3515 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3516 the hook for the group mode. Put the following line in your
3517 @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
3520 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3524 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3525 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3526 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3527 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3528 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3532 @node Topic Commands
3533 @subsection Topic Commands
3534 @cindex topic commands
3536 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3537 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3538 definitions slightly.
3540 In general, the following kinds of operations are possible on topics.
3541 First of all, you want to create topics. Secondly, you want to put
3542 groups in topics and to move them around until you have an order you
3543 like. The third kind of operation is to show/hide parts of the whole
3544 shebang. You might want to hide a topic including its subtopics and
3545 groups, to get a better overview of the other groups.
3547 Here is a list of the basic keys that you might need to set up topics
3554 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3555 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3556 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3560 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3562 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3563 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3564 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3565 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3568 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3569 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3570 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3571 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3575 The following two keys can be used to move groups and topics around.
3576 They work like the well-known cut and paste. @kbd{C-k} is like cut and
3577 @kbd{C-y} is like paste. Of course, this being Emacs, we use the terms
3578 kill and yank rather than cut and paste.
3584 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3585 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3586 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3590 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3591 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3592 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3595 So, to move a topic to the beginning of the list of topics, just hit
3596 @kbd{C-k} on it. This is like the `cut' part of cut and paste. Then,
3597 move the cursor to the beginning of the buffer (just below the `Gnus'
3598 topic) and hit @kbd{C-y}. This is like the `paste' part of cut and
3599 paste. Like I said -- E-Z.
3601 You can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} on groups as well as on topics. So
3602 you can move topics around as well as groups.
3606 After setting up the topics the way you like them, you might wish to
3607 hide a topic, or to show it again. That's why we have the following
3614 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3616 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3617 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3618 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3619 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3620 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3621 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3625 Now for a list of other commands, in no particular order.
3631 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3632 Move the current group to some other topic
3633 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3634 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3638 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3639 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3643 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3644 Copy the current group to some other topic
3645 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3646 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3650 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3651 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3652 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3656 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3657 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3658 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3662 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3663 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3664 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3665 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3666 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3667 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3668 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3671 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3672 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3676 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3677 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3678 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3682 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3683 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3684 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3688 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3689 Toggle hiding empty topics
3690 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3694 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3695 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3696 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}). This command works recursively on
3697 sub-topics unless given a prefix.
3700 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3701 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3702 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3703 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}). This command works recursively on
3704 sub-topics unless given a prefix.
3707 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3708 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3709 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the
3710 expiry process (if any)
3711 (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}). (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3715 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3716 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3719 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3720 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3721 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3725 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3726 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3727 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3730 @kindex T M-n (Topic)
3731 @findex gnus-topic-goto-next-topic
3732 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-next-topic}).
3735 @kindex T M-p (Topic)
3736 @findex gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic
3737 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic}).
3741 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3742 @cindex group parameters
3743 @cindex topic parameters
3745 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3746 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3751 @node Topic Variables
3752 @subsection Topic Variables
3753 @cindex topic variables
3755 The previous section told you how to tell Gnus which topics to display.
3756 This section explains how to tell Gnus what to display about each topic.
3758 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3759 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3760 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3773 Number of groups in the topic.
3775 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3777 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3780 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3781 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3782 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3785 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3786 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3788 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3789 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3790 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3794 @subsection Topic Sorting
3795 @cindex topic sorting
3797 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3803 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3804 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3805 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3806 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3809 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3810 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3811 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3812 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3815 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3816 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3817 Sort the current topic by group level
3818 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3821 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3822 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3823 Sort the current topic by group score
3824 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3827 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3828 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3829 Sort the current topic by group rank
3830 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3833 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3834 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3835 Sort the current topic alphabetically by back end name
3836 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3839 @kindex T S e (Topic)
3840 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server
3841 Sort the current topic alphabetically by server name
3842 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server}).
3846 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups
3847 Sort the current topic according to the function(s) given by the
3848 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable
3849 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups}).
3853 When given a prefix argument, all these commands will sort in reverse
3854 order. @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group
3858 @node Topic Topology
3859 @subsection Topic Topology
3860 @cindex topic topology
3863 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3869 2: alt.religion.emacs
3872 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3874 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3875 13: comp.sources.unix
3878 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3879 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3880 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3885 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3886 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3890 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3891 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3892 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3893 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3894 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3895 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3897 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3898 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3899 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3902 @node Topic Parameters
3903 @subsection Topic Parameters
3904 @cindex topic parameters
3906 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3907 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3908 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3910 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3915 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3916 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3917 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3920 @item subscribe-level
3921 When subscribing new groups by topic (see the @code{subscribe} parameter),
3922 the group will be subscribed with the level specified in the
3923 @code{subscribe-level} instead of @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}.
3927 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3928 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3929 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3930 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3936 2: alt.religion.emacs
3940 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3942 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3943 13: comp.sources.unix
3947 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3948 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3949 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3950 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3951 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3952 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3954 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3955 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3956 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3957 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3958 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3960 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3961 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3962 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3963 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3964 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3965 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3966 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3967 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3970 @node Misc Group Stuff
3971 @section Misc Group Stuff
3974 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3975 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
3976 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3977 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3978 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
3985 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3986 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3987 @xref{Server Buffer}.
3991 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3992 Start composing a message (a news by default)
3993 (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a prefix, post to the group
3994 under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
3995 Contrary to what the name of this function suggests, the prepared
3996 article might be a mail instead of a news, if a mail group is specified
3997 with the prefix argument. @xref{Composing Messages}.
4001 @findex gnus-group-mail
4002 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}). If given a prefix,
4003 use the posting style of the group under the point. If the prefix is 1,
4004 prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
4005 @xref{Composing Messages}.
4009 @findex gnus-group-news
4010 Start composing a news (@code{gnus-group-news}). If given a prefix,
4011 post to the group under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt
4012 for group to post to. @xref{Composing Messages}.
4014 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
4015 This is useful for ``posting'' messages to mail groups without actually
4016 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
4017 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
4018 for this to work though.
4022 Variables for the group buffer:
4026 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
4027 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
4028 is called after the group buffer has been
4031 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
4032 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
4033 is called after the group buffer is
4034 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
4037 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
4038 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
4039 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
4040 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
4042 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
4043 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
4044 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
4045 whether they are empty or not.
4047 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
4048 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
4049 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
4050 non-@acronym{ASCII} group names.
4054 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
4055 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
4058 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
4059 @cindex UTF-8 group names
4060 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
4061 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names. It
4062 is used to show non-@acronym{ASCII} group names. @code{((".*"
4063 utf-8))} is the default value if UTF-8 is supported, otherwise the
4064 default is @code{nil}.
4068 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
4069 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
4074 @node Scanning New Messages
4075 @subsection Scanning New Messages
4076 @cindex new messages
4077 @cindex scanning new news
4083 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
4084 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
4085 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
4086 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
4087 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
4088 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
4093 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
4094 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
4095 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
4096 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
4097 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
4098 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
4099 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
4101 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
4102 @cindex activating groups
4104 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
4105 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
4110 @findex gnus-group-restart
4111 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
4112 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
4113 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
4117 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
4118 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
4120 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
4121 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
4125 @node Group Information
4126 @subsection Group Information
4127 @cindex group information
4128 @cindex information on groups
4135 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
4136 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
4139 Try to fetch the @acronym{FAQ} for the current group
4140 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the @acronym{FAQ}
4141 from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on
4142 a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
4143 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
4144 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be
4145 used for fetching the file.
4147 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
4148 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
4152 @findex gnus-group-fetch-charter
4153 @vindex gnus-group-charter-alist
4155 Try to open the charter for the current group in a web browser
4156 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-charter}). Query for a group if given a
4159 Gnus will use @code{gnus-group-charter-alist} to find the location of
4160 the charter. If no location is known, Gnus will fetch the control
4161 messages for the group, which in some cases includes the charter.
4165 @findex gnus-group-fetch-control
4166 @vindex gnus-group-fetch-control-use-browse-url
4167 @cindex control message
4168 Fetch the control messages for the group from the archive at
4169 @code{ftp.isc.org} (@code{gnus-group-fetch-control}). Query for a
4170 group if given a prefix argument.
4172 If @code{gnus-group-fetch-control-use-browse-url} is non-@code{nil},
4173 Gnus will open the control messages in a browser using
4174 @code{browse-url}. Otherwise they are fetched using @code{ange-ftp}
4175 and displayed in an ephemeral group.
4177 Note that the control messages are compressed. To use this command
4178 you need to turn on @code{auto-compression-mode} (@pxref{Compressed
4179 Files, ,Compressed Files, emacs, The Emacs Manual}).
4183 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
4185 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
4186 @cindex describing groups
4187 @cindex group description
4188 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
4189 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
4190 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
4194 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
4195 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
4196 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
4203 @findex gnus-version
4204 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
4208 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
4209 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
4212 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
4215 @findex gnus-info-find-node
4216 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
4220 @node Group Timestamp
4221 @subsection Group Timestamp
4223 @cindex group timestamps
4225 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
4226 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
4227 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
4230 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
4233 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
4235 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
4236 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
4239 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4240 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
4243 This will result in lines looking like:
4246 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
4247 0: custom 19961002T012713
4250 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
4251 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
4255 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4256 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
4259 If you would like greater control of the time format, you can use a
4260 user-defined format spec. Something like the following should do the
4264 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4265 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %ud\n")
4266 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
4267 (let ((time (gnus-group-timestamp gnus-tmp-group)))
4269 (format-time-string "%b %d %H:%M" time)
4275 @subsection File Commands
4276 @cindex file commands
4282 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
4283 @vindex gnus-init-file
4284 @cindex reading init file
4285 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
4286 @file{~/.gnus.el}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
4290 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
4291 @cindex saving .newsrc
4292 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
4293 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
4294 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
4297 @c @kindex Z (Group)
4298 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
4299 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
4304 @node Sieve Commands
4305 @subsection Sieve Commands
4306 @cindex group sieve commands
4308 Sieve is a server-side mail filtering language. In Gnus you can use
4309 the @code{sieve} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to specify
4310 sieve rules that should apply to each group. Gnus provides two
4311 commands to translate all these group parameters into a proper Sieve
4312 script that can be transfered to the server somehow.
4314 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4315 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-start
4316 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-end
4317 The generated Sieve script is placed in @code{gnus-sieve-file} (by
4318 default @file{~/.sieve}). The Sieve code that Gnus generate is placed
4319 between two delimiters, @code{gnus-sieve-region-start} and
4320 @code{gnus-sieve-region-end}, so you may write additional Sieve code
4321 outside these delimiters that will not be removed the next time you
4322 regenerate the Sieve script.
4324 @vindex gnus-sieve-crosspost
4325 The variable @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} controls how the Sieve script
4326 is generated. If it is non-@code{nil} (the default) articles is
4327 placed in all groups that have matching rules, otherwise the article
4328 is only placed in the group with the first matching rule. For
4329 example, the group parameter @samp{(sieve address "sender"
4330 "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu")} will generate the following piece of Sieve
4331 code if @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is @code{nil}. (When
4332 @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is non-@code{nil}, it looks the same
4333 except that the line containing the call to @code{stop} is removed.)
4336 if address "sender" "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu" @{
4337 fileinto "INBOX.ding";
4342 @xref{Top, ,Top, sieve, Emacs Sieve}.
4348 @findex gnus-sieve-generate
4349 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4350 @cindex generating sieve script
4351 Regenerate a Sieve script from the @code{sieve} group parameters and
4352 put you into the @code{gnus-sieve-file} without saving it.
4356 @findex gnus-sieve-update
4357 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4358 @cindex updating sieve script
4359 Regenerates the Gnus managed part of @code{gnus-sieve-file} using the
4360 @code{sieve} group parameters, save the file and upload it to the
4361 server using the @code{sieveshell} program.
4366 @node Summary Buffer
4367 @chapter Summary Buffer
4368 @cindex summary buffer
4370 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
4371 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
4373 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
4374 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
4376 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
4379 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
4380 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
4381 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
4382 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
4383 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
4384 * Delayed Articles:: Send articles at a later time.
4385 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
4386 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
4387 * Threading:: How threads are made.
4388 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
4389 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
4390 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
4391 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
4392 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
4393 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
4394 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
4395 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
4396 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
4397 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
4398 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
4399 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
4400 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
4401 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
4402 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
4403 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
4404 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
4405 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
4406 or reselecting the current group.
4407 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
4408 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
4409 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
4410 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
4414 @node Summary Buffer Format
4415 @section Summary Buffer Format
4416 @cindex summary buffer format
4420 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
4421 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary,width=7.5cm}}
4422 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-article,width=7.5cm}}}
4428 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
4429 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
4430 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
4431 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
4434 @findex mail-extract-address-components
4435 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
4436 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
4437 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
4438 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
4439 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
4440 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
4441 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
4442 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
4443 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
4444 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead:
4447 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
4448 'mail-extract-address-components)
4451 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
4452 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
4453 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
4454 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
4457 @node Summary Buffer Lines
4458 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
4460 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4461 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
4462 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
4463 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
4464 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
4466 There should always be a colon or a point position marker on the line;
4467 the cursor always moves to the point position marker or the colon after
4468 performing an operation. (Of course, Gnus wouldn't be Gnus if it wasn't
4469 possible to change this. Just write a new function
4470 @code{gnus-goto-colon} which does whatever you like with the cursor.)
4471 @xref{Positioning Point}.
4473 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n}.
4475 The following format specification characters and extended format
4476 specification(s) are understood:
4482 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
4483 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
4485 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
4486 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
4487 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
4489 Full @code{From} header.
4491 The name (from the @code{From} header).
4493 The name, @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header (@pxref{To
4496 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
4497 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
4498 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
4499 may be more thorough.
4501 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
4504 Number of lines in the article.
4506 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported
4507 in some methods (like nnfolder).
4509 Pretty-printed version of the number of characters in the article;
4510 for example, @samp{1.2k} or @samp{0.4M}.
4512 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4514 A complex trn-style thread tree, showing response-connecting trace
4515 lines. A thread could be drawn like this:
4528 You can customize the appearance with the following options. Note
4529 that it is possible to make the thread display look really neat by
4530 replacing the default @acronym{ASCII} characters with graphic
4531 line-drawing glyphs.
4533 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-root
4534 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-root
4535 Used for the root of a thread. If @code{nil}, use subject
4536 instead. The default is @samp{> }.
4538 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-false-root
4539 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-false-root
4540 Used for the false root of a thread (@pxref{Loose Threads}). If
4541 @code{nil}, use subject instead. The default is @samp{> }.
4543 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-single-indent
4544 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-single-indent
4545 Used for a thread with just one message. If @code{nil}, use subject
4546 instead. The default is @samp{}.
4548 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-vertical
4549 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-vertical
4550 Used for drawing a vertical line. The default is @samp{| }.
4552 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-indent
4553 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-indent
4554 Used for indenting. The default is @samp{ }.
4556 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-leaf-with-other
4557 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-leaf-with-other
4558 Used for a leaf with brothers. The default is @samp{+-> }.
4560 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-single-leaf
4561 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-single-leaf
4562 Used for a leaf without brothers. The default is @samp{\-> }
4567 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
4568 pushes everything after it off the screen).
4570 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
4571 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4573 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
4574 for adopted articles.
4576 One space for each thread level.
4578 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
4580 Unread. @xref{Read Articles}.
4583 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
4584 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
4585 or has been saved. @xref{Other Marks}.
4588 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
4590 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
4591 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
4592 default level. If the difference between
4593 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
4594 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
4602 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
4604 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
4610 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
4611 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
4613 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
4614 article has any children.
4620 Age sensitive date format. Various date format is defined in
4621 @code{gnus-user-date-format-alist}.
4623 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4624 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4625 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4626 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4627 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4628 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4631 Text between @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} will be highlighted with
4632 @code{gnus-mouse-face} when the mouse point is placed inside the area.
4633 There can only be one such area.
4635 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4636 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
4637 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4638 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4639 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4640 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4642 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4643 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4645 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
4648 @node To From Newsgroups
4649 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4653 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4654 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4655 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4656 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4657 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4661 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4662 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4663 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4667 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4668 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4671 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4672 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4675 @findex gnus-extra-header
4676 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4677 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4678 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4681 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4685 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4686 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4687 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4688 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4689 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4690 headers are used instead.
4694 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4695 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4696 to include extra headers when generating overview (@acronym{NOV}) files.
4697 If you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after
4698 changing this variable, by entering the server buffer using @kbd{^},
4699 and then @kbd{g} on the appropriate mail server (e.g. nnml) to cause
4702 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4703 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4704 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4705 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4707 In summary, you'd typically put something like the following in
4711 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4713 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4714 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4715 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
4716 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4720 (The values listed above are the default values in Gnus. Alter them
4723 A note for news server administrators, or for users who wish to try to
4724 convince their news server administrator to provide some additional
4727 The above is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4728 the @acronym{NOV} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4729 nntp admin to add (in the usual implementation, notably INN):
4735 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4736 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4739 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4740 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4742 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4743 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4744 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4745 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4747 Here are the elements you can play with:
4753 Unprefixed group name.
4755 Current article number.
4757 Current article score.
4761 Number of unread articles in this group.
4763 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4766 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4767 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4768 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4769 and no unselected ones.
4771 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4772 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4774 Subject of the current article.
4776 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4778 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4780 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4782 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4784 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4786 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4790 @node Summary Highlighting
4791 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4795 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4796 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4797 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4798 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4799 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4801 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4802 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4803 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4804 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4806 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4807 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4808 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4809 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4811 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4812 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4813 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4814 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4815 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4816 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4819 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4820 ((> score default) . bold))
4822 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4823 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4827 @node Summary Maneuvering
4828 @section Summary Maneuvering
4829 @cindex summary movement
4831 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4832 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4834 None of these commands select articles.
4839 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4840 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4841 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4842 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4843 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4847 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4848 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4849 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4850 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4851 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4854 @kindex G g (Summary)
4855 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4856 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4857 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4860 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4861 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4862 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4863 to the group buffer.
4865 Variables related to summary movement:
4869 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4870 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4871 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4872 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
4873 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4874 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4875 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
4876 next group with unread articles. As a special case, if this variable
4877 is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the next group without asking for
4878 confirmation. If this variable is @code{almost-quietly}, the same
4879 will happen only if you are located on the last article in the group.
4880 Finally, if this variable is @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n}
4881 command will go to the next group without confirmation. Also
4882 @pxref{Group Levels}.
4884 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4885 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4886 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4887 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4888 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4889 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4890 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4892 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4894 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4895 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4896 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4897 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4898 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4900 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4901 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4902 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4903 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4904 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4905 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4906 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4907 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4910 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4911 the given number of lines from the top.
4916 @node Choosing Articles
4917 @section Choosing Articles
4918 @cindex selecting articles
4921 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4922 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4926 @node Choosing Commands
4927 @subsection Choosing Commands
4929 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4930 and they all select and display an article.
4932 If you want to fetch new articles or redisplay the group, see
4933 @ref{Exiting the Summary Buffer}.
4937 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4938 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4939 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4940 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4942 If you have an article window open already and you press @kbd{SPACE}
4943 again, the article will be scrolled. This lets you conveniently
4944 @kbd{SPACE} through an entire newsgroup. @pxref{Paging the Article}.
4949 @kindex G n (Summary)
4950 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4951 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4952 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4957 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4958 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4959 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4964 @kindex G N (Summary)
4965 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4966 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4971 @kindex G P (Summary)
4972 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4973 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4976 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4977 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4978 Go to the next article with the same subject
4979 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4982 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4983 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4984 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4985 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4989 @kindex G f (Summary)
4991 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4992 Go to the first unread article
4993 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
4997 @kindex G b (Summary)
4999 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
5000 Go to the unread article with the highest score
5001 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}). If given a prefix argument,
5002 go to the first unread article that has a score over the default score.
5007 @kindex G l (Summary)
5008 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
5009 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
5012 @kindex G o (Summary)
5013 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
5015 @cindex article history
5016 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
5017 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
5018 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
5019 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
5020 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
5021 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
5026 @kindex G j (Summary)
5027 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
5028 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
5029 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
5034 @node Choosing Variables
5035 @subsection Choosing Variables
5037 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
5040 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
5041 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
5042 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
5043 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
5044 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
5045 the server and display it in the article buffer.
5047 @item gnus-select-article-hook
5048 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
5049 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
5050 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article. If you would
5051 like each article to be saved in the Agent as you read it, putting
5052 @code{gnus-agent-fetch-selected-article} on this hook will do so.
5054 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
5055 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
5056 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
5057 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
5058 @findex gnus-unread-mark
5059 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
5060 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
5061 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
5062 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
5063 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
5064 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
5065 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
5066 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
5067 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
5072 @node Paging the Article
5073 @section Scrolling the Article
5074 @cindex article scrolling
5079 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
5080 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
5081 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
5082 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
5083 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
5085 @vindex gnus-article-boring-faces
5086 @vindex gnus-article-skip-boring
5087 If @code{gnus-article-skip-boring} is non-@code{nil} and the rest of
5088 the article consists only of citations and signature, then it will be
5089 skipped; the next article will be shown instead. You can customize
5090 what is considered uninteresting with
5091 @code{gnus-article-boring-faces}. You can manually view the article's
5092 pages, no matter how boring, using @kbd{C-M-v}.
5095 @kindex DEL (Summary)
5096 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
5097 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
5100 @kindex RET (Summary)
5101 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
5102 Scroll the current article one line forward
5103 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
5106 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
5107 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
5108 Scroll the current article one line backward
5109 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
5113 @kindex A g (Summary)
5115 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
5116 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
5117 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
5118 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
5119 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
5120 the way it came from the server.
5122 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
5123 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
5124 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
5127 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
5132 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
5137 @kindex A < (Summary)
5138 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
5139 Scroll to the beginning of the article
5140 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
5145 @kindex A > (Summary)
5146 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
5147 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
5151 @kindex A s (Summary)
5153 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
5154 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
5155 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
5159 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
5160 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
5165 @node Reply Followup and Post
5166 @section Reply, Followup and Post
5169 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
5170 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
5171 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
5172 * Canceling and Superseding::
5176 @node Summary Mail Commands
5177 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
5179 @cindex composing mail
5181 Commands for composing a mail message:
5187 @kindex S r (Summary)
5189 @findex gnus-summary-reply
5190 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
5191 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
5192 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
5193 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
5198 @kindex S R (Summary)
5199 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
5200 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
5201 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
5202 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
5203 command uses the process/prefix convention.
5206 @kindex S w (Summary)
5207 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
5208 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
5209 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
5210 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
5211 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
5214 @kindex S W (Summary)
5215 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
5216 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
5217 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
5218 the process/prefix convention.
5221 @kindex S v (Summary)
5222 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply
5223 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article
5224 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{very wide reply} is a reply
5225 that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
5226 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers in all the process/prefixed
5227 articles. This command uses the process/prefix convention.
5230 @kindex S V (Summary)
5231 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply-with-original
5232 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article and include the
5233 original message (@code{gnus-summary-very-wide-reply-with-original}). This
5234 command uses the process/prefix convention.
5237 @kindex S B r (Summary)
5238 @findex gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to
5239 Mail a reply to the author of the current article but ignore the
5240 @code{Reply-To} field (@code{gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to}).
5241 If you need this because a mailing list incorrectly sets a
5242 @code{Reply-To} header pointing to the list, you probably want to set
5243 the @code{broken-reply-to} group parameter instead, so things will work
5244 correctly. @xref{Group Parameters}.
5247 @kindex S B R (Summary)
5248 @findex gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to-with-original
5249 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
5250 original message but ignore the @code{Reply-To} field
5251 (@code{gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to-with-original}).
5255 @kindex S o m (Summary)
5256 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
5257 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
5258 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
5259 Forward the current article to some other person
5260 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If no prefix is given, the message
5261 is forwarded according to the value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime})
5262 and (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
5263 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
5264 as an rfc822 @acronym{MIME} section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
5265 forward as an rfc822 @acronym{MIME} section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
5266 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
5267 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
5268 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 @acronym{MIME}
5274 @kindex S m (Summary)
5275 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
5276 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
5277 Prepare a mail (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}). By default, use
5278 the posting style of the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5279 If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
5284 @kindex S i (Summary)
5285 @findex gnus-summary-news-other-window
5286 Prepare a news (@code{gnus-summary-news-other-window}). By default,
5287 post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that. If the
5288 prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
5290 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
5291 This is useful for ``posting'' messages to mail groups without actually
5292 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
5293 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
5294 for this to work though.
5297 @kindex S D b (Summary)
5298 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
5299 @cindex bouncing mail
5300 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
5301 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
5302 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
5303 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
5304 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
5305 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
5306 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
5307 very well fail, though.
5310 @kindex S D r (Summary)
5311 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
5312 Not to be confused with the previous command,
5313 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
5314 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
5315 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
5316 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
5317 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
5318 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
5319 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
5321 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
5322 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
5323 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
5324 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
5325 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muss sein!
5327 This command understands the process/prefix convention
5328 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5331 @kindex S O m (Summary)
5332 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
5333 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
5334 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
5335 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5338 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
5339 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
5340 @cindex crossposting
5341 @cindex excessive crossposting
5342 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
5343 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
5345 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
5346 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
5347 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
5348 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
5349 command understands the process/prefix convention
5350 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
5354 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5355 Manual}, for more information.
5358 @node Summary Post Commands
5359 @subsection Summary Post Commands
5361 @cindex composing news
5363 Commands for posting a news article:
5369 @kindex S p (Summary)
5370 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
5371 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
5372 Prepare for posting an article (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}). By
5373 default, post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5374 If the prefix is 1, prompt for another group instead.
5379 @kindex S f (Summary)
5380 @findex gnus-summary-followup
5381 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
5382 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
5386 @kindex S F (Summary)
5388 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
5389 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
5390 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
5391 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
5392 process/prefix convention.
5395 @kindex S n (Summary)
5396 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
5397 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5398 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
5401 @kindex S N (Summary)
5402 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
5403 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5404 message through mail and include the original message
5405 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
5406 the process/prefix convention.
5409 @kindex S o p (Summary)
5410 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
5411 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
5412 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}).
5413 If no prefix is given, the message is forwarded according to the value
5414 of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}) and
5415 (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
5416 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
5417 as an rfc822 @acronym{MIME} section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
5418 forward as an rfc822 @acronym{MIME} section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
5419 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
5420 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
5421 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 @acronym{MIME} section.
5424 @kindex S O p (Summary)
5425 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
5427 @cindex making digests
5428 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
5429 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
5430 process/prefix convention.
5433 @kindex S u (Summary)
5434 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
5435 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
5436 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
5437 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
5440 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5441 Manual}, for more information.
5444 @node Summary Message Commands
5445 @subsection Summary Message Commands
5449 @kindex S y (Summary)
5450 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
5451 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
5452 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
5453 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
5454 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5459 @node Canceling and Superseding
5460 @subsection Canceling Articles
5461 @cindex canceling articles
5462 @cindex superseding articles
5464 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
5465 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
5467 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
5469 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
5471 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
5472 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
5473 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
5474 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
5475 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
5476 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5478 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
5479 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
5482 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
5483 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
5484 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
5486 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
5487 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
5488 your original article.
5490 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
5492 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
5493 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
5494 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
5497 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
5498 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
5499 have posted almost the same article twice.
5501 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
5502 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
5503 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
5504 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
5505 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
5506 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
5507 header by substituting one of those words for the word
5508 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
5509 you would do normally. The previous article will be
5510 canceled/superseded.
5512 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
5514 @node Delayed Articles
5515 @section Delayed Articles
5516 @cindex delayed sending
5517 @cindex send delayed
5519 Sometimes, you might wish to delay the sending of a message. For
5520 example, you might wish to arrange for a message to turn up just in time
5521 to remind your about the birthday of your Significant Other. For this,
5522 there is the @code{gnus-delay} package. Setup is simple:
5525 (gnus-delay-initialize)
5528 @findex gnus-delay-article
5529 Normally, to send a message you use the @kbd{C-c C-c} command from
5530 Message mode. To delay a message, use @kbd{C-c C-j}
5531 (@code{gnus-delay-article}) instead. This will ask you for how long the
5532 message should be delayed. Possible answers are:
5536 A time span. Consists of an integer and a letter. For example,
5537 @code{42d} means to delay for 42 days. Available letters are @code{m}
5538 (minutes), @code{h} (hours), @code{d} (days), @code{w} (weeks), @code{M}
5539 (months) and @code{Y} (years).
5542 A specific date. Looks like @code{YYYYY-MM-DD}. The message will be
5543 delayed until that day, at a specific time (eight o'clock by default).
5544 See also @code{gnus-delay-default-hour}.
5547 A specific time of day. Given in @code{hh:mm} format, 24h, no am/pm
5548 stuff. The deadline will be at that time today, except if that time has
5549 already passed, then it's at the given time tomorrow. So if it's ten
5550 o'clock in the morning and you specify @code{11:15}, then the deadline
5551 is one hour and fifteen minutes hence. But if you specify @code{9:20},
5552 that means a time tomorrow.
5555 The action of the @code{gnus-delay-article} command is influenced by a
5556 couple of variables:
5559 @item gnus-delay-default-hour
5560 @vindex gnus-delay-default-hour
5561 When you specify a specific date, the message will be due on that hour
5562 on the given date. Possible values are integers 0 through 23.
5564 @item gnus-delay-default-delay
5565 @vindex gnus-delay-default-delay
5566 This is a string and gives the default delay. It can be of any of the
5567 formats described above.
5569 @item gnus-delay-group
5570 @vindex gnus-delay-group
5571 Delayed articles will be kept in this group on the drafts server until
5572 they are due. You probably don't need to change this. The default
5573 value is @code{"delayed"}.
5575 @item gnus-delay-header
5576 @vindex gnus-delay-header
5577 The deadline for each article will be stored in a header. This variable
5578 is a string and gives the header name. You probably don't need to
5579 change this. The default value is @code{"X-Gnus-Delayed"}.
5582 The way delaying works is like this: when you use the
5583 @code{gnus-delay-article} command, you give a certain delay. Gnus
5584 calculates the deadline of the message and stores it in the
5585 @code{X-Gnus-Delayed} header and puts the message in the
5586 @code{nndraft:delayed} group.
5588 @findex gnus-delay-send-queue
5589 And whenever you get new news, Gnus looks through the group for articles
5590 which are due and sends them. It uses the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue}
5591 function for this. By default, this function is added to the hook
5592 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But of course, you can change this.
5593 Maybe you want to use the demon to send drafts? Just tell the demon to
5594 execute the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} function.
5597 @item gnus-delay-initialize
5598 @findex gnus-delay-initialize
5599 By default, this function installs @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} in
5600 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But it accepts the optional second
5601 argument @code{no-check}. If it is non-@code{nil},
5602 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is not changed. The optional first
5603 argument is ignored.
5605 For example, @code{(gnus-delay-initialize nil t)} means to do nothing.
5606 Presumably, you want to use the demon for sending due delayed articles.
5607 Just don't forget to set that up :-)
5611 @node Marking Articles
5612 @section Marking Articles
5613 @cindex article marking
5614 @cindex article ticking
5617 There are several marks you can set on an article.
5619 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
5620 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
5621 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
5623 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
5626 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
5627 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
5628 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
5632 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
5636 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
5637 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
5638 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
5642 @node Unread Articles
5643 @subsection Unread Articles
5645 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
5650 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
5651 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
5653 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
5654 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
5655 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
5656 tick it. However, articles can be expired (from news servers by the
5657 news server software, Gnus itself never expires ticked messages), so if
5658 you want to keep an article forever, you'll have to make it persistent
5659 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
5662 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
5663 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
5665 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
5666 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
5667 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
5668 Otherwise (except for the visibility issue), they are just like ticked
5672 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
5673 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
5675 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
5680 @subsection Read Articles
5681 @cindex expirable mark
5683 All the following marks mark articles as read.
5688 @vindex gnus-del-mark
5689 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
5690 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
5693 @vindex gnus-read-mark
5694 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
5697 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
5698 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
5699 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
5702 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
5703 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
5706 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
5707 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
5710 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
5711 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
5714 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
5715 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
5718 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
5719 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
5722 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
5723 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
5726 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
5727 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
5731 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
5732 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
5733 (@code{gnus-duplicate-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
5737 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
5738 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
5740 One more special mark, though:
5744 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
5745 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
5747 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
5748 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
5749 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
5750 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
5756 @subsection Other Marks
5757 @cindex process mark
5760 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
5766 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
5767 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
5768 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
5769 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
5770 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
5773 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
5774 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
5775 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
5776 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
5779 @vindex gnus-forwarded-mark
5780 All articles that you have forwarded will be marked with an @samp{F} in
5781 the second column (@code{gnus-forwarded-mark}).
5784 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
5785 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
5786 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5789 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
5790 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
5791 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
5792 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
5795 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5796 Articles that according to the server haven't been shown to the user
5797 before are marked with a @samp{N} in the second column
5798 (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Note that not all servers support this
5799 mark, in which case it simply never appears. Compare with
5800 @code{gnus-unseen-mark}.
5803 @vindex gnus-unseen-mark
5804 Articles that haven't been seen before in Gnus by the user are marked
5805 with a @samp{.} in the second column (@code{gnus-unseen-mark}).
5806 Compare with @code{gnus-recent-mark}.
5809 @vindex gnus-downloaded-mark
5810 When using the Gnus agent @pxref{Agent Basics}, articles may be
5811 downloaded for unplugged (offline) viewing. If you are using the
5812 @samp{%O} spec, these articles get the @samp{+} mark in that spec.
5813 (The variable @code{gnus-downloaded-mark} controls which character to
5817 @vindex gnus-undownloaded-mark
5818 When using the Gnus agent @pxref{Agent Basics}, some articles might
5819 not have been downloaded. Such articles cannot be viewed while you
5820 are unplugged (offline). If you are using the @samp{%O} spec, these
5821 articles get the @samp{-} mark in that spec. (The variable
5822 @code{gnus-undownloaded-mark} controls which character to use.)
5825 @vindex gnus-downloadable-mark
5826 The Gnus agent @pxref{Agent Basics} downloads some articles
5827 automatically, but it is also possible to explicitly mark articles for
5828 download, even if they would not be downloaded automatically. Such
5829 explicitly-marked articles get the @samp{%} mark in the first column.
5830 (The variable @code{gnus-downloadable-mark} controls which character to
5834 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
5835 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
5836 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
5837 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
5838 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
5841 @vindex gnus-process-mark
5842 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
5843 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
5844 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
5845 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
5846 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
5850 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
5851 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
5852 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
5854 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
5855 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
5856 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
5860 @subsection Setting Marks
5861 @cindex setting marks
5863 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
5868 @kindex M c (Summary)
5869 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5870 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5871 @cindex mark as unread
5872 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5873 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5879 @kindex M t (Summary)
5880 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5881 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5882 @xref{Article Caching}.
5887 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5888 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5889 Mark the current article as dormant
5890 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5894 @kindex M d (Summary)
5896 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5897 Mark the current article as read
5898 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5902 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5903 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5904 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5909 @kindex M k (Summary)
5910 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5911 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5912 and then select the next unread article
5913 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5917 @kindex M K (Summary)
5918 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5919 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5920 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5921 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5924 @kindex M C (Summary)
5925 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5926 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5927 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5930 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5931 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5932 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5933 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5936 @kindex M H (Summary)
5937 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5938 Catchup the current group to point (before the point)
5939 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5942 @kindex M h (Summary)
5943 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-from-here
5944 Catchup the current group from point (after the point)
5945 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-from-here}).
5948 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5949 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5950 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5951 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5954 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5955 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5956 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5957 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5961 @kindex M e (Summary)
5963 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5964 Mark the current article as expirable
5965 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5968 @kindex M b (Summary)
5969 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5970 Set a bookmark in the current article
5971 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5974 @kindex M B (Summary)
5975 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5976 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5977 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5980 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5981 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5982 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5983 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5986 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5987 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5988 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5989 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5992 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5993 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5994 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5995 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5996 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5999 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
6000 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
6001 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
6002 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
6003 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
6004 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
6005 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
6006 The default is @code{t}.
6009 @node Generic Marking Commands
6010 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
6012 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
6013 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
6014 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
6015 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
6016 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
6019 Multiply these five behaviors with five different marking commands, and
6020 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
6023 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
6024 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
6025 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
6026 to list in this manual.
6028 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
6029 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
6030 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
6031 article, you could say something like:
6034 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
6035 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
6036 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
6042 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
6043 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
6047 @node Setting Process Marks
6048 @subsection Setting Process Marks
6049 @cindex setting process marks
6051 Process marks are displayed as @code{#} in the summary buffer, and are
6052 used for marking articles in such a way that other commands will
6053 process these articles. For instance, if you process mark four
6054 articles and then use the @kbd{*} command, Gnus will enter these four
6055 commands into the cache. For more information,
6056 @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
6063 @kindex M P p (Summary)
6064 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
6065 Mark the current article with the process mark
6066 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
6067 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
6071 @kindex M P u (Summary)
6072 @kindex M-# (Summary)
6073 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
6074 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
6077 @kindex M P U (Summary)
6078 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
6079 Remove the process mark from all articles
6080 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
6083 @kindex M P i (Summary)
6084 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
6085 Invert the list of process marked articles
6086 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
6089 @kindex M P R (Summary)
6090 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
6091 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
6092 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
6095 @kindex M P G (Summary)
6096 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
6097 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
6098 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
6101 @kindex M P r (Summary)
6102 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
6103 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
6107 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-region
6108 Unmark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-region}).
6111 @kindex M P t (Summary)
6112 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6113 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
6114 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6117 @kindex M P T (Summary)
6118 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6119 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
6120 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6123 @kindex M P v (Summary)
6124 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
6125 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
6126 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
6129 @kindex M P s (Summary)
6130 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
6131 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
6134 @kindex M P S (Summary)
6135 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
6136 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
6137 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
6140 @kindex M P a (Summary)
6141 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
6142 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
6145 @kindex M P b (Summary)
6146 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
6147 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
6148 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
6151 @kindex M P k (Summary)
6152 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
6153 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
6154 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
6157 @kindex M P y (Summary)
6158 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
6159 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
6160 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
6163 @kindex M P w (Summary)
6164 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
6165 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
6166 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
6170 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
6171 set process marks based on article body contents.
6178 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
6179 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
6180 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
6183 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
6184 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
6185 additional articles.
6191 @kindex / / (Summary)
6192 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
6193 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
6194 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}). If given a prefix, exclude
6198 @kindex / a (Summary)
6199 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
6200 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
6201 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}). If given a prefix, exclude
6205 @kindex / x (Summary)
6206 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
6207 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
6208 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
6209 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}). If given a prefix, exclude
6214 @kindex / u (Summary)
6216 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
6217 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
6218 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
6219 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
6220 dormant articles will also be excluded.
6223 @kindex / m (Summary)
6224 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
6225 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
6226 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
6229 @kindex / t (Summary)
6230 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
6231 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
6232 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
6233 articles younger than that number of days.
6236 @kindex / n (Summary)
6237 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
6238 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
6239 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
6240 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
6243 @kindex / w (Summary)
6244 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
6245 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
6246 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
6250 @kindex / . (Summary)
6251 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unseen
6252 Limit the summary buffer to the unseen articles
6253 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unseen}).
6256 @kindex / v (Summary)
6257 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
6258 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
6259 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
6262 @kindex / p (Summary)
6263 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-display-predicate
6264 Limit the summary buffer to articles that satisfy the @code{display}
6265 group parameter predicate
6266 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-display-predicate}). See @pxref{Group
6267 Parameters} for more on this predicate.
6271 @kindex M S (Summary)
6272 @kindex / E (Summary)
6273 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
6274 Include all expunged articles in the limit
6275 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
6278 @kindex / D (Summary)
6279 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
6280 Include all dormant articles in the limit
6281 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
6284 @kindex / * (Summary)
6285 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
6286 Include all cached articles in the limit
6287 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
6290 @kindex / d (Summary)
6291 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
6292 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
6293 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
6296 @kindex / M (Summary)
6297 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
6298 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
6301 @kindex / T (Summary)
6302 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
6303 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
6306 @kindex / c (Summary)
6307 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
6308 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
6309 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
6312 @kindex / C (Summary)
6313 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
6314 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
6315 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
6316 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
6319 @kindex / N (Summary)
6320 @findex gnus-summary-insert-new-articles
6321 Insert all new articles in the summary buffer. It scans for new emails
6322 if @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} is non-@code{nil}.
6325 @kindex / o (Summary)
6326 @findex gnus-summary-insert-old-articles
6327 Insert all old articles in the summary buffer. If given a numbered
6328 prefix, fetch this number of articles.
6336 @cindex article threading
6338 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
6339 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
6340 hierarchical fashion.
6342 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
6343 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
6344 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
6345 or simply missing. Weird news propagation exacerbates the problem,
6346 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
6347 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
6348 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
6350 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
6354 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
6357 A tree-like article structure.
6360 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
6363 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
6364 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
6365 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
6366 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
6367 called loose threads.
6369 @item thread gathering
6370 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
6372 @item sparse threads
6373 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
6374 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
6380 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
6381 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
6385 @node Customizing Threading
6386 @subsection Customizing Threading
6387 @cindex customizing threading
6390 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
6391 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
6392 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
6393 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over@dots{} but you were wrong!
6398 @subsubsection Loose Threads
6401 @cindex loose threads
6404 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
6405 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
6406 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
6407 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
6408 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
6409 read or killed the root in a previous session.
6411 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
6412 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
6413 There are four possible values:
6417 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
6418 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-adopt,width=7.5cm}}
6419 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-empty,width=7.5cm}}}
6420 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-none,width=7.5cm}}}
6421 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-dummy,width=7.5cm}}}
6426 @cindex adopting articles
6431 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
6432 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
6433 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
6434 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
6437 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
6438 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root-always
6439 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
6440 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
6441 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
6442 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
6443 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
6444 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
6445 If you want all threads to have a dummy root, even the non-gathered
6446 ones, set @code{gnus-summary-make-false-root-always} to @code{t}.
6449 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
6450 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
6451 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
6455 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
6456 display them after one another.
6459 Don't gather loose threads.
6462 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6463 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6464 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
6465 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
6466 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
6467 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
6468 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
6469 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
6470 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
6471 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
6472 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
6474 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
6475 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
6476 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
6479 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6480 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6481 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
6482 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
6483 simplification is used.
6485 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6486 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6487 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
6488 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
6490 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
6492 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6498 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
6499 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
6500 "answer" "reference" "announce"
6501 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
6506 (mapconcat 'identity
6507 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
6509 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
6512 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
6515 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6516 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6517 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
6518 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
6519 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
6520 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
6522 Useful functions to put in this list include:
6525 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
6526 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
6527 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
6529 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6530 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6533 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
6534 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
6535 Remove excessive whitespace.
6537 @item gnus-simplify-all-whitespace
6538 @findex gnus-simplify-all-whitespace
6539 Remove all whitespace.
6542 You may also write your own functions, of course.
6545 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6546 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6547 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
6548 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
6549 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
6550 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
6551 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
6552 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
6554 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6555 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6556 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
6557 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
6558 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
6559 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
6560 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
6561 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
6562 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
6566 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6567 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6568 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
6569 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
6571 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6572 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6573 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
6576 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
6580 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6581 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
6587 @node Filling In Threads
6588 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
6591 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
6592 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
6593 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
6594 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
6595 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
6596 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
6597 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
6598 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
6599 fetching old headers only works if the back end you are using carries
6600 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool},
6601 @code{nnml}, and @code{nnmaildir}. Also remember that if the root of
6602 the thread has been expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do
6605 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
6606 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
6607 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
6609 @item gnus-fetch-old-ephemeral-headers
6610 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-ephemeral-headers
6611 Same as @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}, but only used for ephemeral
6614 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
6615 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
6616 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
6617 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
6618 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
6619 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
6620 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
6621 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
6622 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
6623 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
6624 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
6625 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
6626 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
6627 @code{nil} by default.
6629 @item gnus-read-all-available-headers
6630 @vindex gnus-read-all-available-headers
6631 This is a rather obscure variable that few will find useful. It's
6632 intended for those non-news newsgroups where the back end has to fetch
6633 quite a lot to present the summary buffer, and where it's impossible to
6634 go back to parents of articles. This is mostly the case in the
6635 web-based groups, like the @code{nnultimate} groups.
6637 If you don't use those, then it's safe to leave this as the default
6638 @code{nil}. If you want to use this variable, it should be a regexp
6639 that matches the group name, or @code{t} for all groups.
6644 @node More Threading
6645 @subsubsection More Threading
6648 @item gnus-show-threads
6649 @vindex gnus-show-threads
6650 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
6651 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
6652 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
6653 slower and more awkward.
6655 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6656 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6657 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
6660 This can also be a predicate specifier (@pxref{Predicate Specifiers}).
6661 Available predicates are @code{gnus-article-unread-p} and
6662 @code{gnus-article-unseen-p}).
6667 (setq gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6668 '(or gnus-article-unread-p
6669 gnus-article-unseen-p))
6672 (It's a pretty nonsensical example, since all unseen articles are also
6673 unread, but you get my drift.)
6676 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
6677 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
6678 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
6679 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
6680 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
6681 threads are expunged.
6683 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
6684 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
6685 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
6688 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6689 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6690 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
6691 this variable is non-@code{nil}, which is the default, the subject
6692 change is ignored. If it is @code{nil}, a change in the subject will
6693 result in a new thread.
6695 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
6696 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
6697 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
6700 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6701 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6702 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
6703 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
6704 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
6705 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
6706 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
6707 Setting this variable to an alternate value
6708 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
6709 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
6710 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
6715 @node Low-Level Threading
6716 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
6720 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
6721 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
6722 Hook run before parsing any headers.
6724 @item gnus-alter-header-function
6725 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
6726 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
6727 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
6728 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
6729 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
6730 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
6731 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
6732 meaningful. Here's one example:
6735 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
6737 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
6738 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
6740 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
6742 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
6749 @node Thread Commands
6750 @subsection Thread Commands
6751 @cindex thread commands
6757 @kindex T k (Summary)
6758 @kindex C-M-k (Summary)
6759 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
6760 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
6761 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
6762 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
6767 @kindex T l (Summary)
6768 @kindex C-M-l (Summary)
6769 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
6770 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
6771 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
6774 @kindex T i (Summary)
6775 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
6776 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
6777 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
6780 @kindex T # (Summary)
6781 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6782 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
6783 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6786 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
6787 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6788 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
6789 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6792 @kindex T T (Summary)
6793 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
6794 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
6797 @kindex T s (Summary)
6798 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
6799 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
6800 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
6803 @kindex T h (Summary)
6804 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
6805 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
6808 @kindex T S (Summary)
6809 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
6810 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
6813 @kindex T H (Summary)
6814 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
6815 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
6818 @kindex T t (Summary)
6819 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
6820 Re-thread the current article's thread
6821 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
6822 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
6825 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
6826 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
6827 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
6828 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
6832 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
6833 understand the numeric prefix.
6838 @kindex T n (Summary)
6840 @kindex C-M-n (Summary)
6842 @kindex M-down (Summary)
6843 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
6844 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
6847 @kindex T p (Summary)
6849 @kindex C-M-p (Summary)
6851 @kindex M-up (Summary)
6852 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
6853 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
6856 @kindex T d (Summary)
6857 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
6858 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
6861 @kindex T u (Summary)
6862 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
6863 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
6866 @kindex T o (Summary)
6867 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
6868 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
6871 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
6872 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
6873 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
6874 a command like @kbd{T k} (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
6875 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
6876 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
6877 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
6878 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
6879 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
6880 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
6881 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
6882 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
6886 @node Sorting the Summary Buffer
6887 @section Sorting the Summary Buffer
6889 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
6890 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
6891 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
6892 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6893 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
6894 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6895 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-random
6896 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
6897 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-thread
6898 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
6899 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
6900 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
6901 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
6903 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
6904 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
6905 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
6906 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score},
6907 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-number},
6908 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-date},
6909 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-random} and
6910 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
6912 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
6913 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
6914 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
6916 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
6917 last function in the list. You should probably always include
6918 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
6919 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
6920 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
6921 ascending article order.
6923 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
6924 by number, you could do something like:
6927 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6928 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6929 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6930 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
6933 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
6934 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
6935 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
6936 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
6937 which the articles arrived.
6939 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
6943 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6945 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
6946 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
6949 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
6950 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
6951 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
6952 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
6955 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
6956 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
6957 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
6958 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6959 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6960 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-random
6961 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6962 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or
6963 other, you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions}
6964 variable. It is very similar to the
6965 @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that it uses slightly
6966 different functions for article comparison. Available sorting
6967 predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6968 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author},
6969 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date},
6970 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-random}, and
6971 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6973 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6977 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6978 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6979 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6984 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6985 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6986 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6987 @cindex article pre-fetch
6990 If you read your news from an @acronym{NNTP} server that's far away, the
6991 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6992 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6993 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6994 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6996 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6997 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
6999 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
7000 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
7001 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
7002 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
7003 connection is blocked.
7005 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
7006 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
7007 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
7008 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
7010 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
7011 the link between your machine and the @acronym{NNTP} server will become more
7012 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
7013 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
7016 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing@dots{} unless
7019 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
7020 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
7021 happen automatically.
7023 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
7024 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
7025 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
7026 that when you read an article in the group, the back end will pre-fetch
7027 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the back end will
7028 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
7029 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
7031 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
7032 @findex gnus-async-read-p
7033 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
7034 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p}
7035 variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This
7036 function should return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is
7037 to be pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which
7038 returns @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an
7039 article data structure as the only parameter.
7041 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter
7042 than 100 lines, you could say something like:
7045 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
7046 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
7047 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
7048 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
7051 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
7054 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
7055 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
7056 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
7058 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
7059 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
7060 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
7061 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
7065 Remove articles when they are read.
7068 Remove articles when exiting the group.
7071 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
7073 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
7074 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
7075 @c from the next group.
7078 @node Article Caching
7079 @section Article Caching
7080 @cindex article caching
7083 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @acronym{NNTP} connection, you may
7084 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
7085 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
7086 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
7087 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
7089 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
7091 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
7092 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
7093 @vindex gnus-use-cache
7094 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
7095 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
7096 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
7097 cache is flat or hierarchical is controlled by the
7098 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
7100 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
7101 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
7102 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
7103 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
7104 as dormant, and don't worry.
7106 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
7108 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
7109 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
7110 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
7111 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
7112 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
7113 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
7114 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
7115 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
7116 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
7117 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
7119 @findex gnus-jog-cache
7120 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
7121 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
7122 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
7123 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
7124 command if 1) your connection to the @acronym{NNTP} server is really, really,
7125 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
7126 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
7127 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
7128 not then be downloaded by this command.
7130 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
7131 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
7132 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
7133 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
7134 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
7135 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
7137 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
7138 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
7139 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
7140 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
7141 variables, the group is not cached.
7143 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
7144 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
7145 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
7146 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
7147 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
7148 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
7149 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
7150 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @acronym{NOV}
7151 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
7154 @findex gnus-cache-move-cache
7155 @code{gnus-cache-move-cache} will move your whole
7156 @code{gnus-cache-directory} to some other location. You get asked to
7157 where, isn't that cool?
7159 @node Persistent Articles
7160 @section Persistent Articles
7161 @cindex persistent articles
7163 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
7164 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
7165 useful in my opinion.
7167 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
7168 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
7169 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
7170 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
7171 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
7172 the expiry going on at the news server.
7174 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
7175 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
7176 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
7182 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
7183 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
7186 @kindex M-* (Summary)
7187 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
7188 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
7189 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
7193 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
7195 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
7196 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
7197 interested in persistent articles:
7200 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
7204 @node Article Backlog
7205 @section Article Backlog
7207 @cindex article backlog
7209 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
7210 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
7211 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
7212 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
7213 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
7214 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
7215 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
7216 increase memory usage some.
7218 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
7219 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
7220 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
7221 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
7222 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
7223 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
7224 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
7226 The default value is 20.
7229 @node Saving Articles
7230 @section Saving Articles
7231 @cindex saving articles
7233 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
7234 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
7235 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
7236 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
7237 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
7239 For the commands listed here, the target is a file. If you want to
7240 save to a group, see the @kbd{B c} (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article})
7241 command (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
7243 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
7244 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
7245 unwanted headers before saving the article.
7247 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
7248 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
7249 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
7250 deleted before saving.
7256 @kindex O o (Summary)
7258 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
7259 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
7260 Save the current article using the default article saver
7261 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
7264 @kindex O m (Summary)
7265 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
7266 Save the current article in mail format
7267 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
7270 @kindex O r (Summary)
7271 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
7272 Save the current article in Rmail format
7273 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
7276 @kindex O f (Summary)
7277 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
7278 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
7279 Save the current article in plain file format
7280 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
7283 @kindex O F (Summary)
7284 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
7285 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
7286 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
7289 @kindex O b (Summary)
7290 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
7291 Save the current article body in plain file format
7292 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
7295 @kindex O h (Summary)
7296 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
7297 Save the current article in mh folder format
7298 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
7301 @kindex O v (Summary)
7302 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
7303 Save the current article in a VM folder
7304 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
7308 @kindex O p (Summary)
7310 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
7311 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
7312 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
7313 If given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), include the
7314 complete headers in the piped output.
7317 @kindex O P (Summary)
7318 @findex gnus-summary-muttprint
7319 @vindex gnus-summary-muttprint-program
7320 Save the current article into muttprint. That is, print it using the
7321 external program Muttprint (see
7322 @uref{http://muttprint.sourceforge.net/}). The program name and
7323 options to use is controlled by the variable
7324 @code{gnus-summary-muttprint-program}. (@code{gnus-summary-muttprint}).
7328 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
7329 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
7330 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
7331 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
7332 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
7333 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
7334 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
7335 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
7336 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
7337 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
7338 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
7339 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
7343 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
7344 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
7345 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
7346 functions below, or you can create your own.
7350 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
7351 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
7352 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
7353 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7354 This is the default format, @dfn{Babyl}. Uses the function in the
7355 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7356 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7358 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7359 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7360 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
7361 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
7362 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7363 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7365 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
7366 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
7367 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
7368 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7369 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
7370 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7371 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7373 @item gnus-summary-write-to-file
7374 @findex gnus-summary-write-to-file
7375 Write the article straight to an ordinary file. The file is
7376 overwritten if it exists. Uses the function in the
7377 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7378 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7380 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7381 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7382 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
7383 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7384 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7386 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7387 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7388 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
7389 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
7390 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
7393 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
7394 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
7395 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
7396 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
7397 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
7399 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7400 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7401 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
7402 reader to use this setting.
7405 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
7406 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
7407 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
7408 @env{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
7411 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
7412 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
7413 available functions that generate names:
7417 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
7418 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
7419 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7421 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
7422 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7423 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7425 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
7426 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
7427 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7429 @item gnus-plain-save-name
7430 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7431 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7433 @item gnus-sender-save-name
7434 @findex gnus-sender-save-name
7435 File names like @file{~/News/larsi}.
7438 @vindex gnus-split-methods
7439 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
7440 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
7441 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
7442 related to VM in @file{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
7446 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
7447 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
7448 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
7449 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
7452 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
7453 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
7454 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
7455 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
7456 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
7457 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
7458 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
7459 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
7460 called returns a string or a list of strings.
7462 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
7463 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
7464 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
7465 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
7467 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
7468 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
7469 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
7472 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
7473 lots of mail groups called things like
7474 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
7475 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
7476 following will do just that:
7479 (defun my-save-name (group)
7480 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
7481 (substring group (match-end 0))))
7483 (setq gnus-split-methods
7484 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
7489 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
7490 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
7491 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
7492 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
7493 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
7494 all the files in the top level directory
7495 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
7496 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
7497 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
7498 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
7500 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
7501 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
7502 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
7503 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
7504 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
7507 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
7511 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; @r{to get a hierarchy}
7512 (setq gnus-default-article-saver
7513 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; @r{no encoding}
7516 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
7517 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
7518 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
7519 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
7522 @node Decoding Articles
7523 @section Decoding Articles
7524 @cindex decoding articles
7526 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
7527 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
7530 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
7531 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
7532 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
7533 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
7534 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
7535 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
7539 @cindex article series
7540 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
7541 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
7542 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
7543 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
7544 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
7546 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
7547 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
7548 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
7550 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
7551 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
7552 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
7554 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
7555 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
7556 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
7559 @node Uuencoded Articles
7560 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
7562 @cindex uuencoded articles
7567 @kindex X u (Summary)
7568 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
7569 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
7570 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
7573 @kindex X U (Summary)
7574 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
7575 Uudecodes and saves the current series
7576 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7579 @kindex X v u (Summary)
7580 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
7581 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
7584 @kindex X v U (Summary)
7585 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
7586 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
7587 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
7591 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
7592 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
7593 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
7594 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
7595 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7597 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
7598 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
7599 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
7600 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
7603 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
7604 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
7605 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
7606 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
7607 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
7608 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
7612 @node Shell Archives
7613 @subsection Shell Archives
7615 @cindex shell archives
7616 @cindex shared articles
7618 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
7619 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
7620 some commands to deal with these:
7625 @kindex X s (Summary)
7626 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
7627 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
7630 @kindex X S (Summary)
7631 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
7632 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
7635 @kindex X v s (Summary)
7636 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
7637 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
7640 @kindex X v S (Summary)
7641 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
7642 Unshars, views and saves the current series
7643 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
7647 @node PostScript Files
7648 @subsection PostScript Files
7654 @kindex X p (Summary)
7655 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
7656 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
7659 @kindex X P (Summary)
7660 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
7661 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
7662 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
7665 @kindex X v p (Summary)
7666 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
7667 View the current PostScript series
7668 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
7671 @kindex X v P (Summary)
7672 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
7673 View and save the current PostScript series
7674 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
7679 @subsection Other Files
7683 @kindex X o (Summary)
7684 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
7685 Save the current series
7686 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
7689 @kindex X b (Summary)
7690 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
7691 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
7692 doesn't really work yet.
7696 @node Decoding Variables
7697 @subsection Decoding Variables
7699 Adjective, not verb.
7702 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
7703 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
7704 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
7708 @node Rule Variables
7709 @subsubsection Rule Variables
7710 @cindex rule variables
7712 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
7713 variables are of the form
7716 (list '(regexp1 command2)
7723 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7724 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7726 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
7727 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @file{.au} sound file, you could
7730 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7731 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
7734 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7735 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7736 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
7737 user and default view rules.
7739 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7740 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7741 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
7746 @node Other Decode Variables
7747 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
7750 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7752 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7753 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
7754 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
7755 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
7756 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
7760 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
7761 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
7764 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
7765 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
7766 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
7769 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7770 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7771 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
7772 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
7773 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
7776 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7777 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7778 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
7780 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7781 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7782 Files with a @acronym{MIME} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
7783 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
7784 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @acronym{MIME} package (yet), so this is slightly
7787 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7788 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7789 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
7791 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7792 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7793 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
7794 looking for files to display.
7796 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
7797 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
7798 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
7801 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7802 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7803 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
7806 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7807 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7808 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
7811 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7812 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7813 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
7816 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7817 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7818 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
7819 decoded articles as unread.
7821 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7822 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7823 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
7824 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
7826 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7827 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7828 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
7830 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7831 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7833 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
7834 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @acronym{MIME}
7835 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
7836 @code{metamail} for viewing.
7838 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7839 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7840 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
7841 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
7842 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
7843 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
7844 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
7845 simply dropped them.
7850 @node Uuencoding and Posting
7851 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
7855 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7856 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7857 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
7858 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
7859 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
7860 for you when you post the article.
7862 @item gnus-uu-post-length
7863 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
7864 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
7865 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
7867 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
7868 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
7869 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
7870 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
7871 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
7872 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
7873 think that counts@dots{}) Default is @code{nil}.
7875 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7876 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7877 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
7878 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
7879 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
7880 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
7881 Default is @code{t}.
7887 @subsection Viewing Files
7888 @cindex viewing files
7889 @cindex pseudo-articles
7891 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
7892 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
7893 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
7894 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
7895 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
7896 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
7897 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
7899 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
7900 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
7901 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
7902 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
7904 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
7905 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
7906 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
7908 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
7909 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
7910 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
7911 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
7912 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
7914 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
7915 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
7916 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
7917 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
7918 a list of parameters to that command.
7920 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
7921 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
7922 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
7924 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
7925 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
7926 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
7929 @node Article Treatment
7930 @section Article Treatment
7932 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
7933 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
7934 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
7935 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
7936 these articles easier.
7939 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
7940 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
7941 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
7942 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
7943 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
7944 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
7945 * Article Button Levels:: Controlling appearance of buttons.
7946 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
7947 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
7948 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
7949 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
7953 @node Article Highlighting
7954 @subsection Article Highlighting
7955 @cindex highlighting
7957 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
7958 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
7963 @kindex W H a (Summary)
7964 @findex gnus-article-highlight
7965 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7966 Do much highlighting of the current article
7967 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
7968 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
7971 @kindex W H h (Summary)
7972 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
7973 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
7974 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
7975 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
7976 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
7977 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
7978 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
7979 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
7980 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
7981 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
7982 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
7985 @kindex W H c (Summary)
7986 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
7987 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
7989 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
7992 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7994 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7995 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
7996 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
7998 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7999 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
8000 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
8002 @item gnus-cite-face-list
8003 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
8004 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
8005 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
8006 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
8007 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
8009 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
8010 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
8011 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
8013 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
8014 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
8015 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
8017 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
8018 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
8019 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
8020 that it's a citation.
8022 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
8023 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
8024 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
8026 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
8027 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
8028 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
8030 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
8031 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
8032 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
8033 cited text belonging to the attribution.
8039 @kindex W H s (Summary)
8040 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
8041 @vindex gnus-signature-face
8042 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
8043 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
8044 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
8045 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
8046 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
8051 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
8054 @node Article Fontisizing
8055 @subsection Article Fontisizing
8057 @cindex article emphasis
8059 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
8060 @kindex W e (Summary)
8061 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
8062 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
8063 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
8064 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
8066 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
8067 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
8068 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
8069 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
8070 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
8071 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
8072 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
8073 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
8077 (setq gnus-emphasis-alist
8078 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
8079 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
8088 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
8089 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
8090 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
8091 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
8092 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
8093 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
8094 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
8095 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
8096 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
8097 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
8098 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
8099 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
8100 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
8102 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
8103 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
8104 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
8108 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
8111 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
8113 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
8114 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
8115 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
8116 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
8118 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
8121 @node Article Hiding
8122 @subsection Article Hiding
8123 @cindex article hiding
8125 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
8126 too much cruft in most articles.
8131 @kindex W W a (Summary)
8132 @findex gnus-article-hide
8133 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
8134 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
8135 headers, @acronym{PGP}, cited text and the signature.
8138 @kindex W W h (Summary)
8139 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
8140 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
8144 @kindex W W b (Summary)
8145 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
8146 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
8147 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
8150 @kindex W W s (Summary)
8151 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
8152 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
8156 @kindex W W l (Summary)
8157 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
8158 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
8159 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
8160 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
8161 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
8162 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
8163 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
8167 @item gnus-list-identifiers
8168 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
8169 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
8170 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
8175 @kindex W W P (Summary)
8176 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
8177 Hide @acronym{PEM} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
8178 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
8181 @kindex W W B (Summary)
8182 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
8183 @vindex gnus-article-banner-alist
8184 @vindex gnus-article-address-banner-alist
8187 @cindex stripping advertisements
8188 @cindex advertisements
8189 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
8190 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
8191 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
8192 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
8193 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
8194 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
8195 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
8196 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
8197 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
8198 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
8201 Regardless of a group, you can hide things like advertisements only when
8202 the sender of an article has a certain mail address specified in
8203 @code{gnus-article-address-banner-alist}.
8207 @item gnus-article-address-banner-alist
8208 @vindex gnus-article-address-banner-alist
8209 Alist of mail addresses and banners. Each element has the form
8210 @code{(@var{address} . @var{banner})}, where @var{address} is a regexp
8211 matching a mail address in the From header, @var{banner} is one of a
8212 symbol @code{signature}, an item in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist},
8213 a regexp and @code{nil}. If @var{address} matches author's mail
8214 address, it will remove things like advertisements. For example, if a
8215 sender has the mail address @samp{hail@@yoo-hoo.co.jp} and there is a
8216 banner something like @samp{Do You Yoo-hoo!?} in all articles he
8217 sends, you can use the following element to remove them:
8220 ("@@yoo-hoo\\.co\\.jp\\'" . "\n_+\nDo You Yoo-hoo!\\?\n.*\n.*\n")
8226 @kindex W W c (Summary)
8227 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
8228 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
8229 customizing the hiding:
8233 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
8234 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
8235 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
8236 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
8237 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
8238 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
8239 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
8244 Starting point of the hidden text.
8246 Ending point of the hidden text.
8248 Number of characters in the hidden region.
8250 Number of lines of hidden text.
8253 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
8254 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
8255 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
8256 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
8257 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
8262 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
8263 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
8265 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
8266 following two variables:
8269 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
8270 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
8271 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
8272 50), hide the cited text.
8274 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
8275 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
8276 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
8281 @kindex W W C (Summary)
8282 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
8283 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
8284 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
8285 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
8286 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
8290 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
8291 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
8292 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
8294 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
8295 citation customization.
8297 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
8301 @node Article Washing
8302 @subsection Article Washing
8304 @cindex article washing
8306 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
8307 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
8309 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
8310 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
8313 @xref{Customizing Articles}, if you want to change how Gnus displays
8314 articles by default.
8319 This is not really washing, it's sort of the opposite of washing. If
8320 you type this, you see the article exactly as it exists on disk or on
8324 Force redisplaying of the current article
8325 (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). This is also not really washing.
8326 If you type this, you see the article without any previously applied
8327 interactive Washing functions but with all default treatments
8328 (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
8331 @kindex W l (Summary)
8332 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
8333 Remove page breaks from the current article
8334 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
8338 @kindex W r (Summary)
8339 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
8340 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
8341 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
8342 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
8343 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
8344 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
8346 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
8347 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
8348 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
8349 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
8352 @kindex W m (Summary)
8353 @findex gnus-summary-morse-message
8354 Morse decode the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-morse-message}).
8358 @kindex W t (Summary)
8360 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
8361 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
8362 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
8365 @kindex W v (Summary)
8366 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-headers
8367 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
8368 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-headers}).
8371 @kindex W o (Summary)
8372 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
8373 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
8376 @kindex W d (Summary)
8377 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
8378 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
8380 @cindex M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s
8382 Treat M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s according to
8383 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
8384 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
8385 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
8388 Sm*rtq**t*s are M****s***'s unilateral extension to the character map in
8389 an attempt to provide more quoting characters. If you see something
8390 like @code{\222} or @code{\264} where you're expecting some kind of
8391 apostrophe or quotation mark, then try this wash.
8394 @kindex W Y f (Summary)
8395 @findex gnus-article-outlook-deuglify-article
8396 @cindex Outlook Express
8397 Full deuglify of broken Outlook (Express) articles: Treat dumbquotes,
8398 unwrap lines, repair attribution and rearrange citation.
8399 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-deuglify-article}).
8402 @kindex W Y u (Summary)
8403 @findex gnus-article-outlook-unwrap-lines
8404 @vindex gnus-outlook-deuglify-unwrap-min
8405 @vindex gnus-outlook-deuglify-unwrap-max
8406 Unwrap lines that appear to be wrapped citation lines. You can control
8407 what lines will be unwrapped by frobbing
8408 @code{gnus-outlook-deuglify-unwrap-min} and
8409 @code{gnus-outlook-deuglify-unwrap-max}, indicating the miminum and
8410 maximum length of an unwrapped citation line.
8411 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-unwrap-lines}).
8414 @kindex W Y a (Summary)
8415 @findex gnus-article-outlook-repair-attribution
8416 Repair a broken attribution line.
8417 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-repair-attribution}).
8420 @kindex W Y c (Summary)
8421 @findex gnus-article-outlook-rearrange-citation
8422 Repair broken citations by rearranging the text.
8423 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-rearrange-citation}).
8426 @kindex W w (Summary)
8427 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
8428 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
8430 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
8434 @kindex W Q (Summary)
8435 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
8436 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
8439 @kindex W C (Summary)
8440 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
8441 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
8442 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
8445 @kindex W c (Summary)
8446 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
8447 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
8448 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
8449 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
8450 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
8453 @kindex W q (Summary)
8454 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
8455 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
8456 Quoted-Printable is one common @acronym{MIME} encoding employed when
8457 sending non-@acronym{ASCII} (i.e., 8-bit) articles. It typically
8458 makes strings like @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which
8459 doesn't look very readable to me. Note that this is usually done
8460 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8461 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding
8462 has been done. If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8465 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
8466 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
8467 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}). Base64 is
8468 one common @acronym{MIME} encoding employed when sending
8469 non-@acronym{ASCII} (i.e., 8-bit) articles. Note that this is
8470 usually done automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8471 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding
8472 has been done. If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8475 @kindex W Z (Summary)
8476 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
8477 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
8478 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
8479 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
8482 @kindex W u (Summary)
8483 @findex gnus-article-unsplit-urls
8484 Remove newlines from within URLs. Some mailers insert newlines into
8485 outgoing email messages to keep lines short. This reformatting can
8486 split long URLs onto multiple lines. Repair those URLs by removing
8487 the newlines (@code{gnus-article-unsplit-urls}).
8490 @kindex W h (Summary)
8491 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
8492 Treat @acronym{HTML} (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}). Note that this is
8493 usually done automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8494 @code{Content-Type} header that says that the message is @acronym{HTML}.
8496 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8498 @vindex gnus-article-wash-function
8499 The default is to use the function specified by
8500 @code{mm-text-html-renderer} (@pxref{Display Customization, ,Display
8501 Customization, emacs-mime, The Emacs MIME Manual}) to convert the
8502 @acronym{HTML}, but this is controlled by the
8503 @code{gnus-article-wash-function} variable. Pre-defined functions you
8511 Use emacs-w3m (see @uref{http://emacs-w3m.namazu.org/} for more
8515 Use Links (see @uref{http://links.sf.net/}).
8518 Use Lynx (see @uref{http://lynx.isc.org/}).
8521 Use html2text---a simple @acronym{HTML} converter included with Gnus.
8526 @kindex W b (Summary)
8527 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
8528 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
8529 @xref{Article Buttons}.
8532 @kindex W B (Summary)
8533 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
8534 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
8535 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
8538 @kindex W p (Summary)
8539 @findex gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig
8540 Verify a signed control message
8541 (@code{gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig}). Control messages such as
8542 @code{newgroup} and @code{checkgroups} are usually signed by the
8543 hierarchy maintainer. You need to add the @acronym{PGP} public key of
8544 the maintainer to your keyring to verify the
8545 message.@footnote{@acronym{PGP} keys for many hierarchies are
8546 available at @uref{ftp://ftp.isc.org/pub/pgpcontrol/README.html}}
8549 @kindex W s (Summary)
8550 @findex gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt
8551 Verify a signed (@acronym{PGP}, @acronym{PGP/MIME} or
8552 @acronym{S/MIME}) message
8553 (@code{gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt}). @xref{Security}.
8556 @kindex W a (Summary)
8557 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-in-body
8558 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
8559 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-in-body}).
8562 @kindex W E l (Summary)
8563 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
8564 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
8565 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
8568 @kindex W E m (Summary)
8569 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
8570 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
8571 lines with a single empty line.
8572 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
8575 @kindex W E t (Summary)
8576 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
8577 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
8578 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
8581 @kindex W E a (Summary)
8582 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
8583 Do all the three commands above
8584 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
8587 @kindex W E A (Summary)
8588 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
8589 Remove all blank lines
8590 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
8593 @kindex W E s (Summary)
8594 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
8595 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
8596 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
8599 @kindex W E e (Summary)
8600 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
8601 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
8602 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
8606 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
8609 @node Article Header
8610 @subsection Article Header
8612 These commands perform various transformations of article header.
8617 @kindex W G u (Summary)
8618 @findex gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers
8619 Unfold folded header lines (@code{gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers}).
8622 @kindex W G n (Summary)
8623 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups
8624 Fold the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-To} headers
8625 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups}).
8628 @kindex W G f (Summary)
8629 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-headers
8630 Fold all the message headers
8631 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-headers}).
8635 @findex gnus-article-remove-leading-whitespace
8636 Remove excessive whitespace from all headers
8637 (@code{gnus-article-remove-leading-whitespace}).
8642 @node Article Buttons
8643 @subsection Article Buttons
8646 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
8647 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
8648 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
8649 button on these references.
8651 @vindex gnus-button-man-handler
8652 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
8653 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses, Message-IDs, Info links, man pages and
8654 Emacs or Gnus related references. This is controlled by two variables,
8655 one that handles article bodies and one that handles article heads:
8659 @item gnus-button-alist
8660 @vindex gnus-button-alist
8661 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
8664 (@var{regexp} @var{button-par} @var{use-p} @var{function} @var{data-par})
8670 All text that match this regular expression (case insensitive) will be
8671 considered an external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches
8672 embedded URLs: @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}. This can also be a
8673 variable containing a regexp, useful variables to use include
8674 @code{gnus-button-url-regexp} and @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-regexp}.
8677 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
8678 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
8679 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
8682 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
8683 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
8684 avoid false matches. Often variables named
8685 @code{gnus-button-@var{*}-level} are used here, @xref{Article Button
8686 Levels}, but any other form may be used too.
8688 @c @code{use-p} is @code{eval}ed only if @code{regexp} matches.
8691 This function will be called when you click on this button.
8694 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
8695 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
8699 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
8702 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
8705 @item gnus-header-button-alist
8706 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
8707 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
8708 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
8709 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
8712 (@var{header} @var{regexp} @var{nutton-par} @var{use-p} @var{function} @var{data-par})
8715 @var{header} is a regular expression.
8717 @subsubsection Related variables and functions
8719 @item gnus-button-@var{*}-level
8720 @xref{Article Button Levels}.
8722 @c Stuff related to gnus-button-browse-level
8724 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
8725 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
8726 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
8727 default values of the variables above.
8729 @c Stuff related to gnus-button-man-level
8731 @item gnus-button-man-handler
8732 @vindex gnus-button-man-handler
8733 The function to use for displaying man pages. It must take at least one
8734 argument with a string naming the man page.
8736 @c Stuff related to gnus-button-message-level
8738 @item gnus-button-mid-or-mail-regexp
8739 @vindex gnus-button-mid-or-mail-regexp
8740 Regular expression that matches a message ID or a mail address.
8742 @item gnus-button-prefer-mid-or-mail
8743 @vindex gnus-button-prefer-mid-or-mail
8744 This variable determines what to do when the button on a string as
8745 @samp{foo123@@bar.invalid} is pushed. Strings like this can be either a
8746 message ID or a mail address. If it is one of the symbols @code{mid} or
8747 @code{mail}, Gnus will always assume that the string is a message ID or
8748 a mail address, respectivly. If this variable is set to the symbol
8749 @code{ask}, always query the user what do do. If it is a function, this
8750 function will be called with the string as it's only argument. The
8751 function must return @code{mid}, @code{mail}, @code{invalid} or
8752 @code{ask}. The default value is the function
8753 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic}.
8755 @item gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic
8756 @findex gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic
8757 Function that guesses whether it's argument is a message ID or a mail
8758 address. Returns @code{mid} it's a message IDs, @code{mail} if it's a
8759 mail address, @code{ask} if unsure and @code{invalid} if the string is
8762 @item gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic-alist
8763 @vindex gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic-alist
8764 An alist of @code{(RATE . REGEXP)} pairs used by the function
8765 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic}.
8767 @c Stuff related to gnus-button-tex-level
8769 @item gnus-button-ctan-handler
8770 @findex gnus-button-ctan-handler
8771 The function to use for displaying CTAN links. It must take one
8772 argument, the string naming the URL.
8775 @vindex gnus-ctan-url
8776 Top directory of a CTAN (Comprehensive TeX Archive Network) archive used
8777 by @code{gnus-button-ctan-handler}.
8781 @item gnus-article-button-face
8782 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
8783 Face used on buttons.
8785 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
8786 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
8787 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
8791 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
8794 @node Article Button Levels
8795 @subsection Article button levels
8796 @cindex button levels
8797 The higher the value of the variables @code{gnus-button-@var{*}-level},
8798 the more buttons will appear. If the level is zero, no corresponding
8799 buttons are displayed. With the default value (which is 5) you should
8800 already see quite a lot of buttons. With higher levels, you will see
8801 more buttons, but you may also get more false positives. To avoid them,
8802 you can set the variables @code{gnus-button-@var{*}-level} local to
8803 specific groups (@pxref{Group Parameters}). Here's an example for the
8804 variable @code{gnus-parameters}:
8807 ;; @r{increase @code{gnus-button-*-level} in some groups:}
8808 (setq gnus-parameters
8809 '(("\\<\\(emacs\\|gnus\\)\\>" (gnus-button-emacs-level 10))
8810 ("\\<unix\\>" (gnus-button-man-level 10))
8811 ("\\<tex\\>" (gnus-button-tex-level 10))))
8816 @item gnus-button-browse-level
8817 @vindex gnus-button-browse-level
8818 Controls the display of references to message IDs, mail addresses and
8819 news URLs. Related variables and functions include
8820 @code{gnus-button-url-regexp}, @code{browse-url}, and
8821 @code{browse-url-browser-function}.
8823 @item gnus-button-emacs-level
8824 @vindex gnus-button-emacs-level
8825 Controls the display of Emacs or Gnus references. Related functions are
8826 @code{gnus-button-handle-custom},
8827 @code{gnus-button-handle-describe-function},
8828 @code{gnus-button-handle-describe-variable},
8829 @code{gnus-button-handle-symbol},
8830 @code{gnus-button-handle-describe-key},
8831 @code{gnus-button-handle-apropos},
8832 @code{gnus-button-handle-apropos-command},
8833 @code{gnus-button-handle-apropos-variable},
8834 @code{gnus-button-handle-apropos-documentation}, and
8835 @code{gnus-button-handle-library}.
8837 @item gnus-button-man-level
8838 @vindex gnus-button-man-level
8839 Controls the display of references to (Unix) man pages.
8840 See @code{gnus-button-man-handler}.
8842 @item gnus-button-message-level
8843 @vindex gnus-button-message-level
8844 Controls the display of message IDs, mail addresses and news URLs.
8845 Related variables and functions include
8846 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-regexp},
8847 @code{gnus-button-prefer-mid-or-mail},
8848 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic}, and
8849 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic-alist}.
8851 @item gnus-button-tex-level
8852 @vindex gnus-button-tex-level
8853 Controls the display of references to @TeX{} or LaTeX stuff, e.g. for CTAN
8854 URLs. See the variables @code{gnus-ctan-url},
8855 @code{gnus-button-ctan-handler},
8856 @code{gnus-button-ctan-directory-regexp}, and
8857 @code{gnus-button-handle-ctan-bogus-regexp}.
8863 @subsection Article Date
8865 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
8866 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
8867 when the article was sent.
8872 @kindex W T u (Summary)
8873 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
8874 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
8875 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
8878 @kindex W T i (Summary)
8879 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
8881 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
8882 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
8885 @kindex W T l (Summary)
8886 @findex gnus-article-date-local
8887 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
8890 @kindex W T p (Summary)
8891 @findex gnus-article-date-english
8892 Display the date in a format that's easily pronounceable in English
8893 (@code{gnus-article-date-english}).
8896 @kindex W T s (Summary)
8897 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
8898 @findex gnus-article-date-user
8899 @findex format-time-string
8900 Display the date using a user-defined format
8901 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
8902 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
8903 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
8904 for a list of possible format specs.
8907 @kindex W T e (Summary)
8908 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
8909 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
8910 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
8911 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
8912 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
8915 X-Sent: 6 weeks, 4 days, 1 hour, 3 minutes, 8 seconds ago
8918 @vindex gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header
8919 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
8920 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
8923 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
8924 into wonderful absurdities.
8926 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
8929 (gnus-start-date-timer)
8932 in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
8933 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
8937 @kindex W T o (Summary)
8938 @findex gnus-article-date-original
8939 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
8940 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
8941 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
8942 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
8943 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
8947 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
8948 preferred format automatically.
8951 @node Article Display
8952 @subsection Article Display
8957 These commands add various frivolous display gimmicks to the article
8958 buffer in Emacs versions that support them.
8960 @code{X-Face} headers are small black-and-white images supplied by the
8961 message headers (@pxref{X-Face}).
8963 Picons, on the other hand, reside on your own system, and Gnus will
8964 try to match the headers to what you have (@pxref{Picons}).
8966 Smileys are those little @samp{:-)} symbols that people like to litter
8967 their messages with (@pxref{Smileys}).
8969 All these functions are toggles---if the elements already exist,
8974 @kindex W D x (Summary)
8975 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
8976 Display an @code{X-Face} in the @code{From} header.
8977 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}).
8980 @kindex W D d (Summary)
8981 @findex gnus-article-display-face
8982 Display a @code{Face} in the @code{From} header.
8983 (@code{gnus-article-display-face}).
8986 @kindex W D s (Summary)
8987 @findex gnus-treat-smiley
8988 Display smileys (@code{gnus-treat-smiley}).
8991 @kindex W D f (Summary)
8992 @findex gnus-treat-from-picon
8993 Piconify the @code{From} header (@code{gnus-treat-from-picon}).
8996 @kindex W D m (Summary)
8997 @findex gnus-treat-mail-picon
8998 Piconify all mail headers (i. e., @code{Cc}, @code{To})
8999 (@code{gnus-treat-mail-picon}).
9002 @kindex W D n (Summary)
9003 @findex gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon
9004 Piconify all news headers (i. e., @code{Newsgroups} and
9005 @code{Followup-To}) (@code{gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon}).
9008 @kindex W D D (Summary)
9009 @findex gnus-article-remove-images
9010 Remove all images from the article buffer
9011 (@code{gnus-article-remove-images}).
9017 @node Article Signature
9018 @subsection Article Signature
9020 @cindex article signature
9022 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
9023 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
9024 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
9025 that says what is to be considered a signature is
9026 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
9027 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
9028 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
9029 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
9030 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
9033 (setq gnus-signature-separator
9034 '("^-- $" ; @r{The standard}
9035 "^-- *$" ; @r{A common mangling}
9036 "^-------*$" ; @r{Many people just use a looong}
9037 ; @r{line of dashes. Shame!}
9038 "^ *--------*$" ; @r{Double-shame!}
9039 "^________*$" ; @r{Underscores are also popular}
9040 "^========*$")) ; @r{Pervert!}
9043 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
9046 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
9047 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
9048 signature when displaying articles.
9052 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
9055 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
9058 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
9059 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
9061 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
9062 in question is not a signature.
9065 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
9066 listed above. Here's an example:
9069 (setq gnus-signature-limit
9070 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
9073 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
9074 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
9075 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
9076 signature after all.
9079 @node Article Miscellania
9080 @subsection Article Miscellania
9084 @kindex A t (Summary)
9085 @findex gnus-article-babel
9086 Translate the article from one language to another
9087 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
9093 @section MIME Commands
9094 @cindex MIME decoding
9096 @cindex viewing attachments
9098 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
9099 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @acronym{MIME} part''.
9105 @kindex K v (Summary)
9106 View the @acronym{MIME} part.
9109 @kindex K o (Summary)
9110 Save the @acronym{MIME} part.
9113 @kindex K c (Summary)
9114 Copy the @acronym{MIME} part.
9117 @kindex K e (Summary)
9118 View the @acronym{MIME} part externally.
9121 @kindex K i (Summary)
9122 View the @acronym{MIME} part internally.
9125 @kindex K | (Summary)
9126 Pipe the @acronym{MIME} part to an external command.
9129 The rest of these @acronym{MIME} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
9134 @kindex K b (Summary)
9135 Make all the @acronym{MIME} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
9136 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
9140 @kindex K m (Summary)
9141 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
9142 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
9143 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
9144 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
9145 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
9148 @kindex X m (Summary)
9149 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
9150 Save all parts matching a @acronym{MIME} type to a directory
9151 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
9152 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9155 @kindex M-t (Summary)
9156 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized
9157 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
9158 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
9161 @kindex W M w (Summary)
9162 @findex gnus-article-decode-mime-words
9163 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
9164 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
9167 @kindex W M c (Summary)
9168 @findex gnus-article-decode-charset
9169 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
9170 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
9172 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
9173 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
9174 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
9175 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not
9176 include @acronym{MIME} headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic
9177 parameter to the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
9180 @kindex W M v (Summary)
9181 @findex gnus-mime-view-all-parts
9182 View all the @acronym{MIME} parts in the current article
9183 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
9190 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
9191 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
9192 This is a list of regexps. @acronym{MIME} types that match a regexp from
9193 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
9196 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
9199 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
9203 @item gnus-article-loose-mime
9204 @vindex gnus-article-loose-mime
9205 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus won't required the @samp{MIME-Version} header
9206 before interpreting the message as a @acronym{MIME} message. This helps
9207 when reading messages from certain broken mail user agents. The
9208 default is @code{nil}.
9210 @item gnus-article-emulate-mime
9211 @vindex gnus-article-emulate-mime
9212 There are other, non-@acronym{MIME} encoding methods used. The most common
9213 is @samp{uuencode}, but yEncode is also getting to be popular. If
9214 this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will look in message bodies to
9215 see if it finds these encodings, and if so, it'll run them through the
9216 Gnus @acronym{MIME} machinery. The default is @code{t}.
9218 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
9219 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
9220 This is a list of regexps. @acronym{MIME} types that match a regexp from
9221 this list won't have @acronym{MIME} buttons inserted unless they aren't
9222 displayed or this variable is overridden by
9223 @code{gnus-buttonized-mime-types}. The default value is
9224 @code{(".*/.*")}. This variable is only used when
9225 @code{gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing} is @code{nil}.
9227 @item gnus-buttonized-mime-types
9228 @vindex gnus-buttonized-mime-types
9229 This is a list of regexps. @acronym{MIME} types that match a regexp from
9230 this list will have @acronym{MIME} buttons inserted unless they aren't
9231 displayed. This variable overrides
9232 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types}. The default value is @code{nil}.
9233 This variable is only used when @code{gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing}
9236 To see e.g. security buttons but no other buttons, you could set this
9237 variable to @code{("multipart/signed")} and leave
9238 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types} at the default value.
9240 @item gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing
9241 @vindex gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing
9242 If this is non-@code{nil}, then all @acronym{MIME} parts get buttons. The
9243 default value is @code{nil}.
9245 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
9246 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
9247 For each @acronym{MIME} part, this function will be called with the @acronym{MIME}
9248 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
9249 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
9250 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
9251 save all jpegs into some directory).
9253 Here's an example function the does the latter:
9256 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
9257 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
9259 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
9260 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
9261 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
9262 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
9263 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
9266 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
9267 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
9268 Alist of @acronym{MIME} multipart types and functions to handle them.
9270 @vindex mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
9271 @item mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
9272 List of functions used for rewriting file names of @acronym{MIME} parts.
9273 Each function takes a file name as input and returns a file name.
9275 Ready-made functions include@*
9276 @code{mm-file-name-delete-whitespace},
9277 @code{mm-file-name-trim-whitespace},
9278 @code{mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace}, and
9279 @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace}. The later uses the value of
9280 the variable @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace} to replace each
9281 whitespace character in a file name with that string; default value
9282 is @code{"_"} (a single underscore).
9283 @findex mm-file-name-delete-whitespace
9284 @findex mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
9285 @findex mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
9286 @findex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
9287 @vindex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
9289 The standard functions @code{capitalize}, @code{downcase},
9290 @code{upcase}, and @code{upcase-initials} may be useful, too.
9292 Everybody knows that whitespace characters in file names are evil,
9293 except those who don't know. If you receive lots of attachments from
9294 such unenlightened users, you can make live easier by adding
9297 (setq mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
9298 '(mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
9299 mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
9300 mm-file-name-replace-whitespace))
9304 to your @file{~/.gnus.el} file.
9313 People use different charsets, and we have @acronym{MIME} to let us know what
9314 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
9315 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @acronym{MIME}, and
9316 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
9317 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
9318 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
9319 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
9321 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
9322 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
9323 variable, which is an alist of regexps (use the first item to match full
9324 group names) and default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
9326 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets
9327 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @acronym{MIME}-aware agents that
9328 aren't. These blithely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1}
9329 even if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
9330 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
9331 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be
9332 set on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
9333 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit x-unknown)},
9334 which includes values some agents insist on having in there.
9336 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
9337 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
9338 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @acronym{MIME}
9339 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
9340 quoted-printable header encoding.
9342 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
9343 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
9344 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
9348 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
9351 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
9352 means encode all charsets),
9354 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
9355 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
9356 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
9363 @cindex coding system aliases
9364 @cindex preferred charset
9366 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
9368 If there are several @acronym{MIME} charsets that encode the same Emacs
9369 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
9372 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
9373 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
9376 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
9377 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @acronym{MIME} charset.
9379 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
9382 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
9385 This will almost do the right thing.
9387 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
9391 (codepage-setup 1251)
9392 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
9396 @node Article Commands
9397 @section Article Commands
9404 @kindex A P (Summary)
9405 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
9406 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
9407 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
9408 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will
9409 be run just before printing the buffer. An alternative way to print
9410 article is to use Muttprint (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
9415 @node Summary Sorting
9416 @section Summary Sorting
9417 @cindex summary sorting
9419 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
9420 can't really see why you'd want that.
9425 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
9426 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
9427 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
9430 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
9431 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
9432 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
9435 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
9436 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
9437 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
9440 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
9441 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
9442 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
9445 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
9446 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
9447 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
9450 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
9451 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
9452 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
9455 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
9456 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
9457 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
9460 @kindex C-c C-s C-r (Summary)
9461 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-random
9462 Randomize (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-random}).
9465 @kindex C-c C-s C-o (Summary)
9466 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-original
9467 Sort using the default sorting method
9468 (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-original}).
9471 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
9472 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
9473 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
9474 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
9475 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
9479 @node Finding the Parent
9480 @section Finding the Parent
9481 @cindex parent articles
9482 @cindex referring articles
9487 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
9488 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
9489 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
9490 if the current group is fetched by @acronym{NNTP}, the parent hasn't expired
9491 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
9492 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
9493 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
9494 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
9495 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
9497 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
9498 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
9499 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
9500 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
9501 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
9505 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
9506 @kindex A R (Summary)
9507 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
9508 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
9511 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
9512 @kindex A T (Summary)
9513 Display the full thread where the current article appears
9514 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
9515 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
9516 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
9517 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
9518 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
9519 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
9521 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
9522 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
9523 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
9524 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
9525 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
9526 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
9529 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
9530 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
9532 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
9533 You can also ask the @acronym{NNTP} server for an arbitrary article, no
9534 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
9535 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
9536 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
9537 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
9538 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
9541 The current select method will be used when fetching by
9542 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
9543 by giving this command a prefix.
9545 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
9546 If the group you are reading is located on a back end that does not
9547 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
9548 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @acronym{NNTP} method. It
9549 would, perhaps, be best if the @acronym{NNTP} server you consult is the one
9550 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
9553 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
9554 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
9555 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
9558 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
9559 then ask Google if that fails:
9562 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
9564 (nnweb "google" (nnweb-type google))))
9567 Most of the mail back ends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but
9568 do not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox},
9569 @code{nnbabyl}, and @code{nnmaildir} are able to locate articles from
9570 any groups, while @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, and @code{nnimap} are
9571 only able to locate articles that have been posted to the current group.
9572 (Anything else would be too time consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not
9573 support this at all.
9576 @node Alternative Approaches
9577 @section Alternative Approaches
9579 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
9580 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
9583 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
9584 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
9589 @subsection Pick and Read
9590 @cindex pick and read
9592 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
9593 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
9594 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
9595 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
9597 @findex gnus-pick-mode
9598 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
9599 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
9600 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
9601 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
9602 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
9604 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
9609 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
9610 Pick the article or thread on the current line
9611 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9612 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
9613 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
9614 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
9615 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
9616 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
9619 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
9620 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
9621 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
9622 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
9626 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
9627 Unpick the thread or article
9628 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9629 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
9630 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
9631 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
9632 the thread or article at that line.
9636 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
9637 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
9638 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
9639 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
9640 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
9641 will still be visible when you are reading.
9645 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
9646 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
9647 which is mapped to the same function
9648 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
9650 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
9653 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
9656 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
9657 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
9659 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
9660 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
9661 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
9663 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
9664 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
9665 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
9666 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
9667 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
9668 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
9669 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
9673 @subsection Binary Groups
9674 @cindex binary groups
9676 @findex gnus-binary-mode
9677 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
9678 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
9679 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
9680 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
9681 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
9682 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
9685 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
9686 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
9687 command, when you have turned on this mode
9688 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
9690 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
9691 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
9695 @section Tree Display
9698 @vindex gnus-use-trees
9699 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
9700 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
9701 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
9704 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
9707 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
9708 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
9709 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
9711 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9712 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9713 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
9714 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
9715 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
9717 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
9718 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
9719 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
9720 default is @code{modeline}.
9722 @item gnus-tree-line-format
9723 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
9724 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
9725 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
9726 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
9727 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
9728 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
9734 The name of the poster.
9736 The @code{From} header.
9738 The number of the article.
9740 The opening bracket.
9742 The closing bracket.
9747 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
9749 Variables related to the display are:
9752 @item gnus-tree-brackets
9753 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
9754 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
9755 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
9756 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
9757 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
9759 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9760 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9761 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
9762 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
9766 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
9767 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
9768 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
9769 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
9770 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
9771 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
9772 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
9773 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
9774 other windows displayed next to it.
9776 You may also wish to add the following hook to keep the window minimized
9780 (add-hook 'gnus-configure-windows-hook
9781 'gnus-tree-perhaps-minimize)
9784 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
9785 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
9786 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9787 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
9788 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
9789 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
9790 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
9794 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
9797 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
9807 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
9811 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
9812 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
9814 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
9816 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
9821 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
9822 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
9823 following to your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
9826 (setq gnus-use-trees t
9827 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9828 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
9829 (gnus-add-configuration
9833 (summary 0.75 point)
9838 @xref{Window Layout}.
9841 @node Mail Group Commands
9842 @section Mail Group Commands
9843 @cindex mail group commands
9845 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
9846 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
9848 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
9849 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9854 @kindex B e (Summary)
9855 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
9856 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
9857 process (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}). That is, delete all
9858 expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
9859 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
9862 @kindex B C-M-e (Summary)
9863 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
9864 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
9865 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
9866 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
9867 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
9870 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
9871 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
9872 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
9873 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
9874 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
9875 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
9878 @kindex B m (Summary)
9880 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
9881 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
9882 Move the article from one mail group to another
9883 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9884 @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9887 @kindex B c (Summary)
9889 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
9890 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
9891 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
9892 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9893 @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9896 @kindex B B (Summary)
9897 @cindex crosspost mail
9898 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
9899 Crosspost the current article to some other group
9900 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
9901 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
9902 be properly updated.
9905 @kindex B i (Summary)
9906 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
9907 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
9908 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
9909 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9912 @kindex B I (Summary)
9913 @findex gnus-summary-create-article
9914 Create an empty article in the current mail newsgroups
9915 (@code{gnus-summary-create-article}). You will be prompted for a
9916 @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9919 @kindex B r (Summary)
9920 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
9921 @vindex gnus-summary-respool-default-method
9922 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
9923 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
9924 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
9925 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
9926 Marks will be preserved if @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
9927 (which is the default).
9931 @kindex B w (Summary)
9933 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
9934 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
9935 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article-done
9936 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
9937 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
9938 (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
9939 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
9942 @kindex B q (Summary)
9943 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
9944 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
9945 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
9946 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
9949 @kindex B t (Summary)
9950 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
9951 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
9952 when respooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
9955 @kindex B p (Summary)
9956 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
9957 Some people have a tendency to send you ``courtesy'' copies when they
9958 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
9959 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
9960 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
9961 article from your news server (or rather, from
9962 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
9963 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
9964 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
9965 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
9966 just not have arrived yet.
9969 @kindex K E (Summary)
9970 @findex gnus-article-encrypt-body
9971 @vindex gnus-article-encrypt-protocol
9972 Encrypt the body of an article (@code{gnus-article-encrypt-body}).
9973 The body is encrypted with the encryption protocol specified by the
9974 variable @code{gnus-article-encrypt-protocol}.
9978 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
9979 @cindex moving articles
9980 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
9981 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
9982 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
9983 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
9984 suggestions you find reasonable. (Note that
9985 @code{gnus-move-split-methods} uses group names where
9986 @code{gnus-split-methods} uses file names.)
9989 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
9990 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
9991 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
9992 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
9996 @node Various Summary Stuff
9997 @section Various Summary Stuff
10000 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
10001 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
10002 * Summary Generation Commands::
10003 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
10007 @vindex gnus-summary-display-while-building
10008 @item gnus-summary-display-while-building
10009 If non-@code{nil}, show and update the summary buffer as it's being
10010 built. If @code{t}, update the buffer after every line is inserted.
10011 If the value is an integer, @var{n}, update the display every @var{n}
10012 lines. The default is @code{nil}.
10014 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
10015 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
10016 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
10018 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
10019 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
10020 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
10021 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
10022 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
10023 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
10026 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
10027 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
10028 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
10029 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
10030 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
10032 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
10033 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
10034 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
10037 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
10038 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
10039 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
10040 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
10041 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
10042 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
10043 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
10044 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
10045 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
10046 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
10048 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
10049 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
10050 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
10051 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
10052 list of articles to be selected.
10054 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
10055 the list in one particular group:
10058 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
10059 (if (string= group "some.group")
10060 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
10064 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-variables
10065 @item gnus-newsgroup-variables
10066 A list of newsgroup (summary buffer) local variables, or cons of
10067 variables and their default values (when the default values are not
10068 @code{nil}), that should be made global while the summary buffer is
10069 active. These variables can be used to set variables in the group
10070 parameters while still allowing them to affect operations done in
10071 other buffers. For example:
10074 (setq gnus-newsgroup-variables
10075 '(message-use-followup-to
10076 (gnus-visible-headers .
10077 "^From:\\|^Newsgroups:\\|^Subject:\\|^Date:\\|^To:")))
10083 @node Summary Group Information
10084 @subsection Summary Group Information
10089 @kindex H f (Summary)
10090 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
10091 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
10092 Try to fetch the @acronym{FAQ} (list of frequently asked questions)
10093 for the current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try
10094 to get the @acronym{FAQ} from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which
10095 is usually a directory on a remote machine. This variable can also be
10096 a list of directories. In that case, giving a prefix to this command
10097 will allow you to choose between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp}
10098 or @code{efs} will probably be used for fetching the file.
10101 @kindex H d (Summary)
10102 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
10103 Give a brief description of the current group
10104 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
10105 rereading the description from the server.
10108 @kindex H h (Summary)
10109 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
10110 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
10111 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
10114 @kindex H i (Summary)
10115 @findex gnus-info-find-node
10116 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
10120 @node Searching for Articles
10121 @subsection Searching for Articles
10126 @kindex M-s (Summary)
10127 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
10128 Search through all subsequent (raw) articles for a regexp
10129 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
10132 @kindex M-r (Summary)
10133 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
10134 Search through all previous (raw) articles for a regexp
10135 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
10138 @kindex & (Summary)
10139 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
10140 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
10141 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
10142 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
10143 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
10144 search backward instead.
10146 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
10147 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
10150 @kindex M-& (Summary)
10151 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
10152 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
10153 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
10156 @node Summary Generation Commands
10157 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
10162 @kindex Y g (Summary)
10163 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
10164 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
10167 @kindex Y c (Summary)
10168 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
10169 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
10170 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
10173 @kindex Y d (Summary)
10174 @findex gnus-summary-insert-dormant-articles
10175 Pull all dormant articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
10176 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-dormant-articles}).
10181 @node Really Various Summary Commands
10182 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
10188 @kindex C-d (Summary)
10189 @kindex A D (Summary)
10190 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
10191 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
10192 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
10193 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
10194 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
10195 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
10196 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
10197 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
10201 @kindex C-M-d (Summary)
10202 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
10203 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
10204 several documents into one biiig group
10205 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
10206 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
10207 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
10208 command understands the process/prefix convention
10209 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
10212 @kindex C-t (Summary)
10213 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
10214 Toggle truncation of summary lines
10215 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
10216 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
10217 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
10220 @kindex = (Summary)
10221 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
10222 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
10223 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
10226 @kindex C-M-e (Summary)
10227 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
10228 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
10229 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
10232 @kindex C-M-a (Summary)
10233 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
10234 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
10235 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
10240 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
10241 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
10242 @cindex summary exit
10243 @cindex exiting groups
10245 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
10246 group and return you to the group buffer.
10252 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
10253 @kindex q (Summary)
10254 @findex gnus-summary-exit
10255 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
10256 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
10257 @vindex gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook
10258 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
10259 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
10260 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
10261 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
10262 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
10263 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
10264 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
10265 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
10269 @kindex Z E (Summary)
10270 @kindex Q (Summary)
10271 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
10272 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
10273 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
10277 @kindex Z c (Summary)
10278 @kindex c (Summary)
10279 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
10280 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
10281 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
10282 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
10285 @kindex Z C (Summary)
10286 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
10287 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
10288 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
10291 @kindex Z n (Summary)
10292 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
10293 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
10294 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
10297 @kindex Z R (Summary)
10298 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
10299 Exit this group, and then enter it again
10300 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
10301 all articles, both read and unread.
10305 @kindex Z G (Summary)
10306 @kindex M-g (Summary)
10307 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
10308 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
10309 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
10310 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
10311 articles, both read and unread.
10314 @kindex Z N (Summary)
10315 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
10316 Exit the group and go to the next group
10317 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
10320 @kindex Z P (Summary)
10321 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
10322 Exit the group and go to the previous group
10323 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
10326 @kindex Z s (Summary)
10327 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
10328 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
10329 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
10330 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
10331 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
10334 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
10335 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
10336 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
10337 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
10339 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
10340 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
10341 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
10342 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
10343 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
10344 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
10345 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
10346 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
10347 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
10348 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
10349 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
10350 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
10352 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
10354 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
10355 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
10356 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
10357 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
10358 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
10359 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
10360 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
10361 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
10362 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
10365 @node Crosspost Handling
10366 @section Crosspost Handling
10370 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
10371 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
10372 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
10373 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
10374 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
10375 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
10378 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
10379 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
10380 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
10381 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
10382 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
10384 @cindex cross-posting
10386 @cindex @acronym{NOV}
10387 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
10388 correctly is if you use an @acronym{NNTP} server that supports @sc{xover}
10389 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
10390 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @acronym{NOV} lines. This is
10391 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
10392 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
10393 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
10394 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
10395 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
10396 the cross reference mechanism.
10398 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
10399 @cindex overview.fmt
10400 To check whether your @acronym{NNTP} server includes the @code{Xref} header
10401 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
10402 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
10403 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
10404 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
10405 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
10408 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
10409 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
10410 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
10415 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
10418 @node Duplicate Suppression
10419 @section Duplicate Suppression
10421 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
10422 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
10423 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
10424 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
10429 The @acronym{NNTP} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
10430 is evil and not very common.
10433 The @acronym{NNTP} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
10434 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
10437 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
10438 different @acronym{NNTP} servers.
10441 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
10444 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
10445 well, but these four are the most common situations.
10447 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
10448 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
10449 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
10450 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
10451 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
10452 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
10453 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
10456 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
10457 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
10458 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
10459 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
10460 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
10461 saw the article in.
10464 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
10465 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
10466 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
10468 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
10469 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
10470 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
10471 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
10472 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
10473 session are suppressed.
10475 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
10476 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
10477 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
10478 suppression list. The default is 10000.
10480 @item gnus-duplicate-file
10481 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
10482 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
10483 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
10486 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
10487 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
10488 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
10489 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
10490 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
10491 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
10492 to you to figure out, I think.
10497 Gnus is able to verify signed messages or decrypt encrypted messages.
10498 The formats that are supported are @acronym{PGP}, @acronym{PGP/MIME}
10499 and @acronym{S/MIME}, however you need some external programs to get
10504 To handle @acronym{PGP} and @acronym{PGP/MIME} messages, you have to
10505 install an OpenPGP implementation such as GnuPG. The lisp interface
10506 to GnuPG included with Gnus is called PGG (@pxref{Top, ,PGG, pgg, PGG
10507 Manual}), but Mailcrypt and gpg.el are also supported.
10510 To handle @acronym{S/MIME} message, you need to install OpenSSL. OpenSSL 0.9.6
10511 or newer is recommended.
10515 More information on how to set things up can be found in the message
10516 manual (@pxref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}).
10519 @item mm-verify-option
10520 @vindex mm-verify-option
10521 Option of verifying signed parts. @code{never}, not verify;
10522 @code{always}, always verify; @code{known}, only verify known
10523 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
10525 @item mm-decrypt-option
10526 @vindex mm-decrypt-option
10527 Option of decrypting encrypted parts. @code{never}, no decryption;
10528 @code{always}, always decrypt; @code{known}, only decrypt known
10529 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
10532 @vindex mml1991-use
10533 Symbol indicating elisp interface to OpenPGP implementation for
10534 @acronym{PGP} messages. The default is @code{pgg}, but
10535 @code{mailcrypt} and @code{gpg} are also supported although
10539 @vindex mml2015-use
10540 Symbol indicating elisp interface to OpenPGP implementation for
10541 @acronym{PGP/MIME} messages. The default is @code{pgg}, but
10542 @code{mailcrypt} and @code{gpg} are also supported although
10547 @cindex snarfing keys
10548 @cindex importing PGP keys
10549 @cindex PGP key ring import
10550 Snarfing OpenPGP keys (i.e., importing keys from articles into your
10551 key ring) is not supported explicitly through a menu item or command,
10552 rather Gnus do detect and label keys as @samp{application/pgp-keys},
10553 allowing you to specify whatever action you think is appropriate
10554 through the usual @acronym{MIME} infrastructure. You can use a
10555 @file{~/.mailcap} entry (@pxref{mailcap, , mailcap, emacs-mime, The
10556 Emacs MIME Manual}) such as the following to import keys using GNU
10557 Privacy Guard when you click on the @acronym{MIME} button
10558 (@pxref{Using MIME}).
10561 application/pgp-keys; gpg --import --interactive --verbose; needsterminal
10564 This happens to also be the default action defined in
10565 @code{mailcap-mime-data}.
10568 @section Mailing List
10570 @kindex A M (summary)
10571 @findex gnus-mailing-list-insinuate
10572 Gnus understands some mailing list fields of RFC 2369. To enable it,
10573 add a @code{to-list} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}),
10574 possibly using @kbd{A M} (@code{gnus-mailing-list-insinuate}) in the
10577 That enables the following commands to the summary buffer:
10582 @kindex C-c C-n h (Summary)
10583 @findex gnus-mailing-list-help
10584 Send a message to fetch mailing list help, if List-Help field exists.
10587 @kindex C-c C-n s (Summary)
10588 @findex gnus-mailing-list-subscribe
10589 Send a message to subscribe the mailing list, if List-Subscribe field exists.
10592 @kindex C-c C-n u (Summary)
10593 @findex gnus-mailing-list-unsubscribe
10594 Send a message to unsubscribe the mailing list, if List-Unsubscribe
10598 @kindex C-c C-n p (Summary)
10599 @findex gnus-mailing-list-post
10600 Post to the mailing list, if List-Post field exists.
10603 @kindex C-c C-n o (Summary)
10604 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
10605 Send a message to the mailing list owner, if List-Owner field exists.
10608 @kindex C-c C-n a (Summary)
10609 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
10610 Browse the mailing list archive, if List-Archive field exists.
10615 @node Article Buffer
10616 @chapter Article Buffer
10617 @cindex article buffer
10619 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
10620 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
10621 tell Gnus otherwise.
10624 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
10625 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @acronym{MIME} before reading them.
10626 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
10627 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
10628 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
10632 @node Hiding Headers
10633 @section Hiding Headers
10634 @cindex hiding headers
10635 @cindex deleting headers
10637 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
10638 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
10640 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
10641 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
10642 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
10643 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
10644 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
10645 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
10646 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
10647 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
10648 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
10650 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
10654 @item gnus-visible-headers
10655 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
10656 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
10657 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
10658 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
10660 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
10661 the article and the subject, you'd say:
10664 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
10667 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
10670 @item gnus-ignored-headers
10671 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
10672 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
10673 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
10674 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
10675 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
10677 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
10678 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
10681 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
10684 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
10687 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
10688 variable will have no effect.
10692 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
10693 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
10694 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
10695 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
10696 the headers are to be displayed.
10698 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
10699 and then the subject, you might say something like:
10702 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
10705 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
10706 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
10708 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
10709 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
10710 You can hide further boring headers by setting
10711 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
10712 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
10713 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
10714 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
10717 These conditions are:
10720 Remove all empty headers.
10722 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
10723 @code{Newsgroups} header.
10725 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
10726 @code{From} header, or if the @code{broken-reply-to} group parameter is
10729 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
10732 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
10733 the current groups's @code{to-address} parameter.
10735 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
10736 the current groups's @code{to-list} parameter.
10738 Remove the @code{CC} header if it only contains the address identical to
10739 the current groups's @code{to-list} parameter.
10741 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
10744 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
10746 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
10749 To include these three elements, you could say something like:
10752 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
10753 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
10756 This is also the default value for this variable.
10760 @section Using MIME
10761 @cindex @acronym{MIME}
10763 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
10764 while people stand around yawning.
10766 @acronym{MIME}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
10767 while all newsreaders die of fear.
10769 @acronym{MIME} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
10770 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
10771 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
10773 @vindex gnus-display-mime-function
10774 @findex gnus-display-mime
10775 Gnus pushes @acronym{MIME} articles through @code{gnus-display-mime-function}
10776 to display the @acronym{MIME} parts. This is @code{gnus-display-mime} by
10777 default, which creates a bundle of clickable buttons that can be used to
10778 display, save and manipulate the @acronym{MIME} objects.
10780 The following commands are available when you have placed point over a
10781 @acronym{MIME} button:
10784 @findex gnus-article-press-button
10785 @item RET (Article)
10786 @kindex RET (Article)
10787 @itemx BUTTON-2 (Article)
10788 Toggle displaying of the @acronym{MIME} object
10789 (@code{gnus-article-press-button}). If builtin viewers can not display
10790 the object, Gnus resorts to external viewers in the @file{mailcap}
10791 files. If a viewer has the @samp{copiousoutput} specification, the
10792 object is displayed inline.
10794 @findex gnus-mime-view-part
10795 @item M-RET (Article)
10796 @kindex M-RET (Article)
10798 Prompt for a method, and then view the @acronym{MIME} object using this
10799 method (@code{gnus-mime-view-part}).
10801 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-type
10803 @kindex t (Article)
10804 View the @acronym{MIME} object as if it were a different @acronym{MIME} media type
10805 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-type}).
10807 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset
10809 @kindex C (Article)
10810 Prompt for a charset, and then view the @acronym{MIME} object using this
10811 charset (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset}).
10813 @findex gnus-mime-save-part
10815 @kindex o (Article)
10816 Prompt for a file name, and then save the @acronym{MIME} object
10817 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part}).
10819 @findex gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip
10820 @item C-o (Article)
10821 @kindex C-o (Article)
10822 Prompt for a file name, then save the @acronym{MIME} object and strip it from
10823 the article. Then proceed to article editing, where a reasonable
10824 suggestion is being made on how the altered article should look
10825 like. The stripped @acronym{MIME} object will be referred via the
10826 message/external-body @acronym{MIME} type.
10827 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip}).
10829 @findex gnus-mime-delete-part
10831 @kindex d (Article)
10832 Delete the @acronym{MIME} object from the article and replace it with some
10833 information about the removed @acronym{MIME} object
10834 (@code{gnus-mime-delete-part}).
10836 @findex gnus-mime-copy-part
10838 @kindex c (Article)
10839 Copy the @acronym{MIME} object to a fresh buffer and display this buffer
10840 (@code{gnus-mime-copy-part}). Compressed files like @file{.gz} and
10841 @file{.bz2} are automatically decompressed if
10842 @code{auto-compression-mode} is enabled (@pxref{Compressed Files,,
10843 Accessing Compressed Files, emacs, The Emacs Editor}).
10845 @findex gnus-mime-print-part
10847 @kindex p (Article)
10848 Print the @acronym{MIME} object (@code{gnus-mime-print-part}). This
10849 command respects the @samp{print=} specifications in the
10850 @file{.mailcap} file.
10852 @findex gnus-mime-inline-part
10854 @kindex i (Article)
10855 Insert the contents of the @acronym{MIME} object into the buffer
10856 (@code{gnus-mime-inline-part}) as text/plain. If given a prefix, insert
10857 the raw contents without decoding. If given a numerical prefix, you can
10858 do semi-manual charset stuff (see
10859 @code{gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist} in @pxref{Paging the
10862 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-internally
10864 @kindex E (Article)
10865 View the @acronym{MIME} object with an internal viewer. If no internal
10866 viewer is available, use an external viewer
10867 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-internally}).
10869 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-externally
10871 @kindex e (Article)
10872 View the @acronym{MIME} object with an external viewer.
10873 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-externally}).
10875 @findex gnus-mime-pipe-part
10877 @kindex | (Article)
10878 Output the @acronym{MIME} object to a process (@code{gnus-mime-pipe-part}).
10880 @findex gnus-mime-action-on-part
10882 @kindex . (Article)
10883 Interactively run an action on the @acronym{MIME} object
10884 (@code{gnus-mime-action-on-part}).
10888 Gnus will display some @acronym{MIME} objects automatically. The way Gnus
10889 determines which parts to do this with is described in the Emacs
10890 @acronym{MIME} manual.
10892 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the article
10893 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
10894 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @acronym{MIME} has
10895 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
10896 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume button,
10897 because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you, and you
10898 try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the program
10899 to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly decides
10900 to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
10902 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
10904 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
10907 @node Customizing Articles
10908 @section Customizing Articles
10909 @cindex article customization
10911 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
10912 exist. You can call these functions interactively
10913 (@pxref{Article Washing}), or you can have them
10914 called automatically when you select the articles.
10916 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
10917 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
10918 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
10919 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
10921 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
10922 for sensible values.
10926 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
10929 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
10932 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
10935 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
10938 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
10942 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
10943 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
10944 regexps in the list.
10947 A list where the first element is not a string:
10949 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
10950 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
10951 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
10955 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
10960 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
10961 to the fact that some messages are @acronym{MIME} multipart articles that may
10962 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
10963 considered to contain just a single part.
10965 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
10966 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
10967 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
10968 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
10969 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
10970 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
10971 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
10973 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
10974 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
10975 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
10976 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
10979 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
10980 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
10982 @xref{Article Buttons}.
10984 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
10985 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
10986 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
10987 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
10988 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
10989 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
10990 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
10991 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
10992 @item gnus-treat-unsplit-urls (t, integer)
10993 @item gnus-treat-wash-html (t, integer)
10995 @xref{Article Washing}.
10997 @item gnus-treat-date-english (head)
10998 @item gnus-treat-date-iso8601 (head)
10999 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
11000 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
11001 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
11002 @item gnus-treat-date-user-defined (head)
11003 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
11005 @xref{Article Date}.
11007 @item gnus-treat-from-picon (head)
11008 @item gnus-treat-mail-picon (head)
11009 @item gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon (head)
11013 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
11015 @item gnus-treat-body-boundary (head)
11017 @vindex gnus-body-boundary-delimiter
11018 Adds a delimiter between header and body, the string used as delimiter
11019 is controlled by @code{gnus-body-boundary-delimiter}.
11023 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
11027 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
11028 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
11029 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
11030 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
11031 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
11032 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation-maybe (t, integer)
11033 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
11034 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
11035 @item gnus-treat-strip-banner (t, last)
11036 @item gnus-treat-strip-list-identifiers (head)
11038 @xref{Article Hiding}.
11040 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
11041 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
11042 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
11044 @xref{Article Highlighting}.
11046 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
11047 @item gnus-treat-translate
11048 @item gnus-treat-x-pgp-sig (head)
11050 @item gnus-treat-unfold-headers (head)
11051 @item gnus-treat-fold-headers (head)
11052 @item gnus-treat-fold-newsgroups (head)
11053 @item gnus-treat-leading-whitespace (head)
11055 @xref{Article Header}.
11060 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
11061 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
11062 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
11063 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
11064 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
11068 @node Article Keymap
11069 @section Article Keymap
11071 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
11072 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
11073 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
11074 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
11077 A few additional keystrokes are available:
11082 @kindex SPACE (Article)
11083 @findex gnus-article-next-page
11084 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
11085 This is exactly the same as @kbd{h SPACE h}.
11088 @kindex DEL (Article)
11089 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
11090 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
11091 This is exactly the same as @kbd{h DEL h}.
11094 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
11095 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
11096 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
11097 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
11098 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
11101 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
11102 @findex gnus-article-mail
11103 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
11104 given a prefix, include the mail.
11107 @kindex s (Article)
11108 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
11109 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
11110 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
11113 @kindex ? (Article)
11114 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
11115 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
11116 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
11119 @kindex TAB (Article)
11120 @findex gnus-article-next-button
11121 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
11122 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
11125 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
11126 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
11127 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
11130 @kindex R (Article)
11131 @findex gnus-article-reply-with-original
11132 Send a reply to the current article and yank the current article
11133 (@code{gnus-article-reply-with-original}). If given a prefix, make a
11134 wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
11138 @kindex F (Article)
11139 @findex gnus-article-followup-with-original
11140 Send a followup to the current article and yank the current article
11141 (@code{gnus-article-followup-with-original}). If given a prefix, make
11142 a wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
11150 @section Misc Article
11154 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
11155 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
11156 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
11157 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
11160 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
11161 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
11163 Hook used to decode @acronym{MIME} articles. The default value is
11164 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
11166 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
11167 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
11168 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
11169 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
11170 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
11171 the contents of the article buffer.
11173 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
11174 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
11175 Hook called in article mode buffers.
11177 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
11178 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
11179 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
11180 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
11182 @vindex gnus-article-over-scroll
11183 @item gnus-article-over-scroll
11184 If non-@code{nil}, allow scrolling the article buffer even when there
11185 no more new text to scroll in. The default is @code{nil}.
11187 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
11188 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
11189 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
11190 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
11191 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
11197 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
11198 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
11199 performed. The characters and their meaning:
11204 Displayed when cited text may be hidden in the article buffer.
11207 Displayed when headers are hidden in the article buffer.
11210 Displayed when article is digitally signed or encrypted, and Gnus has
11211 hidden the security headers. (N.B. does not tell anything about
11212 security status, i.e. good or bad signature.)
11215 Displayed when the signature has been hidden in the Article buffer.
11218 Displayed when Gnus has treated overstrike characters in the article buffer.
11221 Displayed when Gnus has treated emphasised strings in the article buffer.
11226 The number of @acronym{MIME} parts in the article.
11230 @vindex gnus-break-pages
11232 @item gnus-break-pages
11233 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
11234 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
11235 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
11236 paging will not be done.
11238 @item gnus-page-delimiter
11239 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
11240 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
11244 @cindex internationalized domain names
11245 @vindex gnus-use-idna
11246 @item gnus-use-idna
11247 This variable controls whether Gnus performs IDNA decoding of
11248 internationalized domain names inside @samp{From}, @samp{To} and
11249 @samp{Cc} headers. This requires GNU Libidn
11250 (@uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/libidn/}, and this variable is only
11251 enabled if you have installed it.
11256 @node Composing Messages
11257 @chapter Composing Messages
11258 @cindex composing messages
11261 @cindex sending mail
11266 @cindex using s/mime
11267 @cindex using smime
11269 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
11270 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
11271 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
11272 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Overview, message,
11273 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
11274 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
11277 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
11278 * Posting Server:: What server should you post and mail via?
11279 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
11280 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
11281 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
11282 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
11283 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
11284 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
11287 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
11288 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
11294 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
11297 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
11298 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
11299 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
11300 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched. If
11301 @code{nil} include all headers.
11303 @item gnus-add-to-list
11304 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
11305 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
11306 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
11308 @item gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news
11309 @vindex gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news
11310 This can also be a function receiving the group name as the only
11311 parameter which should return non-@code{nil} if a confirmation is
11312 needed, or a regular expression matching group names, where
11313 confirmation is should be asked for.
11315 If you find yourself never wanting to reply to mail, but occasionally
11316 press R anyway, this variable might be for you.
11318 @item gnus-confirm-treat-mail-like-news
11319 @vindex gnus-confirm-treat-mail-like-news
11320 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus also requests confirmation according to
11321 @code{gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news} when replying to mail. This is
11322 useful for treating mailing lists like newsgroups.
11327 @node Posting Server
11328 @section Posting Server
11330 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
11331 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
11333 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
11335 It can be quite complicated.
11337 @vindex gnus-post-method
11338 When posting news, Message usually invokes @code{message-send-news}
11339 (@pxref{News Variables, , News Variables, message, Message Manual}).
11340 Normally, Gnus will post using the same select method as you're
11341 reading from (which might be convenient if you're reading lots of
11342 groups from different private servers). However. If the server
11343 you're reading from doesn't allow posting, just reading, you probably
11344 want to use some other server to post your (extremely intelligent and
11345 fabulously interesting) articles. You can then set the
11346 @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
11349 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
11352 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
11353 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
11354 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
11355 the ``current'' server, to get back the default behavior, for posting.
11357 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
11358 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
11360 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
11361 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
11364 Finally, if you want to always post using the native select method,
11365 you can set this variable to @code{native}.
11367 When sending mail, Message invokes @code{message-send-mail-function}.
11368 The default function, @code{message-send-mail-with-sendmail}, pipes
11369 your article to the @code{sendmail} binary for further queuing and
11370 sending. When your local system is not configured for sending mail
11371 using @code{sendmail}, and you have access to a remote @acronym{SMTP}
11372 server, you can set @code{message-send-mail-function} to
11373 @code{smtpmail-send-it} and make sure to setup the @code{smtpmail}
11374 package correctly. An example:
11377 (setq message-send-mail-function 'smtpmail-send-it
11378 smtpmail-default-smtp-server "YOUR SMTP HOST")
11381 To the thing similar to this, there is
11382 @code{message-smtpmail-send-it}. It is useful if your ISP requires
11383 the @acronym{POP}-before-@acronym{SMTP} authentication. See the
11384 documentation for the function @code{mail-source-touch-pop}.
11386 Other possible choices for @code{message-send-mail-function} includes
11387 @code{message-send-mail-with-mh}, @code{message-send-mail-with-qmail},
11388 and @code{feedmail-send-it}.
11390 @node Mail and Post
11391 @section Mail and Post
11393 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
11397 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
11398 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
11399 @cindex mailing lists
11401 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
11402 gatewayed to the @acronym{NNTP} server, you can read those groups without
11403 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
11404 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
11405 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
11406 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
11407 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
11408 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
11409 still a pain, though.
11411 @item gnus-user-agent
11412 @vindex gnus-user-agent
11415 This variable controls which information should be exposed in the
11416 User-Agent header. It can be one of the symbols @code{gnus} (show only
11417 Gnus version), @code{emacs-gnus} (show only Emacs and Gnus versions),
11418 @code{emacs-gnus-config} (same as @code{emacs-gnus} plus system
11419 configuration), @code{emacs-gnus-type} (same as @code{emacs-gnus} plus
11420 system type) or a custom string. If you set it to a string, be sure to
11421 use a valid format, see RFC 2616.
11425 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
11426 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
11427 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
11430 @findex ispell-message
11432 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
11435 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
11436 you're in, you could say something like the following:
11439 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
11443 "^de\\." (gnus-group-real-name gnus-newsgroup-name))
11444 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
11446 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
11449 Modify to suit your needs.
11452 @node Archived Messages
11453 @section Archived Messages
11454 @cindex archived messages
11455 @cindex sent messages
11457 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
11458 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
11459 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
11460 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
11463 For archiving interesting messages in a group you read, see the
11464 @kbd{B c} (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}) command (@pxref{Mail
11467 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
11468 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
11469 use to store sent messages. The default is:
11472 (nnfolder "archive"
11473 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
11474 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
11475 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
11476 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
11479 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
11480 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likable select method
11481 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
11482 directory chosen, you could say something like:
11485 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
11486 '(nnfolder "archive"
11487 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
11488 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
11489 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
11492 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
11494 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
11495 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
11496 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
11498 This variable can be used to do the following:
11503 Messages will be saved in that group.
11505 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
11506 message will not be stored in the select method given by
11507 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
11508 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
11509 has the default value shown above. Then setting
11510 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
11511 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
11512 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
11516 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
11518 an alist of regexps, functions and forms
11519 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
11522 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
11527 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
11529 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
11532 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
11534 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
11537 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
11539 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
11540 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
11541 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
11542 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
11545 More complex stuff:
11547 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
11548 '((if (message-news-p)
11553 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
11554 messages in one file per month:
11557 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
11558 '((if (message-news-p)
11560 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
11563 @c (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
11564 @c use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
11566 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
11567 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
11568 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
11569 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
11570 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
11571 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
11572 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
11573 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
11574 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
11575 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
11577 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
11578 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
11579 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
11580 this will disable archiving.
11583 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
11584 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
11585 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
11586 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
11587 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
11590 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
11591 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
11592 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
11595 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
11596 but the latter is the preferred method.
11598 @item gnus-gcc-mark-as-read
11599 @vindex gnus-gcc-mark-as-read
11600 If non-@code{nil}, automatically mark @code{Gcc} articles as read.
11602 @item gnus-gcc-externalize-attachments
11603 @vindex gnus-gcc-externalize-attachments
11604 If @code{nil}, attach files as normal parts in Gcc copies; if a regexp
11605 and matches the Gcc group name, attach files as external parts; if it is
11606 @code{all}, attach local files as external parts; if it is other
11607 non-@code{nil}, the behavior is the same as @code{all}, but it may be
11608 changed in the future.
11613 @node Posting Styles
11614 @section Posting Styles
11615 @cindex posting styles
11618 All them variables, they make my head swim.
11620 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
11621 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
11622 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
11625 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
11626 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
11627 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
11628 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
11629 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
11634 (signature "Peace and happiness")
11635 (organization "What me?"))
11637 (signature "Death to everybody"))
11638 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
11639 (organization "Emacs is it")))
11642 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
11643 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
11644 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
11645 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
11646 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
11647 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
11648 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
11649 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
11651 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
11652 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
11653 If it is the form @code{(header @var{match} @var{regexp})}, then Gnus
11654 will look in the original article for a header whose name is
11655 @var{match} and compare that @var{regexp}. @var{match} and
11656 @var{regexp} are strings. (There original article is the one you are
11657 replying or following up to. If you are not composing a reply or a
11658 followup, then there is nothing to match against.) If the
11659 @code{match} is a function symbol, that function will be called with
11660 no arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
11661 referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
11662 any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is
11663 said to @dfn{match}.
11665 Each style may contain an arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
11666 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} @var{value})} pair. The
11667 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
11668 @code{x-face-file}, @code{address} (overriding
11669 @code{user-mail-address}), @code{name} (overriding
11670 @code{(user-full-name)}) or @code{body}. The attribute name can also
11671 be a string or a symbol. In that case, this will be used as a header
11672 name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the article; if
11673 the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed. If the
11674 attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the result
11677 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
11678 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
11679 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
11680 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
11681 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
11682 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable, which
11683 is a vector of the following headers: number subject from date id
11684 references chars lines xref extra.
11686 @vindex message-reply-headers
11688 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
11689 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
11690 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
11692 @findex message-mail-p
11693 @findex message-news-p
11695 So here's a new example:
11698 (setq gnus-posting-styles
11700 (signature-file "~/.signature")
11702 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
11703 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
11705 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
11706 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly") ;; @r{A form}
11707 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
11708 (message-news-p ;; @r{A function symbol}
11709 (signature my-news-signature))
11710 (window-system ;; @r{A value symbol}
11711 ("X-Window-System" (format "%s" window-system)))
11712 ;; @r{If I'm replying to Larsi, set the Organization header.}
11713 ((header "from" "larsi.*org")
11714 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
11715 ((posting-from-work-p) ;; @r{A user defined function}
11716 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
11717 (address "user@@bar.foo")
11718 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
11719 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
11721 (From (save-excursion
11722 (set-buffer gnus-article-buffer)
11723 (message-fetch-field "to"))))
11725 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
11728 The @samp{nnml:.*} rule means that you use the @code{To} address as the
11729 @code{From} address in all your outgoing replies, which might be handy
11730 if you fill many roles.
11737 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
11738 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
11739 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
11740 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
11741 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
11743 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
11744 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
11745 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
11746 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
11747 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
11751 @vindex nndraft-directory
11752 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
11753 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
11754 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
11755 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
11756 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
11757 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
11759 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
11760 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
11761 unsubscribe it. The special properties of the draft group comes from
11762 a group property (@pxref{Group Parameters}), and if lost the group
11763 behaves like any other group. This means the commands below will not
11764 be available. To restore the special properties of the group, the
11765 simplest way is to kill the group, using @kbd{C-k}, and restart
11766 Gnus. The group is automatically created again with the
11767 correct parameters. The content of the group is not lost.
11769 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
11770 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
11771 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
11772 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
11773 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
11774 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
11775 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
11776 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
11777 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
11778 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
11779 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
11780 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
11781 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
11782 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
11784 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
11785 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
11786 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
11788 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
11789 @kindex D e (Draft)
11790 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
11791 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
11792 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
11794 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
11797 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
11798 @kindex D s (Draft)
11799 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
11800 @kindex D S (Draft)
11801 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
11802 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
11803 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
11804 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
11805 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
11808 @findex gnus-draft-toggle-sending
11809 @kindex D t (Draft)
11810 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
11811 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
11812 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
11815 @node Rejected Articles
11816 @section Rejected Articles
11817 @cindex rejected articles
11819 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
11820 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
11821 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
11822 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
11824 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
11825 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
11826 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
11827 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
11828 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
11830 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
11831 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
11832 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
11834 @node Signing and encrypting
11835 @section Signing and encrypting
11837 @cindex using s/mime
11838 @cindex using smime
11840 Gnus can digitally sign and encrypt your messages, using vanilla
11841 @acronym{PGP} format or @acronym{PGP/MIME} or @acronym{S/MIME}. For
11842 decoding such messages, see the @code{mm-verify-option} and
11843 @code{mm-decrypt-option} options (@pxref{Security}).
11845 @vindex gnus-message-replysign
11846 @vindex gnus-message-replyencrypt
11847 @vindex gnus-message-replysignencrypted
11848 Often, you would like to sign replies to people who send you signed
11849 messages. Even more often, you might want to encrypt messages which
11850 are in reply to encrypted messages. Gnus offers
11851 @code{gnus-message-replysign} to enable the former, and
11852 @code{gnus-message-replyencrypt} for the latter. In addition, setting
11853 @code{gnus-message-replysignencrypted} (on by default) will sign
11854 automatically encrypted messages.
11856 Instructing MML to perform security operations on a @acronym{MIME} part is
11857 done using the @kbd{C-c C-m s} key map for signing and the @kbd{C-c
11858 C-m c} key map for encryption, as follows.
11863 @kindex C-c C-m s s
11864 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-smime
11866 Digitally sign current message using @acronym{S/MIME}.
11869 @kindex C-c C-m s o
11870 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
11872 Digitally sign current message using @acronym{PGP}.
11875 @kindex C-c C-m s p
11876 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
11878 Digitally sign current message using @acronym{PGP/MIME}.
11881 @kindex C-c C-m c s
11882 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-smime
11884 Digitally encrypt current message using @acronym{S/MIME}.
11887 @kindex C-c C-m c o
11888 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgp
11890 Digitally encrypt current message using @acronym{PGP}.
11893 @kindex C-c C-m c p
11894 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgpmime
11896 Digitally encrypt current message using @acronym{PGP/MIME}.
11899 @kindex C-c C-m C-n
11900 @findex mml-unsecure-message
11901 Remove security related MML tags from message.
11905 @xref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}, for more information.
11907 @node Select Methods
11908 @chapter Select Methods
11909 @cindex foreign groups
11910 @cindex select methods
11912 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
11913 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
11914 @acronym{NNTP} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
11915 personal mail group.
11917 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
11918 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
11919 list where the first element says what back end to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
11920 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
11921 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
11922 value may have special meaning for the back end in question.
11924 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
11925 we do just that (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
11927 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the back end will recognize the
11930 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @acronym{NNTP} server
11931 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
11932 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
11933 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
11934 back end just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
11936 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
11939 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
11940 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
11941 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
11942 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
11943 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @acronym{IMAP} client.
11944 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
11945 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
11946 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
11950 @node Server Buffer
11951 @section Server Buffer
11953 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
11954 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
11955 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
11956 one back end or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
11957 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
11958 back end represents a virtual server.
11960 For instance, the @code{nntp} back end may be used to connect to several
11961 different actual @acronym{NNTP} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
11962 on the same actual @acronym{NNTP} server. You tell Gnus which back end to
11963 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
11965 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
11966 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
11967 @acronym{NNTP} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
11968 hangs if queried for @acronym{NOV} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
11969 Anyway, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
11970 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
11971 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
11973 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
11974 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
11977 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
11978 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
11979 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
11980 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
11981 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
11982 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
11983 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
11986 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
11987 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
11990 @node Server Buffer Format
11991 @subsection Server Buffer Format
11992 @cindex server buffer format
11994 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
11995 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
11996 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
11997 variable, with some simple extensions:
12002 How the news is fetched---the back end name.
12005 The name of this server.
12008 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
12011 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
12014 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
12015 The mode line can also be customized by using the
12016 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
12017 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
12027 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
12030 @node Server Commands
12031 @subsection Server Commands
12032 @cindex server commands
12038 @findex gnus-server-add-server
12039 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
12043 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
12044 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
12047 @kindex SPACE (Server)
12048 @findex gnus-server-read-server
12049 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
12053 @findex gnus-server-exit
12054 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
12058 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
12059 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
12063 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
12064 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
12068 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
12069 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
12073 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
12074 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
12078 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
12079 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
12080 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
12085 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
12086 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
12087 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
12088 a mail back end that has gotten out of sync.
12093 @node Example Methods
12094 @subsection Example Methods
12096 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
12099 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
12102 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
12108 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
12109 back end, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
12112 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
12113 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
12115 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
12116 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
12120 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
12123 You should read the documentation to each back end to find out what
12124 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
12126 @code{nnmh} is a mail back end that reads a spool-like structure. Say
12127 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
12128 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
12132 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
12135 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
12138 Here's the method for a public spool:
12142 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
12143 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
12149 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @acronym{NNTP}
12150 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
12151 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @acronym{NNTP} server.
12152 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
12153 should probably look something like this:
12157 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet)
12158 (nntp-via-address "the.firewall.machine")
12159 (nntp-address "the.real.nntp.host")
12160 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
12163 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
12164 compressed connection over the modem line, you could add the following
12165 configuration to the example above:
12168 (nntp-via-rlogin-command "ssh")
12171 See also @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches}.
12173 If you're behind a firewall, but have direct access to the outside world
12174 through a wrapper command like "runsocks", you could open a socksified
12175 telnet connection to the news server as follows:
12179 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
12180 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-telnet)
12181 (nntp-address "the.news.server")
12182 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
12185 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
12186 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
12187 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
12188 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
12191 @node Creating a Virtual Server
12192 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
12194 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
12195 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
12197 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
12198 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
12199 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
12201 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
12203 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
12204 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
12205 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
12206 will contain the following:
12216 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
12217 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
12218 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
12221 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
12222 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
12223 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
12226 @node Server Variables
12227 @subsection Server Variables
12228 @cindex server variables
12229 @cindex server parameters
12231 One sticky point when defining variables (both on back ends and in Emacs
12232 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
12233 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
12234 change the ``base'' variable after the variables have been loaded, you
12235 won't change the ``derived'' variables.
12237 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
12238 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
12239 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
12240 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
12241 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
12242 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
12243 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
12244 variables for each back end, see each back end's section later in this
12245 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
12249 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
12250 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
12251 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
12254 Server variables are often called @dfn{server parameters}.
12256 @node Servers and Methods
12257 @subsection Servers and Methods
12259 Wherever you would normally use a select method
12260 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
12261 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
12262 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
12266 @node Unavailable Servers
12267 @subsection Unavailable Servers
12269 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
12270 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
12271 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
12272 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
12273 actually the case or not.
12275 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
12276 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
12277 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
12278 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
12279 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
12280 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
12281 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
12282 it will regard that server as ``down''.
12284 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
12285 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
12287 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{Server Buffer}) and poke it
12288 with the following commands:
12294 @findex gnus-server-open-server
12295 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
12296 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
12300 @findex gnus-server-close-server
12301 Close the connection (if any) to the server
12302 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
12306 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
12307 Mark the current server as unreachable
12308 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
12311 @kindex M-o (Server)
12312 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
12313 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
12314 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
12317 @kindex M-c (Server)
12318 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
12319 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
12320 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
12324 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
12325 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
12326 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
12330 @findex gnus-server-offline-server
12331 Set server status to offline (@code{gnus-server-offline-server}).
12337 @section Getting News
12338 @cindex reading news
12339 @cindex news back ends
12341 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
12342 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @acronym{NNTP} server,
12343 or it can read from a local spool.
12346 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @acronym{NNTP} server.
12347 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
12355 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @acronym{NNTP} server is rather easy.
12356 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @acronym{NNTP}
12357 server as the, uhm, address.
12359 If the @acronym{NNTP} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
12360 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
12361 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
12362 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
12364 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
12365 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
12366 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
12368 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
12373 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
12374 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
12375 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
12377 @cindex authentification
12378 @cindex nntp authentification
12379 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
12380 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
12381 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
12382 commands to the @acronym{NNTP} server after it has been contacted. By
12383 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
12384 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
12385 present in this hook.
12387 @item nntp-authinfo-function
12388 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
12389 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
12390 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
12391 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @acronym{NNTP}
12392 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
12393 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
12394 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
12395 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
12396 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
12397 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
12398 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
12402 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
12405 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
12407 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
12408 @samp{default}. In addition Gnus introduces two new tokens, not present
12409 in the original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
12410 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
12411 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
12412 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to and
12413 @samp{force} is explained below.
12417 Here's an example file:
12420 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
12421 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
12424 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
12425 have to be first, for instance.
12427 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
12428 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
12429 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
12430 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
12431 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
12432 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
12433 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
12435 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
12436 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
12442 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
12443 previously mentioned.
12445 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
12447 @item nntp-server-action-alist
12448 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
12449 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
12450 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
12451 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
12454 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
12455 '(("innd" (ding))))
12458 You probably don't want to do that, though.
12460 The default value is
12463 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
12464 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook
12465 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
12468 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
12469 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
12471 @item nntp-maximum-request
12472 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
12473 If the @acronym{NNTP} server doesn't support @acronym{NOV} headers, this back end
12474 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
12475 speed things up, the back end sends lots of these commands without
12476 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
12477 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
12478 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
12480 @item nntp-connection-timeout
12481 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
12482 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
12483 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @acronym{NNTP} servers not
12484 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
12485 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
12486 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
12487 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} back end should wait for a
12488 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
12489 no timeouts are done.
12491 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
12492 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
12493 @c @cindex PPP connections
12494 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
12495 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
12496 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
12497 @c changes after connecting to the @acronym{NNTP} server, Gnus will simply sit
12498 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
12499 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
12500 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
12501 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
12502 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
12503 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
12505 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
12506 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
12507 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
12508 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
12509 @c described above.
12511 @item nntp-server-hook
12512 @vindex nntp-server-hook
12513 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @acronym{NNTP}
12516 @item nntp-buggy-select
12517 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
12518 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
12520 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
12521 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
12522 If the @acronym{NNTP} server does not support @acronym{NOV}, you could set this
12523 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @acronym{NOV}
12526 @item nntp-xover-commands
12527 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
12530 List of strings used as commands to fetch @acronym{NOV} lines from a
12531 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
12535 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
12536 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @acronym{NOV} lines to
12537 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
12538 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
12539 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @acronym{NOV}
12540 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
12541 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
12542 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
12543 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
12544 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
12545 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
12547 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
12548 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
12549 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @acronym{NNTP} server.
12551 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
12552 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
12553 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
12554 server closes connection.
12556 @item nntp-record-commands
12557 @vindex nntp-record-commands
12558 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
12559 @acronym{NNTP} server (along with a timestamp) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
12560 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@acronym{NNTP} connection
12561 that doesn't seem to work.
12563 @item nntp-open-connection-function
12564 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
12565 It is possible to customize how the connection to the nntp server will
12566 be opened. If you specify an @code{nntp-open-connection-function}
12567 parameter, Gnus will use that function to establish the connection.
12568 Five pre-made functions are supplied. These functions can be grouped in
12569 two categories: direct connection functions (three pre-made), and
12570 indirect ones (two pre-made).
12572 @item nntp-prepare-post-hook
12573 @vindex nntp-prepare-post-hook
12574 A hook run just before posting an article. If there is no
12575 @code{Message-ID} header in the article and the news server provides the
12576 recommended ID, it will be added to the article before running this
12577 hook. It is useful to make @code{Cancel-Lock} headers even if you
12578 inhibit Gnus to add a @code{Message-ID} header, you could say:
12581 (add-hook 'nntp-prepare-post-hook 'canlock-insert-header)
12584 Note that not all servers support the recommended ID. This works for
12585 INN versions 2.3.0 and later, for instance.
12587 @item nntp-read-timeout
12588 @vindex nntp-read-timeout
12589 How long nntp should wait between checking for the end of output.
12590 Shorter values mean quicker response, but is more CPU intensive. The
12591 default is 0.1 seconds. If you have a slow line to the server (and
12592 don't like to see Emacs eat your available CPU power), you might set
12598 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
12599 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
12600 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
12604 @node Direct Functions
12605 @subsubsection Direct Functions
12606 @cindex direct connection functions
12608 These functions are called direct because they open a direct connection
12609 between your machine and the @acronym{NNTP} server. The behavior of these
12610 functions is also affected by commonly understood variables
12611 (@pxref{Common Variables}).
12614 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
12615 @item nntp-open-network-stream
12616 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
12619 @findex nntp-open-tls-stream
12620 @item nntp-open-tls-stream
12621 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use
12622 this you must have GNUTLS installed (see
12623 @uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/gnutls/}). You then define a server
12627 ;; @r{"nntps" is port 563 and is predefined in our @file{/etc/services}}
12628 ;; @r{however, @samp{gnutls-cli -p} doesn't like named ports.}
12630 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
12631 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-tls-stream)
12632 (nntp-port-number )
12633 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
12636 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
12637 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
12638 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
12639 you must have OpenSSL (@uref{http://www.openssl.org}) or SSLeay
12640 installed (@uref{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}. You then
12641 define a server as follows:
12644 ;; @r{"snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our @file{/etc/services}}
12645 ;; @r{however, @samp{openssl s_client -port} doesn't like named ports.}
12647 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
12648 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
12649 (nntp-port-number 563)
12650 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
12653 @findex nntp-open-telnet-stream
12654 @item nntp-open-telnet-stream
12655 Opens a connection to an @acronym{NNTP} server by simply @samp{telnet}'ing
12656 it. You might wonder why this function exists, since we have the
12657 default @code{nntp-open-network-stream} which would do the job. (One
12658 of) the reason(s) is that if you are behind a firewall but have direct
12659 connections to the outside world thanks to a command wrapper like
12660 @code{runsocks}, you can use it like this:
12664 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
12665 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-telnet-stream)
12666 (nntp-address "the.news.server"))
12669 With the default method, you would need to wrap your whole Emacs
12670 session, which is not a good idea.
12674 @node Indirect Functions
12675 @subsubsection Indirect Functions
12676 @cindex indirect connection functions
12678 These functions are called indirect because they connect to an
12679 intermediate host before actually connecting to the @acronym{NNTP} server.
12680 All of these functions and related variables are also said to belong to
12681 the ``via'' family of connection: they're all prefixed with ``via'' to make
12682 things cleaner. The behavior of these functions is also affected by
12683 commonly understood variables (@pxref{Common Variables}).
12686 @item nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
12687 @findex nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
12688 Does an @samp{rlogin} on a remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet}
12689 to the real @acronym{NNTP} server from there. This is useful for instance if
12690 you need to connect to a firewall machine first.
12692 @code{nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet}-specific variables:
12695 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command
12696 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command
12697 Command used to log in on the intermediate host. The default is
12698 @samp{rsh}, but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
12700 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches
12701 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches
12702 List of strings to be used as the switches to
12703 @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command}. The default is @code{nil}. If you use
12704 @samp{ssh} for @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command}, you may set this to
12705 @samp{("-C")} in order to compress all data connections, otherwise set
12706 this to @samp{("-t" "-e" "none")} or @samp{("-C" "-t" "-e" "none")} if
12707 the telnet command requires a pseudo-tty allocation on an intermediate
12711 @item nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
12712 @findex nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
12713 Does essentially the same, but uses @samp{telnet} instead of
12714 @samp{rlogin} to connect to the intermediate host.
12716 @code{nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet}-specific variables:
12719 @item nntp-via-telnet-command
12720 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-command
12721 Command used to @code{telnet} the intermediate host. The default is
12724 @item nntp-via-telnet-switches
12725 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-switches
12726 List of strings to be used as the switches to the
12727 @code{nntp-via-telnet-command} command. The default is @samp{("-8")}.
12729 @item nntp-via-user-password
12730 @vindex nntp-via-user-password
12731 Password to use when logging in on the intermediate host.
12733 @item nntp-via-envuser
12734 @vindex nntp-via-envuser
12735 If non-@code{nil}, the intermediate @code{telnet} session (client and
12736 server both) will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for
12737 login name. This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
12739 @item nntp-via-shell-prompt
12740 @vindex nntp-via-shell-prompt
12741 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the intermediate host. The default
12742 is @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
12749 Here are some additional variables that are understood by all the above
12754 @item nntp-via-user-name
12755 @vindex nntp-via-user-name
12756 User name to use when connecting to the intermediate host.
12758 @item nntp-via-address
12759 @vindex nntp-via-address
12760 Address of the intermediate host to connect to.
12765 @node Common Variables
12766 @subsubsection Common Variables
12768 The following variables affect the behavior of all, or several of the
12769 pre-made connection functions. When not specified, all functions are
12774 @item nntp-pre-command
12775 @vindex nntp-pre-command
12776 A command wrapper to use when connecting through a non native
12777 connection function (all except @code{nntp-open-network-stream},
12778 @code{nntp-open-tls-stream}, and @code{nntp-open-ssl-stream}. This is
12779 where you would put a @samp{SOCKS} wrapper for instance.
12782 @vindex nntp-address
12783 The address of the @acronym{NNTP} server.
12785 @item nntp-port-number
12786 @vindex nntp-port-number
12787 Port number to connect to the @acronym{NNTP} server. The default is
12788 @samp{nntp}. If you use @acronym{NNTP} over
12789 @acronym{tls}/@acronym{ssl}, you may want to use integer ports rather
12790 than named ports (i.e, use @samp{563} instead of @samp{snews} or
12791 @samp{nntps}), because external @acronym{TLS}/@acronym{SSL} tools may
12792 not work with named ports.
12794 @item nntp-end-of-line
12795 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
12796 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @acronym{NNTP}
12797 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
12798 using a non native connection function.
12800 @item nntp-telnet-command
12801 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
12802 Command to use when connecting to the @acronym{NNTP} server through
12803 @samp{telnet}. This is @emph{not} for an intermediate host. This is
12804 just for the real @acronym{NNTP} server. The default is
12807 @item nntp-telnet-switches
12808 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
12809 A list of switches to pass to @code{nntp-telnet-command}. The default
12816 @subsection News Spool
12820 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
12821 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
12822 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
12825 Anyway, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
12826 anything else) as the address.
12828 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
12829 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
12830 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
12831 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
12835 @item nnspool-inews-program
12836 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
12837 Program used to post an article.
12839 @item nnspool-inews-switches
12840 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
12841 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
12843 @item nnspool-spool-directory
12844 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
12845 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
12846 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
12848 @item nnspool-nov-directory
12849 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
12850 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @acronym{NOV} files. This is normally
12851 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
12853 @item nnspool-lib-dir
12854 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
12855 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
12857 @item nnspool-active-file
12858 @vindex nnspool-active-file
12859 The name of the active file.
12861 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
12862 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
12863 The name of the group descriptions file.
12865 @item nnspool-history-file
12866 @vindex nnspool-history-file
12867 The name of the news history file.
12869 @item nnspool-active-times-file
12870 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
12871 The name of the active date file.
12873 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
12874 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
12875 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @acronym{NOV} files
12878 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
12879 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
12881 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
12882 relevant portion from the overview file. If @code{nil},
12883 @code{nnspool} will load the entire file into a buffer and process it
12890 @section Getting Mail
12891 @cindex reading mail
12894 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
12898 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
12899 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
12900 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
12901 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
12902 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
12903 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
12904 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
12905 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
12906 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
12907 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
12908 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
12909 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
12910 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
12914 @node Mail in a Newsreader
12915 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
12917 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
12918 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
12919 of a culture shock.
12921 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
12922 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
12924 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
12925 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
12926 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
12927 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
12929 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
12931 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
12932 deleted? How awful!
12934 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
12935 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
12936 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
12937 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
12940 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
12941 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
12942 they want to treat a message.
12944 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
12945 via @acronym{SMTP}, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
12946 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
12947 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
12948 archived somewhere else.
12950 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
12951 These are transported via @acronym{NNTP}, and are therefore news. But we may need
12952 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
12953 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
12954 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
12956 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
12957 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
12958 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
12960 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
12961 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
12964 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
12965 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
12966 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
12967 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
12968 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
12970 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
12971 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
12972 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
12973 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
12974 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
12975 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
12979 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
12980 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
12982 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
12983 mail back end of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
12984 and things will happen automatically.
12986 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a ``one file per
12987 mail'' back end), you could put the following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
12990 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
12993 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this back end will be queried for new
12994 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
12995 directory, which is @file{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
12996 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
12997 like any other group.
12999 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
13002 (setq nnmail-split-methods
13003 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13004 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
13008 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
13009 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
13010 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
13013 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
13014 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
13015 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Back End} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
13018 @node Splitting Mail
13019 @subsection Splitting Mail
13020 @cindex splitting mail
13021 @cindex mail splitting
13023 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
13024 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
13025 to be split into groups.
13028 (setq nnmail-split-methods
13029 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13030 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
13031 ("mail.other" "")))
13034 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
13035 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
13036 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
13037 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
13038 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
13039 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
13040 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
13043 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
13046 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
13047 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
13048 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
13049 mail belongs in that group.
13051 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
13052 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{*} so that it matches any mails
13053 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
13054 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
13055 rule to make a match will ``win'', unless you have crossposting enabled.
13056 In that case, all matching rules will ``win''.)
13058 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
13059 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
13060 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
13061 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
13062 thinks should carry this mail message.
13064 Note that the mail back ends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
13065 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
13066 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
13067 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
13069 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
13070 The mail back ends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
13071 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
13072 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
13073 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{*}) group.
13075 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
13078 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
13079 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
13080 links. If that's the case for you, set
13081 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
13082 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
13084 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
13085 @kindex nnmail-split-history
13086 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
13087 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
13088 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
13089 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
13092 @vindex nnmail-split-header-length-limit
13093 Header lines longer than the value of
13094 @code{nnmail-split-header-length-limit} are excluded from the split
13097 @vindex nnmail-mail-splitting-charset
13098 @vindex nnmail-mail-splitting-decodes
13099 By default the splitting codes @acronym{MIME} decodes headers so you
13100 can match on non-@acronym{ASCII} strings. The
13101 @code{nnmail-mail-splitting-charset} variable specifies the default
13102 charset for decoding. The behaviour can be turned off completely by
13103 binding @code{nnmail-mail-splitting-decodes} to @code{nil}, which is
13104 useful if you want to match articles based on the raw header data.
13106 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
13107 By default, splitting is performed on all incoming messages. If you
13108 specify a @code{directory} entry for the variable @code{mail-sources}
13109 @pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}, however, then splitting does
13110 @emph{not} happen by default. You can set the variable
13111 @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming} to a non-@code{nil} value to make
13112 splitting happen even in this case. (This variable has no effect on
13113 other kinds of entries.)
13115 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
13116 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
13117 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
13118 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
13119 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
13120 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
13121 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
13122 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
13123 month's rent money.
13127 @subsection Mail Sources
13129 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from
13130 a @acronym{POP} mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a
13131 maildir, for instance.
13134 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
13135 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
13136 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
13140 @node Mail Source Specifiers
13141 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
13143 @cindex mail server
13146 @cindex mail source
13148 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
13149 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
13154 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
13157 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
13158 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
13159 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
13162 The following mail source types are available:
13166 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
13172 The file name. Defaults to the value of the @env{MAIL}
13173 environment variable or the value of @code{rmail-spool-directory}
13174 (usually something like @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}).
13178 Script run before/after fetching mail.
13181 An example file mail source:
13184 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
13187 Or using the default file name:
13193 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best
13194 to use @acronym{POP} or @acronym{IMAP} or the like to fetch the mail.
13195 You can not use ange-ftp file names here---it has no way to lock the
13196 mail spool while moving the mail.
13198 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
13202 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
13205 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
13209 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
13212 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
13214 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
13217 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
13221 @vindex nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once
13222 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used
13223 when you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files.
13224 That is, there is a one-to-one correspondence between files in that
13225 directory and groups, so that mail from the file @file{foo.bar.spool}
13226 will be put in the group @code{foo.bar}. (You can change the suffix
13227 to be used instead of @code{.spool}.) Setting
13228 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-@code{nil} forces
13229 Gnus to scan the mail source only once. This is particularly useful
13230 if you want to scan mail groups at a specified level.
13232 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
13233 There is also the variable @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming}, if you set
13234 that to a non-@code{nil} value, then the normal splitting process is
13235 applied to all the files from the directory, @ref{Splitting Mail}.
13241 The name of the directory where the files are. There is no default
13245 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
13249 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
13250 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
13251 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
13252 predicate are considered.
13256 Script run before/after fetching mail.
13260 An example directory mail source:
13263 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
13268 Get mail from a @acronym{POP} server.
13274 The name of the @acronym{POP} server. The default is taken from the
13275 @env{MAILHOST} environment variable.
13278 The port number of the @acronym{POP} server. This can be a number (eg,
13279 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
13280 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
13281 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}. On some systems you might
13282 need to specify it as @samp{"pop-3"} instead.
13285 The user name to give to the @acronym{POP} server. The default is the login
13289 The password to give to the @acronym{POP} server. If not specified,
13290 the user is prompted.
13293 The program to use to fetch mail from the @acronym{POP} server. This
13294 should be a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
13297 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
13300 The valid format specifier characters are:
13304 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
13305 included in this string.
13308 The name of the server.
13311 The port number of the server.
13314 The user name to use.
13317 The password to use.
13320 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
13321 corresponding keywords.
13324 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
13325 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
13328 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
13329 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
13332 The function to use to fetch mail from the @acronym{POP} server. The
13333 function is called with one parameter---the name of the file where the
13334 mail should be moved to.
13336 @item :authentication
13337 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
13338 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
13343 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
13344 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
13346 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default @acronym{POP} server,
13347 using the default user name, and default fetcher:
13353 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
13356 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
13357 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
13360 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
13363 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
13367 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
13368 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
13369 contains exactly one mail.
13375 The name of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
13376 taken from the @env{MAILDIR} environment variable or
13379 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
13380 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
13382 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
13383 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
13384 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
13387 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
13388 from locking problems).
13392 Two example maildir mail sources:
13395 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/"
13396 :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
13400 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/"
13405 Get mail from a @acronym{IMAP} server. If you don't want to use
13406 @acronym{IMAP} as intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie
13407 with nnimap), for some reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar
13408 to a @acronym{POP} server and fetches articles from a given
13409 @acronym{IMAP} mailbox. @xref{IMAP}, for more information.
13411 Note that for the Kerberos, GSSAPI, @acronym{TLS}/@acronym{SSL} and STARTTLS support you
13412 may need external programs and libraries, @xref{IMAP}.
13418 The name of the @acronym{IMAP} server. The default is taken from the
13419 @env{MAILHOST} environment variable.
13422 The port number of the @acronym{IMAP} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
13423 @samp{993} for @acronym{TLS}/@acronym{SSL} connections.
13426 The user name to give to the @acronym{IMAP} server. The default is the login
13430 The password to give to the @acronym{IMAP} server. If not specified, the user is
13434 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
13435 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
13436 @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{starttls}, @samp{tls},
13437 @samp{ssl}, @samp{shell} or the default @samp{network}.
13439 @item :authentication
13440 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is
13441 one of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now,
13442 this means @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{digest-md5},
13443 @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default @samp{login}.
13446 When using the `shell' :stream, the contents of this variable is
13447 mapped into the @code{imap-shell-program} variable. This should be a
13448 @code{format}-like string (or list of strings). Here's an example:
13454 The valid format specifier characters are:
13458 The name of the server.
13461 User name from @code{imap-default-user}.
13464 The port number of the server.
13467 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
13468 corresponding keywords.
13471 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
13472 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
13475 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
13476 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
13477 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @acronym{IMAP} client and mark some
13478 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{1:*}.
13479 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
13480 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 section 6.4.4.
13483 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
13484 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
13485 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
13486 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 section 2.3.2.
13489 If non-@code{nil}, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the
13490 mailbox after finishing the fetch.
13494 An example @acronym{IMAP} mail source:
13497 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com"
13499 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
13503 Get mail from a webmail server, such as @uref{www.hotmail.com},
13504 @uref{webmail.netscape.com}, @uref{www.netaddress.com},
13505 @uref{mail.yahoo..com}.
13507 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
13508 required for url "4.0pre.46".
13510 WARNING: Mails may be lost. NO WARRANTY.
13516 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
13517 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
13520 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
13524 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
13528 If non-@code{nil}, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to
13529 trash folder after finishing the fetch.
13533 An example webmail source:
13536 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail
13538 :password "secret")
13543 @item Common Keywords
13544 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
13550 If non-@code{nil}, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you
13551 use directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this
13556 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
13561 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
13562 useful when you use local mail and news.
13567 @subsubsection Function Interface
13569 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
13570 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
13571 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
13572 consider the following mail-source setting:
13575 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
13576 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
13579 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
13580 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
13581 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
13582 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
13583 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
13585 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
13588 @node Mail Source Customization
13589 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
13591 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
13592 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
13596 @item mail-source-crash-box
13597 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
13598 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
13599 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
13601 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
13602 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
13603 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them. If
13604 @code{t}, delete the files immediately, if @code{nil}, never delete any
13605 files. If a positive number, delete files older than number of days
13606 (This will only happen, when reveiving new mail). You may also set
13607 @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} to @code{nil} and call
13608 @code{mail-source-delete-old-incoming} from a hook or interactively.
13610 @item mail-source-delete-old-incoming-confirm
13611 @vindex mail-source-delete-old-incoming-confirm
13612 If non-@code{nil}, ask for for confirmation before deleting old incoming
13613 files. This variable only applies when
13614 @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is a positive number.
13616 @item mail-source-ignore-errors
13617 @vindex mail-source-ignore-errors
13618 If non-@code{nil}, ignore errors when reading mail from a mail source.
13620 @item mail-source-directory
13621 @vindex mail-source-directory
13622 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
13623 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
13624 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
13627 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
13628 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
13629 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
13630 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
13631 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
13632 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
13634 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
13635 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
13636 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
13638 @item mail-source-movemail-program
13639 @vindex mail-source-movemail-program
13640 If non-@code{nil}, name of program for fetching new mail. If
13641 @code{nil}, @code{movemail} in @var{exec-directory}.
13646 @node Fetching Mail
13647 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
13649 @vindex mail-sources
13650 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
13651 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
13652 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
13653 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
13655 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
13656 @code{nil}, the mail back ends will never attempt to fetch mail by
13659 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a
13660 @acronym{POP} mail server, you'd say something like:
13665 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
13666 :password "secret")))
13669 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
13673 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
13674 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
13677 :password "secret")))
13681 When you use a mail back end, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
13682 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
13683 mail if you're not using a mail back end---you have to do a lot of magic
13684 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
13685 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
13686 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
13690 @node Mail Back End Variables
13691 @subsection Mail Back End Variables
13693 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
13697 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
13698 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
13699 The mail back ends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
13700 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
13702 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
13703 @item nnmail-split-hook
13704 @findex gnus-article-decode-encoded-words
13705 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
13706 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
13707 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
13708 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
13709 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
13710 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
13711 in the buffer will show up in any files.
13712 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
13715 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13716 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13717 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13718 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13719 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
13720 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
13721 starting to handle the new mail) and
13722 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
13723 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
13724 default file modes the new mail files get:
13727 (add-hook 'nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13728 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
13730 (add-hook 'nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13731 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
13734 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
13735 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
13736 If non-@code{nil}, the mail back ends will use long file and directory
13737 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
13738 (assuming use of @code{nnml} back end) or files (assuming use of
13739 @code{nnfolder} back end) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
13740 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
13742 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
13743 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
13744 @findex delete-file
13745 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
13747 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13748 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13749 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
13750 the back end (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
13751 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
13753 @item nnmail-cache-ignore-groups
13754 @vindex nnmail-cache-ignore-groups
13755 This can be a regular expression or a list of regular expressions.
13756 Group names that match any of the regular expressions will never be
13757 recorded in the @code{Message-ID} cache.
13759 This can be useful, for example, when using Fancy Splitting
13760 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}) together with the function
13761 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent}.
13766 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
13767 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
13768 @cindex mail splitting
13769 @cindex fancy mail splitting
13771 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
13772 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
13773 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
13774 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
13775 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
13776 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
13778 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
13781 ;; @r{Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of}
13782 ;; @r{the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group}
13783 ;; @r{from real errors.}
13784 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
13786 ;; @r{Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant}
13787 ;; @r{groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the}
13788 ;; @r{(ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.}
13789 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
13790 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
13791 ;; @r{Other mailing lists@dots{}}
13792 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
13793 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
13794 ;; @r{Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent}
13795 ;; @r{cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to}
13796 ;; @r{the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the}
13797 ;; @r{message was really cross-posted.}
13798 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
13799 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
13800 ;; @r{People@dots{}}
13801 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
13802 ;; @r{Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.}
13806 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
13807 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
13808 the five possible split syntaxes:
13813 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
13814 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
13818 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
13819 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
13820 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
13821 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
13822 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
13823 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
13824 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
13825 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
13828 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13829 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
13830 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
13831 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
13834 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13835 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
13838 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
13839 (i.e., delete) this message. Use with extreme caution.
13842 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
13843 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
13844 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
13845 function should return a @var{split}.
13848 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
13849 body of the messages:
13852 (defun split-on-body ()
13854 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
13855 (goto-char (point-min))
13856 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
13860 The @samp{" *nnmail incoming*"} is narrowed to the message in question
13861 when the @code{:} function is run.
13864 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the
13865 first element is @code{!}, then @var{split} will be processed, and
13866 @var{func} will be called as a function with the result of @var{split}
13867 as argument. @var{func} should return a split.
13870 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
13874 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
13875 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
13876 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
13877 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
13878 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
13880 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
13881 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
13882 are expanded as specified by the variable
13883 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
13884 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
13887 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
13888 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
13889 when all this splitting is performed.
13891 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
13892 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
13893 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
13896 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
13899 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
13900 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
13902 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
13903 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
13904 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
13905 groupings 1 through 9.
13907 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
13908 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
13909 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
13910 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
13911 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
13912 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
13913 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
13914 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
13915 it once per thread.
13917 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates}
13918 and @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} to a non-@code{nil}
13919 value. And then you can include @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent}
13920 using the colon feature, like so:
13922 (setq nnmail-treat-duplicates 'warn ; @r{or @code{delete}}
13923 nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids t
13925 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
13926 ;; @r{other splits go here}
13930 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
13931 non-@code{nil}, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees
13932 in the file specified by the variable
13933 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, together with the group it is in
13934 (the group is omitted for non-mail messages). When mail splitting is
13935 invoked, the function @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks
13936 at the References (and In-Reply-To) header of each message to split
13937 and searches the file specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}
13938 for the message ids. When it has found a parent, it returns the
13939 corresponding group name unless the group name matches the regexp
13940 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent-ignore-groups}. It is
13941 recommended that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a
13942 somewhat higher number than the default so that the message ids are
13943 still in the cache. (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some
13944 300 kBytes in size.)
13945 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13946 When @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus
13947 also records the message ids of moved articles, so that the followup
13948 messages goes into the new group.
13950 Also see the variable @code{nnmail-cache-ignore-groups} if you don't
13951 want certain groups to be recorded in the cache. For example, if all
13952 outgoing messages are written to an `outgoing' group, you could set
13953 @code{nnmail-cache-ignore-groups} to match that group name.
13954 Otherwise, answers to all your messages would end up in the
13958 @node Group Mail Splitting
13959 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
13960 @cindex mail splitting
13961 @cindex group mail splitting
13963 @findex gnus-group-split
13964 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
13965 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
13966 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
13967 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
13968 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
13969 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
13970 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
13971 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
13973 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
13974 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
13975 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
13976 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
13978 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
13979 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
13980 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
13981 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
13982 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
13983 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
13984 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
13986 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
13987 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
13988 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
13989 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
13990 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
13991 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
13992 @code{gnus-group-split}.
13994 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
13995 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
13996 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
13997 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
13998 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
13999 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
14000 that group is used as the catch-all group. Even though this variable is
14001 often used just to name a group, it may also be set to an arbitrarily
14002 complex fancy split (after all, a group name is a fancy split), and this
14003 may be useful to split mail that doesn't go to any mailing list to
14004 personal mail folders. Note that this fancy split is added as the last
14005 element of a @code{|} split list that also contains a @code{&} split
14006 with the rules extracted from group parameters.
14008 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
14013 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
14014 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
14016 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
14017 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
14018 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
14019 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
14021 ((split-spec . catch-all))
14024 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
14025 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
14026 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
14029 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
14030 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
14031 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
14035 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
14036 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
14037 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
14041 (: gnus-group-split-fancy @var{groups} @var{no-crosspost} @var{catch-all})
14044 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
14045 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
14046 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
14047 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} is the fallback
14048 fancy split, used like @var{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}.
14049 If @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
14050 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
14051 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
14052 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
14054 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
14055 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
14056 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
14057 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
14058 used to enable @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
14059 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
14060 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
14061 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
14062 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
14064 @findex gnus-group-split-update
14065 However, if you change group parameters, you'd have to update
14066 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
14067 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
14068 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
14069 you. For example, add to your @file{~/.gnus.el}:
14072 (gnus-group-split-setup @var{auto-update} @var{catch-all})
14075 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
14076 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
14077 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
14078 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional, equivalent to @code{nil}),
14079 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
14082 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
14083 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
14084 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
14085 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
14087 @node Incorporating Old Mail
14088 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
14089 @cindex incorporating old mail
14090 @cindex import old mail
14092 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
14093 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
14094 back ends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
14097 Doing so can be quite easy.
14099 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
14100 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
14101 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
14102 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
14103 your @code{nnml} groups.
14109 Go to the group buffer.
14112 Type @kbd{G f} and give the file name to the mbox file when prompted to create an
14113 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
14116 Type @kbd{SPACE} to enter the newly created group.
14119 Type @kbd{M P b} to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
14120 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
14123 Type @kbd{B r} to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
14124 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
14127 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
14128 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
14129 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
14130 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
14131 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
14133 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
14134 back end to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
14135 using the new mail back end.
14138 @node Expiring Mail
14139 @subsection Expiring Mail
14140 @cindex article expiry
14142 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
14143 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
14144 different approach to mail reading.
14146 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
14147 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
14148 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
14149 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
14150 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
14151 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
14154 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
14155 articles as @dfn{expirable}. (With the default keybindings, this means
14156 that you have to type @kbd{E}.) This does not mean that the articles
14157 will disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
14158 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
14159 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
14160 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
14161 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
14162 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
14164 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Gnus provides
14165 two features, called `auto-expire' and `total-expire', that can help you
14166 with this. In a nutshell, `auto-expire' means that Gnus hits @kbd{E}
14167 for you when you select an article. And `total-expire' means that Gnus
14168 considers all articles as expirable that are read. So, in addition to
14169 the articles marked @samp{E}, also the articles marked @samp{r},
14170 @samp{R}, @samp{O}, @samp{K}, @samp{Y} and so on are considered
14173 When should either auto-expire or total-expire be used? Most people
14174 who are subscribed to mailing lists split each list into its own group
14175 and then turn on auto-expire or total-expire for those groups.
14176 (@xref{Splitting Mail}, for more information on splitting each list
14177 into its own group.)
14179 Which one is better, auto-expire or total-expire? It's not easy to
14180 answer. Generally speaking, auto-expire is probably faster. Another
14181 advantage of auto-expire is that you get more marks to work with: for
14182 the articles that are supposed to stick around, you can still choose
14183 between tick and dormant and read marks. But with total-expire, you
14184 only have dormant and ticked to choose from. The advantage of
14185 total-expire is that it works well with adaptive scoring @pxref{Adaptive
14186 Scoring}. Auto-expire works with normal scoring but not with adaptive
14189 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
14190 Groups that match the regular expression
14191 @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will have all articles that you
14192 read marked as expirable automatically. All articles marked as
14193 expirable have an @samp{E} in the first column in the summary buffer.
14195 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
14196 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
14197 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
14198 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
14199 @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
14201 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
14203 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
14204 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
14205 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
14208 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
14209 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
14210 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
14211 articles expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
14212 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
14214 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
14215 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
14218 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
14219 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
14222 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
14223 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
14225 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
14226 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
14227 don't really mix very well.
14229 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
14230 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
14231 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
14232 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
14235 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
14236 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
14237 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
14238 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
14241 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
14243 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
14245 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
14247 ((string= group "mail.junk")
14249 ((string= group "important")
14255 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
14256 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
14258 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
14259 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
14260 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
14263 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
14264 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
14266 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
14267 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
14268 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them
14269 to other groups instead of deleting them. The variable
14270 @code{nnmail-expiry-target} (and the @code{expiry-target} group
14271 parameter) controls this. The variable supplies a default value for
14272 all groups, which can be overridden for specific groups by the group
14273 parameter. default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a
14274 string (which should be the name of the group the message should be
14275 moved to), or a function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to
14276 the message in question, and with the name of the group being moved
14277 from as its parameter) which should return a target---either a group
14278 name or @code{delete}.
14280 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
14282 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
14285 @findex nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
14286 @vindex nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
14287 Gnus provides a function @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-target} which will
14288 expire mail to groups according to the variable
14289 @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets}. Here's an example:
14292 (setq nnmail-expiry-target 'nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
14293 nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
14294 '((to-from "boss" "nnfolder:Work")
14295 ("subject" "IMPORTANT" "nnfolder:IMPORTANT.%Y.%b")
14296 ("from" ".*" "nnfolder:Archive-%Y")))
14299 With this setup, any mail that has @code{IMPORTANT} in its Subject
14300 header and was sent in the year @code{YYYY} and month @code{MMM}, will
14301 get expired to the group @code{nnfolder:IMPORTANT.YYYY.MMM}. If its
14302 From or To header contains the string @code{boss}, it will get expired
14303 to @code{nnfolder:Work}. All other mail will get expired to
14304 @code{nnfolder:Archive-YYYY}.
14306 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
14307 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
14308 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
14309 easier for procmail users.
14311 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
14312 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
14313 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
14314 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
14315 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
14316 caution. Even more dangerous is the
14317 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
14318 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
14319 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
14320 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
14321 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
14322 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
14323 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
14326 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
14328 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
14329 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
14330 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
14331 auto-expire turned on.
14335 @subsection Washing Mail
14336 @cindex mail washing
14337 @cindex list server brain damage
14338 @cindex incoming mail treatment
14340 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
14341 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
14342 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
14343 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
14344 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
14345 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
14347 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
14348 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
14349 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
14352 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
14353 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
14354 storing the mail to disk. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
14355 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
14358 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
14359 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
14360 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
14361 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
14362 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
14365 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
14366 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
14367 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
14368 Emacs running on MS machines.
14372 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
14373 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
14374 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
14375 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
14378 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
14379 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
14380 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
14381 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
14383 (Note that this function works on both the header on the body of all
14384 messages, so it is a potentially dangerous function to use (if a body
14385 of a message contains something that looks like a header line). So
14386 rather than fix the bug, it is of course the right solution to make it
14387 into a feature by documenting it.)
14389 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
14390 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
14391 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
14392 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
14393 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
14394 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
14395 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
14398 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
14399 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
14402 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
14403 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
14406 This can also be done non-destructively with
14407 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
14409 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
14410 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
14411 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
14413 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
14414 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
14416 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
14417 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
14418 @code{References} headers.
14422 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
14423 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
14424 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
14428 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
14429 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
14430 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
14437 @subsection Duplicates
14439 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
14440 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
14441 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
14442 @cindex duplicate mails
14443 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
14444 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
14445 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
14446 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
14447 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
14448 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
14449 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
14450 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
14451 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
14452 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
14453 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
14454 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
14455 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
14457 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
14458 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
14459 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
14460 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
14462 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
14465 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
14466 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
14470 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
14471 '(| ;; @r{Messages duplicates go to a separate group.}
14472 ("gnus-warning" "duplicat\\(e\\|ion\\) of message" "duplicate")
14473 ;; @r{Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.}
14474 (any mail "mail.misc")
14475 ;; @r{Other rules.}
14481 (setq nnmail-split-methods
14482 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:.*duplicate")
14483 ;; @r{Other rules.}
14487 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
14488 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
14489 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
14490 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
14491 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
14494 @node Not Reading Mail
14495 @subsection Not Reading Mail
14497 If you start using any of the mail back ends, they have the annoying
14498 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
14499 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
14501 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
14502 @code{nil}, none of the back ends will ever attempt to read incoming
14503 mail, which should help.
14505 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
14506 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
14507 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
14508 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
14509 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
14510 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
14511 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old Rmail
14512 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All back ends have
14513 variables called back-end-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
14514 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
14515 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
14517 All the mail back ends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
14518 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
14522 @node Choosing a Mail Back End
14523 @subsection Choosing a Mail Back End
14525 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
14526 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
14527 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
14529 There are six different mail back ends in the standard Gnus, and more
14530 back ends are available separately. The mail back end most people use
14531 (because it is possibly the fastest) is @code{nnml} (@pxref{Mail
14535 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
14536 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the Rmail Babyl format.
14537 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
14538 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
14539 * Maildir:: Another one-file-per-message format.
14540 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
14541 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
14545 @node Unix Mail Box
14546 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
14548 @cindex unix mail box
14550 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
14551 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
14552 The @dfn{nnmbox} back end will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
14553 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
14554 which group it belongs in.
14556 Virtual server settings:
14559 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
14560 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
14561 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory. Default is
14564 @item nnmbox-active-file
14565 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
14566 The name of the active file for the mail box. Default is
14567 @file{~/.mbox-active}.
14569 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
14570 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
14571 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
14572 into groups. Default is @code{t}.
14577 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
14581 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
14582 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
14583 The @dfn{nnbabyl} back end will use a Babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{Rmail
14584 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
14585 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
14587 Virtual server settings:
14590 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
14591 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
14592 The name of the Rmail mbox file. The default is @file{~/RMAIL}
14594 @item nnbabyl-active-file
14595 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
14596 The name of the active file for the rmail box. The default is
14597 @file{~/.rmail-active}
14599 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
14600 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
14601 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail. Default is
14607 @subsubsection Mail Spool
14609 @cindex mail @acronym{NOV} spool
14611 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
14612 format. It should be used with some caution.
14614 @vindex nnml-directory
14615 If you use this back end, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
14616 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
14617 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
14618 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
14620 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
14623 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
14624 in your account, you should not use this back end. As each mail gets its
14625 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
14626 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
14627 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
14628 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
14629 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
14630 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
14632 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest back end when it comes to article
14633 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
14634 @acronym{NOV} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it possibly the
14635 fastest back end when it comes to reading mail.
14637 @cindex self contained nnml servers
14639 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnml}
14640 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
14641 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
14642 proper @code{nnml} server) and have all your marks be preserved. Marks
14643 for a group is usually stored in the @code{.marks} file (but see
14644 @code{nnml-marks-file-name}) within each @code{nnml} group's directory.
14645 Individual @code{nnml} groups are also possible to backup, use @kbd{G m}
14646 to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the nnml
14649 If for some reason you believe your @file{.marks} files are screwed
14650 up, you can just delete them all. Gnus will then correctly regenerate
14651 them next time it starts.
14653 Virtual server settings:
14656 @item nnml-directory
14657 @vindex nnml-directory
14658 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory. The
14659 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default value
14662 @item nnml-active-file
14663 @vindex nnml-active-file
14664 The active file for the @code{nnml} server. The default is
14665 @file{~/Mail/active}.
14667 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
14668 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
14669 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
14670 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups}.
14672 @item nnml-get-new-mail
14673 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
14674 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail. The default is
14677 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
14678 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
14679 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @acronym{NOV} files. The
14680 default is @code{nil}.
14682 @item nnml-nov-file-name
14683 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
14684 The name of the @acronym{NOV} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
14686 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
14687 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
14688 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
14690 @item nnml-marks-is-evil
14691 @vindex nnml-marks-is-evil
14692 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
14693 default is @code{nil}.
14695 @item nnml-marks-file-name
14696 @vindex nnml-marks-file-name
14697 The name of the @dfn{marks} files. The default is @file{.marks}.
14699 @item nnml-use-compressed-files
14700 @vindex nnml-use-compressed-files
14701 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will allow using compressed message
14706 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
14707 If your @code{nnml} groups and @acronym{NOV} files get totally out of whack,
14708 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
14709 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
14710 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
14711 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
14712 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
14717 @subsubsection MH Spool
14719 @cindex mh-e mail spool
14721 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
14722 @acronym{NOV} databases and it doesn't keep an active file or marks file.
14723 This makes @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower back end than @code{nnml},
14724 but it also makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
14726 Virtual server settings:
14729 @item nnmh-directory
14730 @vindex nnmh-directory
14731 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory. The
14732 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
14735 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
14736 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
14737 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail. The default is
14741 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
14742 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
14743 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
14744 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
14745 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
14746 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
14747 to set this variable to @code{t}. The default is @code{nil}.
14752 @subsubsection Maildir
14756 @code{nnmaildir} stores mail in the maildir format, with each maildir
14757 corresponding to a group in Gnus. This format is documented here:
14758 @uref{http://cr.yp.to/proto/maildir.html} and here:
14759 @uref{http://www.qmail.org/man/man5/maildir.html}. nnmaildir also
14760 stores extra information in the @file{.nnmaildir/} directory within a
14763 Maildir format was designed to allow concurrent deliveries and
14764 reading, without needing locks. With other backends, you would have
14765 your mail delivered to a spool of some kind, and then you would
14766 configure Gnus to split mail from that spool into your groups. You
14767 can still do that with nnmaildir, but the more common configuration is
14768 to have your mail delivered directly to the maildirs that appear as
14771 nnmaildir is designed to be perfectly reliable: @kbd{C-g} will never
14772 corrupt its data in memory, and @code{SIGKILL} will never corrupt its
14773 data in the filesystem.
14775 nnmaildir stores article marks and @acronym{NOV} data in each maildir. So you
14776 can copy a whole maildir from one Gnus setup to another, and you will
14779 Virtual server settings:
14783 For each of your nnmaildir servers (it's very unlikely that you'd need
14784 more than one), you need to create a directory and populate it with
14785 maildirs or symlinks to maildirs (and nothing else; do not choose a
14786 directory already used for other purposes). Each maildir will be
14787 represented in Gnus as a newsgroup on that server; the filename of the
14788 symlink will be the name of the group. Any filenames in the directory
14789 starting with `.' are ignored. The directory is scanned when you
14790 first start Gnus, and each time you type @kbd{g} in the group buffer;
14791 if any maildirs have been removed or added, nnmaildir notices at these
14794 The value of the @code{directory} parameter should be a Lisp form
14795 which is processed by @code{eval} and @code{expand-file-name} to get
14796 the path of the directory for this server. The form is @code{eval}ed
14797 only when the server is opened; the resulting string is used until the
14798 server is closed. (If you don't know about forms and @code{eval},
14799 don't worry---a simple string will work.) This parameter is not
14800 optional; you must specify it. I don't recommend using
14801 @code{"~/Mail"} or a subdirectory of it; several other parts of Gnus
14802 use that directory by default for various things, and may get confused
14803 if nnmaildir uses it too. @code{"~/.nnmaildir"} is a typical value.
14805 @item target-prefix
14806 This should be a Lisp form which is processed by @code{eval} and
14807 @code{expand-file-name}. The form is @code{eval}ed only when the
14808 server is opened; the resulting string is used until the server is
14811 When you create a group on an nnmaildir server, the maildir is created
14812 with @code{target-prefix} prepended to its name, and a symlink
14813 pointing to that maildir is created, named with the plain group name.
14814 So if @code{directory} is @code{"~/.nnmaildir"} and
14815 @code{target-prefix} is @code{"../maildirs/"}, then when you create
14816 the group @code{foo}, nnmaildir will create
14817 @file{~/.nnmaildir/../maildirs/foo} as a maildir, and will create
14818 @file{~/.nnmaildir/foo} as a symlink pointing to
14819 @file{../maildirs/foo}.
14821 You can set @code{target-prefix} to a string without any slashes to
14822 create both maildirs and symlinks in the same @code{directory}; in
14823 this case, any maildirs found in @code{directory} whose names start
14824 with @code{target-prefix} will not be listed as groups (but the
14825 symlinks pointing to them will be).
14827 As a special case, if @code{target-prefix} is @code{""} (the default),
14828 then when you create a group, the maildir will be created in
14829 @code{directory} without a corresponding symlink. Beware that you
14830 cannot use @code{gnus-group-delete-group} on such groups without the
14831 @code{force} argument.
14833 @item directory-files
14834 This should be a function with the same interface as
14835 @code{directory-files} (such as @code{directory-files} itself). It is
14836 used to scan the server's @code{directory} for maildirs. This
14837 parameter is optional; the default is
14838 @code{nnheader-directory-files-safe} if
14839 @code{nnheader-directory-files-is-safe} is @code{nil}, and
14840 @code{directory-files} otherwise.
14841 (@code{nnheader-directory-files-is-safe} is checked only once when the
14842 server is opened; if you want to check it each time the directory is
14843 scanned, you'll have to provide your own function that does that.)
14846 If non-@code{nil}, then after scanning for new mail in the group
14847 maildirs themselves as usual, this server will also incorporate mail
14848 the conventional Gnus way, from @code{mail-sources} according to
14849 @code{nnmail-split-methods} or @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. The default
14850 value is @code{nil}.
14852 Do @emph{not} use the same maildir both in @code{mail-sources} and as
14853 an nnmaildir group. The results might happen to be useful, but that
14854 would be by chance, not by design, and the results might be different
14855 in the future. If your split rules create new groups, remember to
14856 supply a @code{create-directory} server parameter.
14859 @subsubsection Group parameters
14861 nnmaildir uses several group parameters. It's safe to ignore all
14862 this; the default behavior for nnmaildir is the same as the default
14863 behavior for other mail backends: articles are deleted after one week,
14864 etc. Except for the expiry parameters, all this functionality is
14865 unique to nnmaildir, so you can ignore it if you're just trying to
14866 duplicate the behavior you already have with another backend.
14868 If the value of any of these parameters is a vector, the first element
14869 is evaluated as a Lisp form and the result is used, rather than the
14870 original value. If the value is not a vector, the value itself is
14871 evaluated as a Lisp form. (This is why these parameters use names
14872 different from those of other, similar parameters supported by other
14873 backends: they have different, though similar, meanings.) (For
14874 numbers, strings, @code{nil}, and @code{t}, you can ignore the
14875 @code{eval} business again; for other values, remember to use an extra
14876 quote and wrap the value in a vector when appropriate.)
14880 An integer specifying the minimum age, in seconds, of an article before
14881 it will be expired, or the symbol @code{never} to specify that
14882 articles should never be expired. If this parameter is not set,
14883 nnmaildir falls back to the usual
14884 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait}(@code{-function}) variables (overridable by
14885 the @code{expiry-wait}(@code{-function}) group parameters. If you
14886 wanted a value of 3 days, you could use something like @code{[(* 3 24
14887 60 60)]}; nnmaildir will evaluate the form and use the result. An
14888 article's age is measured starting from the article file's
14889 modification time. Normally, this is the same as the article's
14890 delivery time, but editing an article makes it younger. Moving an
14891 article (other than via expiry) may also make an article younger.
14894 If this is set to a string (a full Gnus group name, like
14895 @code{"backend+server.address.string:group.name"}), and if it is not
14896 the name of the same group that the parameter belongs to, then
14897 articles will be moved to the specified group during expiry before
14898 being deleted. @emph{If this is set to an nnmaildir group, the
14899 article will be just as old in the destination group as it was in the
14900 source group.} So be careful with @code{expire-age} in the
14901 destination group. If this is set to the name of the same group that
14902 the parameter belongs to, then the article is not expired at all. If
14903 you use the vector form, the first element is evaluated once for each
14904 article. So that form can refer to
14905 @code{nnmaildir-article-file-name}, etc., to decide where to put the
14906 article. @emph{If this parameter is not set, nnmaildir does not fall
14907 back to the @code{expiry-target} group parameter or the
14908 @code{nnmail-expiry-target} variable.}
14911 If this is set to @code{t}, nnmaildir will treat the articles in this
14912 maildir as read-only. This means: articles are not renamed from
14913 @file{new/} into @file{cur/}; articles are only found in @file{new/},
14914 not @file{cur/}; articles are never deleted; articles cannot be
14915 edited. @file{new/} is expected to be a symlink to the @file{new/}
14916 directory of another maildir---e.g., a system-wide mailbox containing
14917 a mailing list of common interest. Everything in the maildir outside
14918 @file{new/} is @emph{not} treated as read-only, so for a shared
14919 mailbox, you do still need to set up your own maildir (or have write
14920 permission to the shared mailbox); your maildir just won't contain
14921 extra copies of the articles.
14923 @item directory-files
14924 A function with the same interface as @code{directory-files}. It is
14925 used to scan the directories in the maildir corresponding to this
14926 group to find articles. The default is the function specified by the
14927 server's @code{directory-files} parameter.
14929 @item distrust-Lines:
14930 If non-@code{nil}, nnmaildir will always count the lines of an
14931 article, rather than use the @code{Lines:} header field. If
14932 @code{nil}, the header field will be used if present.
14935 A list of mark symbols, such as
14936 @code{['(read expire)]}. Whenever Gnus asks nnmaildir for
14937 article marks, nnmaildir will say that all articles have these
14938 marks, regardless of whether the marks stored in the filesystem
14939 say so. This is a proof-of-concept feature that will probably be
14940 removed eventually; it ought to be done in Gnus proper, or
14941 abandoned if it's not worthwhile.
14944 A list of mark symbols, such as @code{['(tick expire)]}. Whenever
14945 Gnus asks nnmaildir for article marks, nnmaildir will say that no
14946 articles have these marks, regardless of whether the marks stored in
14947 the filesystem say so. @code{never-marks} overrides
14948 @code{always-marks}. This is a proof-of-concept feature that will
14949 probably be removed eventually; it ought to be done in Gnus proper, or
14950 abandoned if it's not worthwhile.
14952 @item nov-cache-size
14953 An integer specifying the size of the @acronym{NOV} memory cache. To speed
14954 things up, nnmaildir keeps @acronym{NOV} data in memory for a limited number of
14955 articles in each group. (This is probably not worthwhile, and will
14956 probably be removed in the future.) This parameter's value is noticed
14957 only the first time a group is seen after the server is opened---i.e.,
14958 when you first start Gnus, typically. The @acronym{NOV} cache is never resized
14959 until the server is closed and reopened. The default is an estimate
14960 of the number of articles that would be displayed in the summary
14961 buffer: a count of articles that are either marked with @code{tick} or
14962 not marked with @code{read}, plus a little extra.
14965 @subsubsection Article identification
14966 Articles are stored in the @file{cur/} subdirectory of each maildir.
14967 Each article file is named like @code{uniq:info}, where @code{uniq}
14968 contains no colons. nnmaildir ignores, but preserves, the
14969 @code{:info} part. (Other maildir readers typically use this part of
14970 the filename to store marks.) The @code{uniq} part uniquely
14971 identifies the article, and is used in various places in the
14972 @file{.nnmaildir/} subdirectory of the maildir to store information
14973 about the corresponding article. The full pathname of an article is
14974 available in the variable @code{nnmaildir-article-file-name} after you
14975 request the article in the summary buffer.
14977 @subsubsection NOV data
14978 An article identified by @code{uniq} has its @acronym{NOV} data (used to
14979 generate lines in the summary buffer) stored in
14980 @code{.nnmaildir/nov/uniq}. There is no
14981 @code{nnmaildir-generate-nov-databases} function. (There isn't much
14982 need for it---an article's @acronym{NOV} data is updated automatically when the
14983 article or @code{nnmail-extra-headers} has changed.) You can force
14984 nnmaildir to regenerate the @acronym{NOV} data for a single article simply by
14985 deleting the corresponding @acronym{NOV} file, but @emph{beware}: this will also
14986 cause nnmaildir to assign a new article number for this article, which
14987 may cause trouble with @code{seen} marks, the Agent, and the cache.
14989 @subsubsection Article marks
14990 An article identified by @code{uniq} is considered to have the mark
14991 @code{flag} when the file @file{.nnmaildir/marks/flag/uniq} exists.
14992 When Gnus asks nnmaildir for a group's marks, nnmaildir looks for such
14993 files and reports the set of marks it finds. When Gnus asks nnmaildir
14994 to store a new set of marks, nnmaildir creates and deletes the
14995 corresponding files as needed. (Actually, rather than create a new
14996 file for each mark, it just creates hard links to
14997 @file{.nnmaildir/markfile}, to save inodes.)
14999 You can invent new marks by creating a new directory in
15000 @file{.nnmaildir/marks/}. You can tar up a maildir and remove it from
15001 your server, untar it later, and keep your marks. You can add and
15002 remove marks yourself by creating and deleting mark files. If you do
15003 this while Gnus is running and your nnmaildir server is open, it's
15004 best to exit all summary buffers for nnmaildir groups and type @kbd{s}
15005 in the group buffer first, and to type @kbd{g} or @kbd{M-g} in the
15006 group buffer afterwards. Otherwise, Gnus might not pick up the
15007 changes, and might undo them.
15011 @subsubsection Mail Folders
15013 @cindex mbox folders
15014 @cindex mail folders
15016 @code{nnfolder} is a back end for storing each mail group in a separate
15017 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
15018 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
15021 @cindex self contained nnfolder servers
15023 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnfolder}
15024 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
15025 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
15026 proper @code{nnfolder} server) and have all your marks be preserved.
15027 Marks for a group is usually stored in a file named as the mbox file
15028 with @code{.mrk} concatenated to it (but see
15029 @code{nnfolder-marks-file-suffix}) within the @code{nnfolder} directory.
15030 Individual @code{nnfolder} groups are also possible to backup, use
15031 @kbd{G m} to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the
15032 @code{nnfolder} directory).
15034 Virtual server settings:
15037 @item nnfolder-directory
15038 @vindex nnfolder-directory
15039 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
15040 The default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
15043 @item nnfolder-active-file
15044 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
15045 The name of the active file. The default is @file{~/Mail/active}.
15047 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
15048 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
15049 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
15050 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups}
15052 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
15053 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
15054 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail. The default
15057 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
15058 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
15059 @cindex backup files
15060 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
15061 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
15062 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
15063 your @file{.emacs} file:
15066 (defun turn-off-backup ()
15067 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
15069 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
15072 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
15073 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
15074 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
15075 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
15076 extract some information from it before removing it.
15078 @item nnfolder-nov-is-evil
15079 @vindex nnfolder-nov-is-evil
15080 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @acronym{NOV} files. The
15081 default is @code{nil}.
15083 @item nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
15084 @vindex nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
15085 The extension for @acronym{NOV} files. The default is @file{.nov}.
15087 @item nnfolder-nov-directory
15088 @vindex nnfolder-nov-directory
15089 The directory where the @acronym{NOV} files should be stored. If
15090 @code{nil}, @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
15092 @item nnfolder-marks-is-evil
15093 @vindex nnfolder-marks-is-evil
15094 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
15095 default is @code{nil}.
15097 @item nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
15098 @vindex nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
15099 The extension for @sc{marks} files. The default is @file{.mrk}.
15101 @item nnfolder-marks-directory
15102 @vindex nnfolder-marks-directory
15103 The directory where the @sc{marks} files should be stored. If
15104 @code{nil}, @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
15109 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
15110 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
15111 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
15112 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
15113 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
15114 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
15117 @node Comparing Mail Back Ends
15118 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Back Ends
15120 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{back end} is the common word for a
15121 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
15122 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
15123 and so selection of a suitable back end is required in order to get that
15124 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
15126 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
15127 typically done by @acronym{NNTP} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
15128 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
15129 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @acronym{NNTP} server), and
15130 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
15131 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
15132 @code{nnspool} back ends, to select between these methods, if one happens
15133 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
15136 The goal in selecting a mail back end is to pick one which
15137 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
15138 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
15139 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
15144 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
15145 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
15146 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
15147 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
15148 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
15149 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
15150 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
15151 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
15152 this back end, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
15153 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
15154 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
15155 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
15156 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
15161 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
15162 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
15163 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
15164 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
15165 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
15166 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
15167 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
15168 Rmail was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
15169 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote Rmail
15170 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
15171 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
15172 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
15173 headers/status bits stuff. Rmail itself still exists as well, of
15174 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
15176 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
15177 file system, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
15182 @code{nnml} is the back end which smells the most as though you were
15183 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
15184 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
15185 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
15186 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
15187 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
15188 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
15189 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
15190 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
15191 @acronym{NNTP} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
15192 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
15193 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
15194 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
15195 provided by the active file and overviews.
15197 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
15198 resource which defines available places in the file system to put new
15199 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
15200 tight, shared file systems. But if you live on a personal machine where
15201 the file system is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
15204 It is also problematic using this back end if you are living in a
15205 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
15210 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
15211 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
15212 individual files, but with little or no indexing support---@code{nnmh}
15213 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
15214 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
15215 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
15216 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
15220 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
15221 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
15222 itself puts @emph{all} one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
15223 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
15224 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
15225 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
15226 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
15227 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
15228 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
15230 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
15231 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
15232 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
15233 friendly mail back end all over.
15237 For configuring expiry and other things, @code{nnmaildir} uses
15238 incompatible group parameters, slightly different from those of other
15241 @code{nnmaildir} is largely similar to @code{nnml}, with some notable
15242 differences. Each message is stored in a separate file, but the
15243 filename is unrelated to the article number in Gnus. @code{nnmaildir}
15244 also stores the equivalent of @code{nnml}'s overview files in one file
15245 per article, so it uses about twice as many inodes as @code{nnml}. (Use
15246 @code{df -i} to see how plentiful your inode supply is.) If this slows
15247 you down or takes up very much space, consider switching to ReiserFS
15248 (@uref{http://www.namesys.com/}) or another non-block-structured
15251 Since maildirs don't require locking for delivery, the maildirs you use
15252 as groups can also be the maildirs your mail is directly delivered to.
15253 This means you can skip Gnus's mail splitting if your mail is already
15254 organized into different mailboxes during delivery. A @code{directory}
15255 entry in @code{mail-sources} would have a similar effect, but would
15256 require one set of mailboxes for spooling deliveries (in mbox format,
15257 thus damaging message bodies), and another set to be used as groups (in
15258 whatever format you like). A maildir has a built-in spool, in the
15259 @code{new/} subdirectory. Beware that currently, mail moved from
15260 @code{new/} to @code{cur/} instead of via mail splitting will not
15261 undergo treatment such as duplicate checking.
15263 @code{nnmaildir} stores article marks for a given group in the
15264 corresponding maildir, in a way designed so that it's easy to manipulate
15265 them from outside Gnus. You can tar up a maildir, unpack it somewhere
15266 else, and still have your marks. @code{nnml} also stores marks, but
15267 it's not as easy to work with them from outside Gnus as with
15270 @code{nnmaildir} uses a significant amount of memory to speed things up.
15271 (It keeps in memory some of the things that @code{nnml} stores in files
15272 and that @code{nnmh} repeatedly parses out of message files.) If this
15273 is a problem for you, you can set the @code{nov-cache-size} group
15274 parameter to something small (0 would probably not work, but 1 probably
15275 would) to make it use less memory. This caching will probably be
15276 removed in the future.
15278 Startup is likely to be slower with @code{nnmaildir} than with other
15279 back ends. Everything else is likely to be faster, depending in part
15280 on your file system.
15282 @code{nnmaildir} does not use @code{nnoo}, so you cannot use @code{nnoo}
15283 to write an @code{nnmaildir}-derived back end.
15288 @node Browsing the Web
15289 @section Browsing the Web
15291 @cindex browsing the web
15295 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
15296 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
15297 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
15298 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
15299 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
15300 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
15301 even know what a news group is.
15303 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
15304 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
15305 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
15306 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
15307 you mad in the end.
15309 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
15312 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of back ends for providing
15313 interfaces to these sources.
15317 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
15318 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
15319 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
15320 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
15321 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
15322 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
15325 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
15327 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
15328 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @acronym{HTML} data
15329 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus back end
15330 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these back ends,
15331 though, you should be ok.
15333 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
15334 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
15335 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
15336 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
15337 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
15339 @node Archiving Mail
15340 @subsection Archiving Mail
15341 @cindex archiving mail
15342 @cindex backup of mail
15344 Some of the back ends, notably @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, and
15345 @code{nnmaildir}, now actually store the article marks with each group.
15346 For these servers, archiving and restoring a group while preserving
15347 marks is fairly simple.
15349 (Preserving the group level and group parameters as well still
15350 requires ritual dancing and sacrifices to the @file{.newsrc.eld} deity
15353 To archive an entire @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, or @code{nnmaildir}
15354 server, take a recursive copy of the server directory. There is no need
15355 to shut down Gnus, so archiving may be invoked by @code{cron} or
15356 similar. You restore the data by restoring the directory tree, and
15357 adding a server definition pointing to that directory in Gnus. The
15358 @ref{Article Backlog}, @ref{Asynchronous Fetching} and other things
15359 might interfere with overwriting data, so you may want to shut down Gnus
15360 before you restore the data.
15362 It is also possible to archive individual @code{nnml},
15363 @code{nnfolder}, or @code{nnmaildir} groups, while preserving marks.
15364 For @code{nnml} or @code{nnmaildir}, you copy all files in the group's
15365 directory. For @code{nnfolder} you need to copy both the base folder
15366 file itself (@file{FOO}, say), and the marks file (@file{FOO.mrk} in
15367 this example). Restoring the group is done with @kbd{G m} from the Group
15368 buffer. The last step makes Gnus notice the new directory.
15369 @code{nnmaildir} notices the new directory automatically, so @kbd{G m}
15370 is unnecessary in that case.
15373 @subsection Web Searches
15378 @cindex Usenet searches
15379 @cindex searching the Usenet
15381 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
15382 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
15383 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
15384 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
15385 searches without having to use a browser.
15387 The @code{nnweb} back end allows an easy interface to the mighty search
15388 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
15389 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
15390 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
15391 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
15393 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
15394 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
15395 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
15396 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
15397 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
15398 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
15399 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
15400 engines (Google, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
15401 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
15402 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
15405 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
15406 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
15407 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
15408 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
15409 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
15410 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
15412 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
15413 to use @code{nnweb}.
15415 Virtual server variables:
15420 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
15421 are @code{google}, @code{dejanews}, and @code{gmane}. Note that
15422 @code{dejanews} is an alias to @code{google}.
15425 @vindex nnweb-search
15426 The search string to feed to the search engine.
15428 @item nnweb-max-hits
15429 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
15430 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
15433 @item nnweb-type-definition
15434 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
15435 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
15436 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
15441 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
15445 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
15448 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
15451 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
15455 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
15462 @subsection Slashdot
15466 Slashdot (@uref{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
15467 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
15468 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
15470 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
15471 following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
15474 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
15475 '((nnslashdot "")))
15478 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} back end for new comments
15479 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
15480 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
15481 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
15482 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
15485 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
15486 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
15488 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
15489 comments), some light @acronym{HTML}izations will be performed. In
15490 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
15491 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
15492 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @acronym{HTML}
15493 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
15494 @acronym{HTML} forms.
15496 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
15499 @item nnslashdot-threaded
15500 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
15501 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
15502 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
15503 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
15504 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
15505 but much, much slower than unthreaded.
15507 @item nnslashdot-login-name
15508 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
15509 The login name to use when posting.
15511 @item nnslashdot-password
15512 @vindex nnslashdot-password
15513 The password to use when posting.
15515 @item nnslashdot-directory
15516 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
15517 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default is
15518 @file{~/News/slashdot/}.
15520 @item nnslashdot-active-url
15521 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
15522 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
15523 news articles and comments. The default is
15524 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
15526 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
15527 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
15528 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
15530 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
15532 @item nnslashdot-article-url
15533 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
15534 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
15536 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
15538 @item nnslashdot-threshold
15539 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
15540 The score threshold. The default is -1.
15542 @item nnslashdot-group-number
15543 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
15544 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
15545 updated. The default is 0.
15552 @subsection Ultimate
15554 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
15556 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@uref{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
15557 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
15558 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
15559 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
15561 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
15562 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
15563 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
15564 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
15565 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
15566 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
15567 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
15569 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
15572 @item nnultimate-directory
15573 @vindex nnultimate-directory
15574 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
15575 @file{~/News/ultimate/}.
15580 @subsection Web Archive
15582 @cindex Web Archive
15584 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
15585 @uref{http://www.egroups.com/} and
15586 @uref{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
15587 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
15590 @findex gnus-group-make-warchive-group
15591 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
15592 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
15593 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET @var{an_egroup} RET egroups RET
15594 www.egroups.com RET @var{your@@email.address RET}}. (Substitute the
15595 @var{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
15596 @var{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
15597 back end by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
15599 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
15602 @item nnwarchive-directory
15603 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
15604 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
15605 @file{~/News/warchive/}.
15607 @item nnwarchive-login
15608 @vindex nnwarchive-login
15609 The account name on the web server.
15611 @item nnwarchive-passwd
15612 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
15613 The password for your account on the web server.
15621 Some sites have RDF site summary (RSS)
15622 @uref{http://purl.org/rss/1.0/spec}. It has a quite regular and nice
15623 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
15626 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something
15627 like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET RET}, then
15630 The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:
15633 @item nnrss-directory
15634 @vindex nnrss-directory
15635 The directory where @code{nnrss} stores its files. The default is
15636 @file{~/News/rss/}.
15640 The following code may be helpful, if you want to show the description in
15641 the summary buffer.
15644 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-description-field)
15645 (setq gnus-summary-line-format "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-15,15f%]%) %s%uX\n")
15647 (defun gnus-user-format-function-X (header)
15649 (assq nnrss-description-field (mail-header-extra header))))
15650 (if descr (concat "\n\t" (cdr descr)) "")))
15653 The following code may be useful to open an nnrss url directly from the
15656 (require 'browse-url)
15658 (defun browse-nnrss-url( arg )
15660 (let ((url (assq nnrss-url-field
15663 (assq (gnus-summary-article-number)
15664 gnus-newsgroup-data))))))
15667 (browse-url (cdr url))
15668 (gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward 1))
15669 (gnus-summary-scroll-up arg))))
15671 (eval-after-load "gnus"
15672 #'(define-key gnus-summary-mode-map
15673 (kbd "<RET>") 'browse-nnrss-url))
15674 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-url-field)
15677 @node Customizing w3
15678 @subsection Customizing w3
15684 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
15685 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
15686 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
15688 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
15689 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
15690 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
15693 (eval-after-load "w3"
15695 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
15696 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
15697 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
15698 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
15700 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
15703 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
15704 @acronym{HTML} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
15711 @cindex @acronym{IMAP}
15713 @acronym{IMAP} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or @dots{}),
15714 think of it as a modernized @acronym{NNTP}. Connecting to a @acronym{IMAP}
15715 server is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just
15716 specify the network address of the server.
15718 @acronym{IMAP} has two properties. First, @acronym{IMAP} can do
15719 everything that @acronym{POP} can, it can hence be viewed as a
15720 @acronym{POP++}. Secondly, @acronym{IMAP} is a mail storage protocol,
15721 similar to @acronym{NNTP} being a news storage protocol---however,
15722 @acronym{IMAP} offers more features than @acronym{NNTP} because news
15723 is more or less read-only whereas mail is read-write.
15725 If you want to use @acronym{IMAP} as a @acronym{POP++}, use an imap
15726 entry in @code{mail-sources}. With this, Gnus will fetch mails from
15727 the @acronym{IMAP} server and store them on the local disk. This is
15728 not the usage described in this section---@xref{Mail Sources}.
15730 If you want to use @acronym{IMAP} as a mail storage protocol, use an nnimap
15731 entry in @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods}. With this, Gnus will
15732 manipulate mails stored on the @acronym{IMAP} server. This is the kind of
15733 usage explained in this section.
15735 A server configuration in @file{~/.gnus.el} with a few @acronym{IMAP} servers
15736 might look something like the following. (Note that for @acronym{TLS}/@acronym{SSL}, you
15737 need external programs and libraries, see below.)
15740 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
15741 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; @r{no special configuration}
15742 ; @r{perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:}
15744 (nnimap-address "localhost")
15745 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
15746 ; @r{a UW server running on localhost}
15748 (nnimap-server-port 143)
15749 (nnimap-address "localhost")
15750 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
15751 ; @r{anonymous public cyrus server:}
15752 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
15753 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
15754 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
15755 (nnimap-stream network))
15756 ; @r{a ssl server on a non-standard port:}
15758 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
15759 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
15760 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
15763 After defining the new server, you can subscribe to groups on the
15764 server using normal Gnus commands such as @kbd{U} in the Group Buffer
15765 (@pxref{Subscription Commands}) or via the Server Buffer
15766 (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
15768 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
15773 @item nnimap-address
15774 @vindex nnimap-address
15776 The address of the remote @acronym{IMAP} server. Defaults to the virtual
15777 server name if not specified.
15779 @item nnimap-server-port
15780 @vindex nnimap-server-port
15781 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for @acronym{TLS}/@acronym{SSL}.
15783 Note that this should be an integer, example server specification:
15786 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15787 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
15790 @item nnimap-list-pattern
15791 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
15792 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
15793 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
15794 interested in a few---some servers export your home directory via
15795 @acronym{IMAP}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
15796 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
15798 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
15799 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
15800 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
15803 Example server specification:
15806 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15807 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
15808 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
15811 @item nnimap-stream
15812 @vindex nnimap-stream
15813 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
15814 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
15815 of @acronym{TLS}/@acronym{SSL}. (@acronym{IMAP} over @acronym{TLS}/@acronym{SSL} is being replaced by STARTTLS, which
15816 can be automatically detected, but it's not widely deployed yet.)
15818 Example server specification:
15821 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15822 (nnimap-stream ssl))
15825 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
15829 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually Kerberos 5). Requires the
15830 @samp{gsasl} or @samp{imtest} program.
15832 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with Kerberos 4. Requires the @samp{imtest} program.
15834 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
15835 @acronym{TLS}/@acronym{SSL}). Requires the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
15838 @dfn{tls:} Connect through @acronym{TLS}. Requires GNUTLS (the program
15839 @samp{gnutls-cli}).
15841 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through @acronym{SSL}. Requires OpenSSL (the program
15842 @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}).
15844 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start @acronym{IMAP} connection.
15846 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
15849 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
15850 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD. If you're
15851 using @samp{imtest} from Cyrus IMAPD < 2.0.14 (which includes version
15852 1.5.x and 1.6.x) you need to frob @code{imap-process-connection-type}
15853 to make @code{imap.el} use a pty instead of a pipe when communicating
15854 with @samp{imtest}. You will then suffer from a line length
15855 restrictions on @acronym{IMAP} commands, which might make Gnus seem to hang
15856 indefinitely if you have many articles in a mailbox. The variable
15857 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
15860 For @acronym{TLS} connection, the @code{gnutls-cli} program from GNUTLS is
15861 needed. It is available from
15862 @uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/gnutls/}.
15864 @vindex imap-gssapi-program
15865 This parameter specifies a list of command lines that invoke a GSSAPI
15866 authenticated @acronym{IMAP} stream in a subshell. They are tried
15867 sequentially until a connection is made, or the list has been
15868 exhausted. By default, @samp{gsasl} from GNU SASL, available from
15869 @uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/gsasl/}, and the @samp{imtest}
15870 program from Cyrus IMAPD (see @code{imap-kerberos4-program}), are
15873 @vindex imap-ssl-program
15874 For @acronym{SSL} connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
15875 @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
15876 and nnimap support it too---although the most recent versions of
15877 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
15878 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
15879 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
15882 @vindex imap-shell-program
15883 @vindex imap-shell-host
15884 For @acronym{IMAP} connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
15885 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
15887 @item nnimap-authenticator
15888 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
15890 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
15891 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
15893 Example server specification:
15896 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15897 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
15900 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
15904 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Requires
15905 external program @code{gsasl} or @code{imtest}.
15907 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos 4 authentication. Requires external program
15910 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Requires
15911 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
15913 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
15915 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
15917 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your email address as password.
15920 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
15922 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
15923 Unlike Parmenides the @acronym{IMAP} designers has decided that things that
15924 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @acronym{IMAP} has
15925 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
15926 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
15927 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{B DEL} or
15930 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
15931 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
15932 running in circles yet?
15934 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
15935 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
15938 The possible options are:
15943 The default behavior, delete all articles marked as ``Deleted'' when
15946 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
15947 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @acronym{IMAP} clients
15948 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
15949 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
15951 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
15956 @item nnimap-importantize-dormant
15957 @vindex nnimap-importantize-dormant
15959 If non-@code{nil} (the default), marks dormant articles as ticked (as
15960 well), for other @acronym{IMAP} clients. Within Gnus, dormant articles will
15961 naturally still (only) be marked as dormant. This is to make dormant
15962 articles stand out, just like ticked articles, in other @acronym{IMAP}
15963 clients. (In other words, Gnus has two ``Tick'' marks and @acronym{IMAP}
15966 Probably the only reason for frobing this would be if you're trying
15967 enable per-user persistant dormant flags, using something like:
15970 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-flag-alist)
15971 (format "gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
15972 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-predicate-alist)
15973 (format "KEYWORD gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
15976 In this case, you would not want the per-user dormant flag showing up
15977 as ticked for other users.
15979 @item nnimap-expunge-search-string
15981 @vindex nnimap-expunge-search-string
15983 This variable contain the @acronym{IMAP} search command sent to server when
15984 searching for articles eligible for expiring. The default is
15985 @code{"UID %s NOT SINCE %s"}, where the first @code{%s} is replaced by
15986 UID set and the second @code{%s} is replaced by a date.
15988 Probably the only useful value to change this to is
15989 @code{"UID %s NOT SENTSINCE %s"}, which makes nnimap use the Date: in
15990 messages instead of the internal article date. See section 6.4.4 of
15991 RFC 2060 for more information on valid strings.
15993 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
15994 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
15996 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
15997 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
15998 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
16004 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
16005 * Expiring in IMAP:: Expiring mail with nnimap.
16006 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
16007 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a ``compress mailbox'' button.
16008 * A note on namespaces:: How to (not) use @acronym{IMAP} namespace in Gnus.
16013 @node Splitting in IMAP
16014 @subsection Splitting in IMAP
16015 @cindex splitting imap mail
16017 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
16018 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
16019 @acronym{IMAP} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
16020 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @acronym{IMAP}
16021 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
16025 Here are the variables of interest:
16029 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
16030 @cindex splitting, crosspost
16032 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
16034 If non-@code{nil}, do crossposting if several split methods match the
16035 mail. If @code{nil}, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule}
16036 found will be used.
16038 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
16040 @item nnimap-split-inbox
16041 @cindex splitting, inbox
16043 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
16045 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @acronym{IMAP}
16046 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to @code{nil}, which means that
16047 splitting is disabled!
16050 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
16051 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
16054 No nnmail equivalent.
16056 @item nnimap-split-rule
16057 @cindex Splitting, rules
16058 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
16060 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
16063 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
16064 sublist gives the name of the @acronym{IMAP} mailbox to move articles
16065 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
16066 Neither did I, we need examples.
16069 (setq nnimap-split-rule
16071 "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
16072 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
16073 ("INBOX.private" "")))
16076 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
16077 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
16078 into INBOX.junk and everything else in INBOX.private.
16080 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
16081 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
16085 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
16088 The first element can also be the symbol @code{junk} to indicate that
16089 matching messages should simply be deleted. Use with care.
16091 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
16092 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
16093 containing the headers of the article. It should return a
16094 non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
16096 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
16097 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
16098 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
16099 of your inbox. (This might affect performance if you keep lots of
16100 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
16101 them every time you fetch new mail.)
16103 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
16104 end. The first rule to make a match will ``win'', unless you have
16105 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will ``win''.
16107 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
16108 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
16109 thinks the article should be split to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
16111 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it needs to.
16113 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
16114 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
16115 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
16118 (setq nnimap-split-rule
16119 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
16120 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
16121 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
16122 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
16123 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
16126 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
16127 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
16128 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
16129 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
16130 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
16131 group/function elements.
16133 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
16135 @item nnimap-split-predicate
16137 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
16139 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
16140 split, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
16142 This might be useful if you use another @acronym{IMAP} client to read mail in
16143 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
16144 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
16147 @item nnimap-split-fancy
16148 @cindex splitting, fancy
16149 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
16150 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
16152 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
16153 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
16154 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
16156 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
16157 nnimap back ends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
16158 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
16159 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
16164 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
16165 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
16168 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
16170 @item nnimap-split-download-body
16171 @findex nnimap-split-download-body
16172 @vindex nnimap-split-download-body
16174 Set to non-@code{nil} to download entire articles during splitting.
16175 This is generally not required, and will slow things down
16176 considerably. You may need it if you want to use an advanced
16177 splitting function that analyses the body to split the article.
16181 @node Expiring in IMAP
16182 @subsection Expiring in IMAP
16183 @cindex expiring imap mail
16185 Even though @code{nnimap} is not a proper @code{nnmail} derived back
16186 end, it supports most features in regular expiring (@pxref{Expiring
16187 Mail}). Unlike splitting in @acronym{IMAP} (@pxref{Splitting in
16188 IMAP}) it does not clone the @code{nnmail} variables (i.e., creating
16189 @var{nnimap-expiry-wait}) but reuse the @code{nnmail} variables. What
16190 follows below are the variables used by the @code{nnimap} expiry
16193 A note on how the expire mark is stored on the @acronym{IMAP} server is
16194 appropriate here as well. The expire mark is translated into a
16195 @code{imap} client specific mark, @code{gnus-expire}, and stored on the
16196 message. This means that likely only Gnus will understand and treat
16197 the @code{gnus-expire} mark properly, although other clients may allow
16198 you to view client specific flags on the message. It also means that
16199 your server must support permanent storage of client specific flags on
16200 messages. Most do, fortunately.
16204 @item nnmail-expiry-wait
16205 @item nnmail-expiry-wait-function
16207 These variables are fully supported. The expire value can be a
16208 number, the symbol @code{immediate} or @code{never}.
16210 @item nnmail-expiry-target
16212 This variable is supported, and internally implemented by calling the
16213 @code{nnmail} functions that handle this. It contains an optimization
16214 that if the destination is a @acronym{IMAP} group on the same server, the
16215 article is copied instead of appended (that is, uploaded again).
16219 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
16220 @subsection Editing IMAP ACLs
16221 @cindex editing imap acls
16222 @cindex Access Control Lists
16223 @cindex Editing @acronym{IMAP} ACLs
16225 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
16227 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @acronym{IMAP} for
16228 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
16229 @acronym{IMAP} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
16232 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
16233 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
16234 editing window with detailed instructions.
16236 Some possible uses:
16240 Giving ``anyone'' the ``lrs'' rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
16241 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
16242 follow the list without subscribing to it.
16244 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
16245 ``anyone'' posting ("p") capabilities to have ``plussing'' work (that is,
16246 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @acronym{IMAP} mailbox
16250 @node Expunging mailboxes
16251 @subsection Expunging mailboxes
16255 @cindex Manual expunging
16257 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
16259 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-on-close},
16260 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
16261 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
16263 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
16266 @node A note on namespaces
16267 @subsection A note on namespaces
16268 @cindex IMAP namespace
16271 The @acronym{IMAP} protocol has a concept called namespaces, described
16272 by the following text in the RFC:
16275 5.1.2. Mailbox Namespace Naming Convention
16277 By convention, the first hierarchical element of any mailbox name
16278 which begins with "#" identifies the "namespace" of the remainder of
16279 the name. This makes it possible to disambiguate between different
16280 types of mailbox stores, each of which have their own namespaces.
16282 For example, implementations which offer access to USENET
16283 newsgroups MAY use the "#news" namespace to partition the USENET
16284 newsgroup namespace from that of other mailboxes. Thus, the
16285 comp.mail.misc newsgroup would have an mailbox name of
16286 "#news.comp.mail.misc", and the name "comp.mail.misc" could refer
16287 to a different object (e.g. a user's private mailbox).
16290 While there is nothing in this text that warrants concern for the
16291 @acronym{IMAP} implementation in Gnus, some servers use namespace
16292 prefixes in a way that does not work with how Gnus uses mailbox names.
16294 Specifically, University of Washington's @acronym{IMAP} server uses
16295 mailbox names like @code{#driver.mbx/read-mail} which are valid only
16296 in the @sc{create} and @sc{append} commands. After the mailbox is
16297 created (or a messages is appended to a mailbox), it must be accessed
16298 without the namespace prefix, i.e. @code{read-mail}. Since Gnus do
16299 not make it possible for the user to guarantee that user entered
16300 mailbox names will only be used with the CREATE and APPEND commands,
16301 you should simply not use the namespace prefixed mailbox names in
16304 See the UoW IMAPD documentation for the @code{#driver.*/} prefix
16305 for more information on how to use the prefixes. They are a power
16306 tool and should be used only if you are sure what the effects are.
16308 @node Other Sources
16309 @section Other Sources
16311 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
16312 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
16316 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
16317 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
16318 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
16319 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
16320 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
16324 @node Directory Groups
16325 @subsection Directory Groups
16327 @cindex directory groups
16329 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
16330 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
16333 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
16334 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
16335 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
16336 back end to read directories. Big deal.
16338 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
16339 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
16340 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
16341 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
16342 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
16344 @code{nndir} will use @acronym{NOV} files if they are present.
16346 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' back end---you can't delete or expire
16347 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
16348 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
16349 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
16352 @node Anything Groups
16353 @subsection Anything Groups
16356 From the @code{nndir} back end (which reads a single spool-like
16357 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
16358 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
16361 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
16362 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
16363 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
16364 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
16365 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
16366 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
16367 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
16368 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
16369 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
16370 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
16373 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
16374 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
16375 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
16376 in the article buffer, just as usual.
16378 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
16379 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
16380 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
16381 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
16383 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
16384 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
16385 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
16386 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
16387 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
16388 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
16389 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
16390 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
16395 @item nneething-map-file-directory
16396 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
16397 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
16398 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
16400 @item nneething-exclude-files
16401 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
16402 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
16403 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
16405 @item nneething-include-files
16406 @vindex nneething-include-files
16407 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
16408 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
16410 @item nneething-map-file
16411 @vindex nneething-map-file
16412 Name of the map files.
16416 @node Document Groups
16417 @subsection Document Groups
16419 @cindex documentation group
16422 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
16423 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
16430 The Babyl (Rmail) mail box.
16435 The standard Unix mbox file.
16437 @cindex MMDF mail box
16439 The MMDF mail box format.
16442 Several news articles appended into a file.
16445 @cindex rnews batch files
16446 The rnews batch transport format.
16447 @cindex forwarded messages
16450 Forwarded articles.
16453 Netscape mail boxes.
16456 @acronym{MIME} multipart messages.
16458 @item standard-digest
16459 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
16462 A @acronym{MIME} digest of messages.
16464 @item lanl-gov-announce
16465 Announcement messages from LANL Gov Announce.
16467 @item rfc822-forward
16468 A message forwarded according to RFC822.
16471 The Outlook mail box.
16474 The Outlook Express dbx mail box.
16477 A bounce message from the Exim MTA.
16480 A message forwarded according to informal rules.
16483 An RFC934-forwarded message.
16489 A digest of Clarinet brief news items.
16492 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
16498 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
16499 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
16500 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
16503 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
16504 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
16505 group. And that's it.
16507 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
16508 new & spiffy Gnus mail back end, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
16509 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
16510 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
16511 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
16512 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
16513 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
16514 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
16515 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
16516 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
16518 Virtual server variables:
16521 @item nndoc-article-type
16522 @vindex nndoc-article-type
16523 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
16524 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
16525 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
16526 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook},
16527 @code{oe-dbx}, @code{mailman}, and @code{mail-in-mail} or @code{guess}.
16529 @item nndoc-post-type
16530 @vindex nndoc-post-type
16531 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
16532 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
16537 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
16541 @node Document Server Internals
16542 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
16544 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
16545 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
16546 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
16547 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
16549 First, here's an example document type definition:
16553 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
16554 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
16557 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
16558 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
16559 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
16560 types can be defined with very few settings:
16563 @item first-article
16564 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
16565 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
16568 @item article-begin
16569 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
16570 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
16572 @item head-begin-function
16573 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
16576 @item nndoc-head-begin
16577 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
16580 @item nndoc-head-end
16581 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
16582 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
16584 @item body-begin-function
16585 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
16589 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
16592 @item body-end-function
16593 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
16597 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
16600 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
16601 regexp will be totally ignored.
16605 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
16606 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
16607 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
16608 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
16609 something that's palatable for Gnus:
16612 @item prepare-body-function
16613 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
16614 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
16615 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
16617 @item article-transform-function
16618 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
16619 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
16620 body of the article.
16622 @item generate-head-function
16623 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
16624 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
16625 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
16626 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
16630 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
16635 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
16636 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
16637 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
16638 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
16639 (head-end . "^ ?$")
16640 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
16641 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
16642 (subtype digest guess))
16645 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
16646 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
16647 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
16648 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
16649 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
16651 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
16652 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first
16653 is the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says
16654 where in the document type definition alist to put this definition.
16655 The alist is traversed sequentially, and
16656 @code{nndoc-@var{type}-type-p} is called for a given type @var{type}.
16657 So @code{nndoc-mmdf-type-p} is called to see whether a document is of
16658 @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
16659 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it
16660 is of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
16661 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number
16662 means low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
16670 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
16671 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
16672 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
16674 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
16675 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
16676 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
16679 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
16680 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
16681 that interested in doing things properly.
16683 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
16684 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
16687 First some terminology:
16692 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
16693 get news and/or mail from.
16696 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
16697 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
16700 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
16704 @item message packets
16705 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
16706 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
16707 default, where @var{x} is a number.
16709 @item response packets
16710 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
16711 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
16712 default, where @var{x} is a number.
16722 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
16723 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
16724 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
16725 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
16728 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
16731 You put the packet in your home directory.
16734 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} back end as
16735 the native or secondary server.
16738 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
16739 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
16742 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
16746 You transfer this packet to the server.
16749 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
16752 You then repeat until you die.
16756 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
16757 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
16760 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
16761 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
16762 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
16766 @node SOUP Commands
16767 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
16769 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
16773 @kindex G s b (Group)
16774 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
16775 Pack all unread articles in the current group
16776 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
16777 process/prefix convention.
16780 @kindex G s w (Group)
16781 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
16782 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
16785 @kindex G s s (Group)
16786 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
16787 Send all replies from the replies packet
16788 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
16791 @kindex G s p (Group)
16792 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
16793 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
16796 @kindex G s r (Group)
16797 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
16798 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
16801 @kindex O s (Summary)
16802 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
16803 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
16804 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
16805 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16810 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
16815 @item gnus-soup-directory
16816 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
16817 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
16818 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
16820 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
16821 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
16822 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
16823 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
16825 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
16826 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
16827 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
16828 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
16830 @item gnus-soup-packer
16831 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
16832 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
16833 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
16835 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
16836 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
16837 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
16838 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
16840 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
16841 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
16842 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
16844 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
16845 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
16846 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
16847 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
16853 @subsubsection SOUP Groups
16856 @code{nnsoup} is the back end for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
16857 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
16858 you can read them at leisure.
16860 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
16864 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
16865 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
16866 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
16867 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
16869 @item nnsoup-directory
16870 @vindex nnsoup-directory
16871 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
16872 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
16874 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
16875 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
16876 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
16877 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/}.
16879 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
16880 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
16881 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
16882 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
16883 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
16885 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
16886 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
16887 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
16888 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
16890 @item nnsoup-active-file
16891 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
16892 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
16893 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
16894 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
16895 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
16897 @item nnsoup-packer
16898 @vindex nnsoup-packer
16899 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
16900 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
16902 @item nnsoup-unpacker
16903 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
16904 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
16905 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
16907 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
16908 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
16909 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
16912 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
16913 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
16914 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
16917 @item nnsoup-always-save
16918 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
16919 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
16925 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
16927 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
16928 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
16929 more for that to happen.
16931 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
16932 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
16933 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
16936 In specific, this is what it does:
16939 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
16940 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
16943 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
16944 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
16945 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
16948 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
16949 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
16950 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
16953 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
16954 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
16955 The @code{nngateway} back end provides the interface.
16957 Note that you can't read anything from this back end---it can only be
16963 @item nngateway-address
16964 @vindex nngateway-address
16965 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
16967 @item nngateway-header-transformation
16968 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
16969 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
16970 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
16971 transformation should be called, and defaults to
16972 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
16973 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
16976 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
16977 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
16978 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
16981 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
16984 will get this @code{To} header inserted:
16987 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
16990 The following pre-defined functions exist:
16992 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
16995 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
16996 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
16997 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
16999 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
17001 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
17002 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
17003 @code{nngateway-address}.
17008 (setq gnus-post-method
17010 "mail2news@@replay.com"
17011 (nngateway-header-transformation
17012 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
17020 So, to use this, simply say something like:
17023 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
17028 @node Combined Groups
17029 @section Combined Groups
17031 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
17035 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
17036 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
17040 @node Virtual Groups
17041 @subsection Virtual Groups
17043 @cindex virtual groups
17044 @cindex merging groups
17046 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
17049 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
17050 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
17051 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
17053 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
17054 regexp to match component groups.
17056 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
17057 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
17058 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it
17059 came. (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be
17060 shown in the virtual group.). To create an empty virtual group, run
17061 @kbd{G V} (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}) in the group buffer
17062 and edit the method regexp with @kbd{M-e}
17063 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method})
17065 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
17066 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
17069 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
17072 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
17073 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
17075 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
17076 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
17077 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
17078 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
17081 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
17084 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
17085 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
17086 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
17088 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
17089 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
17090 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
17091 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
17092 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
17094 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
17095 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
17096 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
17098 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
17099 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
17100 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
17101 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
17102 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
17103 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
17104 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
17105 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
17106 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
17107 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
17108 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
17110 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
17111 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
17112 has to ask the back end of the component group the article comes from
17113 whether it is a news or mail back end. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
17114 there is typically no sure way for the component back end to know this,
17115 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
17116 not-news back end. (Just to be on the safe side.)
17118 @kbd{C-c C-n} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
17119 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
17121 @code{nnvirtual} groups do not inherit anything but articles and marks
17122 from component groups---group parameters, for instance, are not
17126 @node Kibozed Groups
17127 @subsection Kibozed Groups
17131 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @acronym{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
17132 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a back end that will do this for
17133 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @acronym{NNTP} server down to a halt
17134 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
17136 @kindex G k (Group)
17137 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
17140 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
17141 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
17142 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between
17143 @code{nnkiboze} and @code{nnvirtual} end.
17145 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an
17146 @code{nnkiboze} group must have a score file to say what articles are
17147 to be included in the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
17149 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
17150 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
17151 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
17152 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time.
17153 Lots of time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the
17154 headers from all the articles in all the component groups and run them
17155 through the scoring process to determine if there are any articles in
17156 the groups that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
17158 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
17159 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
17160 @acronym{NNTP} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
17161 Stranger things have happened.
17163 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
17164 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
17166 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
17167 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
17168 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
17169 contains the @acronym{NOV} header lines for all the articles in the group,
17170 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
17171 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
17173 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
17174 their @acronym{NOV} lines removed from the @acronym{NOV} file.
17177 @node Gnus Unplugged
17178 @section Gnus Unplugged
17183 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
17185 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
17186 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
17187 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
17188 read news. Believe it or not.
17190 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
17191 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
17192 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
17193 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
17194 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
17196 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
17197 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
17198 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
17199 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
17200 reading news on a machine.
17202 Setting up Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple. In
17203 fact, you don't even have to configure anything.
17205 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
17208 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
17209 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
17210 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
17211 * Agent as Cache:: The Agent is a big cache too.
17212 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
17213 * Agent Regeneration:: How to recover from lost connections and other accidents.
17214 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with @acronym{IMAP}.
17215 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
17216 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
17217 * Example Setup:: An example @file{~/.gnus.el} file for offline people.
17218 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
17219 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
17224 @subsection Agent Basics
17226 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
17228 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
17229 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
17230 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
17231 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
17233 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
17234 connected to the net continuously.
17236 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
17237 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
17239 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
17244 @findex gnus-unplugged
17245 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
17246 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
17247 already fetched while in this mode.
17250 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
17251 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
17252 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
17253 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
17254 Source Specifiers}).
17257 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
17258 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
17259 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
17260 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
17261 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
17264 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
17265 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
17266 then you read the news offline.
17269 And then you go to step 2.
17272 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
17278 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
17279 back end, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
17280 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
17281 @kbd{J a} on the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
17282 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}), or @kbd{J r} on automatically
17283 added servers you do not wish to have covered by the Agent. By default,
17284 all @code{nntp} and @code{nnimap} groups in @code{gnus-select-method} and
17285 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} are agentized.
17289 Decide on download policy. It's fairly simple once you decide whether
17290 you are going to use agent categories, topic parameters, and/or group
17291 parameters to implement your policy. If you're new to gnus, it
17292 is probably best to start with a category @xref{Agent Categories}.
17294 Both topic parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}) and agent categories
17295 (@pxref{Agent Categories}) provide for setting a policy that applies
17296 to multiple groups. Which you use is entirely up to you. Topic
17297 parameters do override categories so, if you mix the two, you'll have
17298 to take that into account. If you have a few groups that deviate from
17299 your policy, you can use grou parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to
17303 Uhm@dots{} that's it.
17307 @node Agent Categories
17308 @subsection Agent Categories
17310 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
17311 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
17312 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
17313 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
17314 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
17315 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
17316 you're interested in the articles anyway.
17318 One of the more effective methods for controlling what is to be
17319 downloaded is to create a @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all)
17320 groups to this category. Groups that do not belong in any other
17321 category belong to the @code{default} category. Gnus has its own
17322 buffer for creating and managing categories.
17324 If you prefer, you can also use group parameters (@pxref{Group
17325 Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}) for an
17326 alternative approach to controlling the agent. The only real
17327 difference is that categories are specific to the agent (so there is
17328 less to learn) while group and topic parameters include the kitchen
17331 Since you can set agent parameters in several different places we have
17332 a rule to decide which source to believe. This rule specifies that
17333 the parameter sources are checked in the following order: group
17334 parameters, topic parameters, agent category, and finally customizable
17335 variables. So you can mix all of these sources to produce a wide range
17336 of behavior, just don't blame me if you don't remember where you put
17340 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
17341 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
17342 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
17346 @node Category Syntax
17347 @subsubsection Category Syntax
17349 A category consists of a name, the list of groups belonging to the
17350 category, and a number of optional parameters that override the
17351 customizable variables. The complete list of agent parameters are
17355 @item gnus-agent-cat-name
17356 The name of the category.
17358 @item gnus-agent-cat-groups
17359 The list of groups that are in this category.
17361 @item gnus-agent-cat-predicate
17362 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
17363 are eligible for downloading; and
17365 @item gnus-agent-cat-score-file
17366 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
17367 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
17368 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
17370 @item gnus-agent-cat-enable-expiration
17371 a boolean indicating whether the agent should expire old articles in
17372 this group. Most groups should be expired to conserve disk space. In
17373 fact, its probably safe to say that the gnus.* hierarchy contains the
17374 only groups that should not be expired.
17376 @item gnus-agent-cat-days-until-old
17377 an integer indicating the number of days that the agent should wait
17378 before deciding that a read article is safe to expire.
17380 @item gnus-agent-cat-low-score
17381 an integer that overrides the value of @code{gnus-agent-low-score}.
17383 @item gnus-agent-cat-high-score
17384 an integer that overrides the value of @code{gnus-agent-high-score}.
17386 @item gnus-agent-cat-length-when-short
17387 an integer that overrides the value of
17388 @code{gnus-agent-short-article}.
17390 @item gnus-agent-cat-length-when-long
17391 an integer that overrides the value of @code{gnus-agent-long-article}.
17394 The name of a category can not be changed once the category has been
17397 Each category maintains a list of groups that are exclusive members of
17398 that category. The exclusivity rule is automatically enforced, add a
17399 group to a new category and it is automatically removed from its old
17402 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
17403 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
17404 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
17405 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
17407 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
17408 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
17409 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as described below.
17411 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
17412 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
17413 operators sprinkled in between.
17415 Perhaps some examples are in order.
17417 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
17418 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
17424 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
17425 short (for some value of ``short'').
17427 Here's a more complex predicate:
17436 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
17437 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
17440 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
17441 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
17442 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
17444 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
17445 you want to do, you can write your own.
17447 When evaluating each of these predicates, the named constant will be
17448 bound to the value determined by calling
17449 @code{gnus-agent-find-parameter} on the appropriate parameter. For
17450 example, gnus-agent-short-article will be bound to
17451 @code{(gnus-agent-find-parameter group 'agent-short-article)}. This
17452 means that you can specify a predicate in your category then tune that
17453 predicate to individual groups.
17457 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
17458 lines; default 100.
17461 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
17462 lines; default 200.
17465 True iff the article has a download score less than
17466 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
17469 True iff the article has a download score greater than
17470 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
17473 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
17474 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
17475 checksum and sees whether articles match.
17484 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
17485 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
17486 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
17489 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
17490 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
17491 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
17492 something along the lines of the following:
17495 (defun my-article-old-p ()
17496 "Say whether an article is old."
17497 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
17498 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
17501 with the predicate then defined as:
17504 (not my-article-old-p)
17507 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
17508 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
17512 (require 'gnus-agent)
17513 (setq gnus-category-predicate-alist
17514 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
17515 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
17518 and simply specify your predicate as:
17524 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
17525 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
17526 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
17527 just don't give a damn.
17529 The above predicates apply to @emph{all} the groups which belong to the
17530 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
17531 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
17532 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
17533 parameters like so:
17536 (agent-predicate . short)
17539 This is the group/topic parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
17540 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
17541 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
17543 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
17546 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
17549 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
17550 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
17551 predicate is assumed to be a list.
17554 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
17555 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
17556 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
17557 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
17558 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
17559 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
17561 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
17562 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
17563 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
17564 if it's to be specific to that group.
17566 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
17573 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
17574 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
17580 Category specification
17584 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
17590 Group/Topic Parameter specification
17593 (agent-score ("from"
17594 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
17599 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
17605 These score files must @emph{only} contain the permitted scoring
17606 keywords stated above.
17612 Category specification
17615 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
17621 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
17625 Group Parameter specification
17628 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
17631 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
17636 Use @code{normal} score files
17638 If you don't want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
17639 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
17640 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
17641 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
17643 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
17644 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
17645 files for a group, @emph{filtering out} those sections that do not
17646 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
17650 Category Specification
17657 Group Parameter specification
17660 (agent-score . file)
17665 @node Category Buffer
17666 @subsubsection Category Buffer
17668 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
17669 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
17670 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
17672 The following commands are available in this buffer:
17676 @kindex q (Category)
17677 @findex gnus-category-exit
17678 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
17681 @kindex e (Category)
17682 @findex gnus-category-customize-category
17683 Use a customization buffer to set all of the selected category's
17684 parameters at one time (@code{gnus-category-customize-category}).
17687 @kindex k (Category)
17688 @findex gnus-category-kill
17689 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
17692 @kindex c (Category)
17693 @findex gnus-category-copy
17694 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
17697 @kindex a (Category)
17698 @findex gnus-category-add
17699 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
17702 @kindex p (Category)
17703 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
17704 Edit the predicate of the current category
17705 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
17708 @kindex g (Category)
17709 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
17710 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
17711 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
17714 @kindex s (Category)
17715 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
17716 Edit the download score rule of the current category
17717 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
17720 @kindex l (Category)
17721 @findex gnus-category-list
17722 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
17726 @node Category Variables
17727 @subsubsection Category Variables
17730 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
17731 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
17732 Hook run in category buffers.
17734 @item gnus-category-line-format
17735 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
17736 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
17737 Variables}). Valid elements are:
17741 The name of the category.
17744 The number of groups in the category.
17747 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
17748 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
17749 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
17751 @item gnus-agent-short-article
17752 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
17753 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
17755 @item gnus-agent-long-article
17756 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
17757 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
17759 @item gnus-agent-low-score
17760 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
17761 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
17764 @item gnus-agent-high-score
17765 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
17766 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
17769 @item gnus-agent-expire-days
17770 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
17771 The number of days that a @samp{read} article must stay in the agent's
17772 local disk before becoming eligible for expiration (While the name is
17773 the same, this doesn't mean expiring the article on the server. It
17774 just means deleting the local copy of the article). What is also
17775 important to understand is that the counter starts with the time the
17776 article was written to the local disk and not the time the article was
17780 @item gnus-agent-enable-expiration
17781 @vindex gnus-agent-enable-expiration
17782 Determines whether articles in a group are, by default, expired or
17783 retained indefinitely. The default is @code{ENABLE} which means that
17784 you'll have to disable expiration when desired. On the other hand,
17785 you could set this to @code{DISABLE}. In that case, you would then
17786 have to enable expiration in selected groups.
17791 @node Agent Commands
17792 @subsection Agent Commands
17793 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-plugged
17794 @kindex J j (Agent)
17796 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
17797 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged}) command works in all modes, and
17798 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
17802 * Group Agent Commands:: Configure groups and fetch their contents.
17803 * Summary Agent Commands:: Manually select then fetch specific articles.
17804 * Server Agent Commands:: Select the servers that are supported by the agent.
17810 @node Group Agent Commands
17811 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
17815 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
17816 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
17817 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
17818 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
17821 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
17822 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
17823 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
17826 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
17827 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
17828 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
17829 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
17832 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
17833 @findex gnus-group-send-queue
17834 Send all sendable messages in the queue group
17835 (@code{gnus-group-send-queue}). @xref{Drafts}.
17838 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
17839 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
17840 Add the current group to an Agent category
17841 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
17842 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
17845 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
17846 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
17847 Remove the current group from its category, if any
17848 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
17849 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
17852 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
17853 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
17854 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
17860 @node Summary Agent Commands
17861 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
17865 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
17866 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
17867 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
17870 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
17871 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
17872 Remove the downloading mark from the article
17873 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
17877 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
17878 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
17879 Toggle whether to download the article
17880 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}). The dowload mark is @samp{%} by
17884 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
17885 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
17886 Mark all articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}) that are neither cached, downloaded, nor downloadable.
17889 @kindex J S (Agent Summary)
17890 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-group
17891 Download all eligible (See @pxref{Agent Categories}) articles in this group.
17892 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-group}).
17895 @kindex J s (Agent Summary)
17896 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-series
17897 Download all processable articles in this group.
17898 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-series}).
17901 @kindex J u (Agent Summary)
17902 @findex gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group
17903 Download all downloadable articles in the current group
17904 (@code{gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group}).
17909 @node Server Agent Commands
17910 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
17914 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
17915 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
17916 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
17917 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
17920 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
17921 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
17922 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
17923 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
17928 @node Agent as Cache
17929 @subsection Agent as Cache
17931 When Gnus is plugged, it is not efficient to download headers or
17932 articles from the server again, if they are already stored in the
17933 Agent. So, Gnus normally only downloads headers once, and stores them
17934 in the Agent. These headers are later used when generating the summary
17935 buffer, regardless of whether you are plugged or unplugged. Articles
17936 are not cached in the Agent by default though (that would potentially
17937 consume lots of disk space), but if you have already downloaded an
17938 article into the Agent, Gnus will not download the article from the
17939 server again but use the locally stored copy instead.
17941 If you so desire, you can configure the agent (see @code{gnus-agent-cache}
17942 @pxref{Agent Variables}) to always download headers and articles while
17943 plugged. Gnus will almost certainly be slower, but it will be kept
17944 synchronized with the server. That last point probably won't make any
17945 sense if you are using a nntp or nnimap backend.
17948 @subsection Agent Expiry
17950 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
17951 @findex gnus-agent-expire
17952 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
17953 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire-group
17954 @findex gnus-agent-expire-group
17955 @cindex Agent expiry
17956 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
17959 The Agent backend, @code{nnagent}, doesn't handle expiry. Well, at
17960 least it doesn't handle it like other backends. Instead, there are
17961 special @code{gnus-agent-expire} and @code{gnus-agent-expire-group}
17962 commands that will expire all read articles that are older than
17963 @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. They can be run whenever you feel
17964 that you're running out of space. Neither are particularly fast or
17965 efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to interrupt them (with
17966 @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started one of them.
17968 Note that other functions, e.g. @code{gnus-request-expire-articles},
17969 might run @code{gnus-agent-expire} for you to keep the agent
17970 synchronized with the group.
17972 The agent parameter @code{agent-enable-expiration} may be used to
17973 prevent expiration in selected groups.
17975 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
17976 If @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, the agent
17977 expiration commands will expire all articles---unread, read, ticked
17978 and dormant. If @code{nil} (which is the default), only read articles
17979 are eligible for expiry, and unread, ticked and dormant articles will
17980 be kept indefinitely.
17982 If you find that some articles eligible for expiry are never expired,
17983 perhaps some Gnus Agent files are corrupted. There's are special
17984 commands, @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} and
17985 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group}, to fix possible problems.
17987 @node Agent Regeneration
17988 @subsection Agent Regeneration
17990 @cindex Agent Regeneration
17991 @cindex Gnus Agent Regeneration
17992 @cindex regeneration
17994 The local data structures used by @code{nnagent} may become corrupted
17995 due to certain exceptional conditions. When this happens,
17996 @code{nnagent} functionality may degrade or even fail. The solution
17997 to this problem is to repair the local data structures by removing all
17998 internal inconsistencies.
18000 For example, if your connection to your server is lost while
18001 downloaded articles into the agent, the local data structures will not
18002 know about articles successfully downloaded prior to the connection
18003 failure. Running @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} or
18004 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group} will update the data structures
18005 such that you don't need to download these articles a second time.
18007 @findex gnus-agent-regenerate
18008 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-regenerate
18009 The command @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} will perform
18010 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group} on every agentized group. While
18011 you can run @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} in any buffer, it is strongly
18012 recommended that you first close all summary buffers.
18014 @findex gnus-agent-regenerate-group
18015 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-regenerate-group
18016 The command @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group} uses the local copies
18017 of individual articles to repair the local @acronym{NOV}(header) database. It
18018 then updates the internal data structures that document which articles
18019 are stored locally. An optional argument will mark articles in the
18022 @node Agent and IMAP
18023 @subsection Agent and IMAP
18025 The Agent works with any Gnus back end, including nnimap. However,
18026 since there are some conceptual differences between @acronym{NNTP} and
18027 @acronym{IMAP}, this section (should) provide you with some information to
18028 make Gnus Agent work smoother as a @acronym{IMAP} Disconnected Mode client.
18030 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
18031 are kept on the @acronym{IMAP} server, rather than in @file{.newsrc} as is the
18032 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
18033 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
18035 Gnus keeps track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
18036 Agent. When you plug back in, Gnus will check if you have any changed
18037 any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize these with the server.
18038 The behavior is customizable by @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
18040 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
18041 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
18042 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, which is
18043 the default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so
18044 ask if you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has
18045 any other value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
18047 If you do not wish to synchronize flags automatically when you
18048 re-connect, you can do it manually with the
18049 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
18050 in the group buffer.
18052 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
18053 expect from a disconnected @acronym{IMAP} client, including:
18058 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
18061 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
18065 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by ``pushing''
18066 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
18067 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
18068 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
18069 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
18070 removed from the server when you ``synchronize''. The queued flag
18071 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
18072 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
18075 @node Outgoing Messages
18076 @subsection Outgoing Messages
18078 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
18079 stored in the draft group ``queue'' (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view
18080 them there after posting, and edit them at will.
18082 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
18083 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
18084 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
18085 messages in the draft group.
18089 @node Agent Variables
18090 @subsection Agent Variables
18093 @item gnus-agent-directory
18094 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
18095 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
18096 @file{~/News/agent/}.
18098 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
18099 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
18100 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
18101 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
18102 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
18105 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
18106 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
18107 Hook run when connecting to the network.
18109 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
18110 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
18111 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
18113 @item gnus-agent-fetched-hook
18114 @vindex gnus-agent-fetched-hook
18115 Hook run when finished fetching articles.
18117 @item gnus-agent-cache
18118 @vindex gnus-agent-cache
18119 Variable to control whether use the locally stored @acronym{NOV} and
18120 articles when plugged, e.g. essentially using the Agent as a cache.
18121 The default is non-@code{nil}, which means to use the Agent as a cache.
18123 @item gnus-agent-go-online
18124 @vindex gnus-agent-go-online
18125 If @code{gnus-agent-go-online} is @code{nil}, the Agent will never
18126 automatically switch offline servers into online status. If it is
18127 @code{ask}, the default, the Agent will ask if you wish to switch
18128 offline servers into online status when you re-connect. If it has any
18129 other value, all offline servers will be automatically switched into
18132 @item gnus-agent-mark-unread-after-downloaded
18133 @vindex gnus-agent-mark-unread-after-downloaded
18134 If @code{gnus-agent-mark-unread-after-downloaded} is non-@code{nil},
18135 mark articles as unread after downloading. This is usually a safe
18136 thing to do as the newly downloaded article has obviously not been
18137 read. The default is t.
18139 @item gnus-agent-consider-all-articles
18140 @vindex gnus-agent-consider-all-articles
18141 If @code{gnus-agent-consider-all-articles} is non-@code{nil}, the
18142 agent will fetch all missing headers. When @code{nil}, the agent will
18143 fetch only new headers. The default is @code{nil}.
18145 @item gnus-agent-max-fetch-size
18146 @vindex gnus-agent-max-fetch-size
18147 The agent fetches articles into a temporary buffer prior to parsing
18148 them into individual files. To avoid exceeding the max. buffer size,
18149 the agent alternates between fetching and parsing until all articles
18150 have been fetched. @code{gnus-agent-max-fetch-size} provides a size
18151 limit to control how often the cycling occurs. A large value improves
18152 performance. A small value minimizes the time lost should the
18153 connection be lost while fetching (You may need to run
18154 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group} to update the group's state.
18155 However, all articles parsed prior to loosing the connection will be
18156 available while unplugged). The default is 10M so it is unusual to
18159 @item gnus-server-unopen-status
18160 @vindex gnus-server-unopen-status
18161 Perhaps not a Agent variable, but closely related to the Agent, this
18162 variable says what will happen if Gnus cannot open a server. If the
18163 Agent is enabled, the default, @code{nil}, makes Gnus ask the user
18164 whether to deny the server or whether to unplug the agent. If the
18165 Agent is disabled, Gnus always simply deny the server. Other choices
18166 for this variable include @code{denied} and @code{offline} the latter
18167 is only valid if the Agent is used.
18169 @item gnus-auto-goto-ignores
18170 @vindex gnus-auto-goto-ignores
18171 Another variable that isn't a Agent variable, yet so closely related
18172 that most will look for it here, this variable tells the summary
18173 buffer how to maneuver around undownloaded (only headers stored in the
18174 agent) and unfetched (neither article nor headers stored) articles.
18176 The legal values are @code{nil} (maneuver to any article),
18177 @code{undownloaded} (maneuvering while unplugged ignores articles that
18178 have not been fetched), @code{always-undownloaded} (maneuvering always
18179 ignores articles that have not been fetched), @code{unfetched}
18180 (maneuvering ignores articles whose headers have not been fetched).
18185 @node Example Setup
18186 @subsection Example Setup
18188 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
18189 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
18190 @file{~/.gnus.el} file to get started.
18193 ;;; @r{Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @acronym{NNTP}}
18194 ;;; @r{from your ISP's server.}
18195 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
18197 ;;; @r{Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from}
18198 ;;; @r{your ISP's @acronym{POP} server.}
18199 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
18201 ;;; @r{Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.}
18202 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
18204 ;;; @r{Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.}
18205 ;;; (gnus-agentize) ; @r{The obsolete setting.}
18206 ;;; (setq gnus-agent t) ; @r{Now the default.}
18209 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
18210 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
18213 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
18214 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
18215 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
18216 @acronym{NNTP} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
18217 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
18220 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
18221 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
18222 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
18223 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
18224 back all the killed groups.)
18226 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
18227 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
18228 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
18231 @node Batching Agents
18232 @subsection Batching Agents
18233 @findex gnus-agent-batch
18235 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
18236 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
18237 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
18239 You can run a complete batch command from the command line with the
18240 following incantation:
18244 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f -l ~/.gnus.el gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null 2>&1
18248 @node Agent Caveats
18249 @subsection Agent Caveats
18251 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
18252 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
18256 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the Agent?
18258 @strong{No}. If you want this behaviour, add
18259 @code{gnus-agent-fetch-selected-article} to
18260 @code{gnus-select-article-hook}.
18262 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists in
18263 the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
18265 @strong{No}, unless @code{gnus-agent-cache} is @code{nil}.
18269 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
18270 articles; when it's plugged, it talks to your ISP and may also use the
18271 locally stored articles.
18278 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
18279 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
18280 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
18283 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
18284 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
18285 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
18286 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
18287 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
18289 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
18290 before generating the summary buffer.
18292 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
18293 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
18294 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
18296 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
18297 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
18298 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
18299 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
18302 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
18303 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
18304 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
18305 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
18306 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
18307 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
18308 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
18309 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
18310 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
18311 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
18312 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
18313 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
18314 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
18315 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
18316 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
18317 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
18318 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
18322 @node Summary Score Commands
18323 @section Summary Score Commands
18324 @cindex score commands
18326 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
18327 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
18328 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
18329 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
18330 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
18332 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
18333 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
18334 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
18335 score file the current one.
18337 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
18342 @kindex V s (Summary)
18343 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
18344 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
18347 @kindex V S (Summary)
18348 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
18349 Display the score of the current article
18350 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
18353 @kindex V t (Summary)
18354 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
18355 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
18356 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}). In the @code{*Score Trace*} buffer, you
18357 can use @kbd{q} to quit. @kbd{e} edits the corresponding score file.
18358 When point is on a string within the match element, @kbd{e} will try to
18359 bring you to this string in the score file.
18362 @kindex V w (Summary)
18363 @findex gnus-score-find-favourite-words
18364 List words used in scoring (@code{gnus-score-find-favourite-words}).
18367 @kindex V R (Summary)
18368 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
18369 Run the current summary through the scoring process
18370 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
18371 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
18372 effect you're having.
18375 @kindex V c (Summary)
18376 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
18377 Make a different score file the current
18378 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
18381 @kindex V e (Summary)
18382 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
18383 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
18384 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
18388 @kindex V f (Summary)
18389 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
18390 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
18391 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
18394 @kindex V F (Summary)
18395 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
18396 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
18397 after editing score files.
18400 @kindex V C (Summary)
18401 @findex gnus-score-customize
18402 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
18403 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
18407 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
18412 @kindex V m (Summary)
18413 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
18414 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
18415 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
18418 @kindex V x (Summary)
18419 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
18420 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
18421 expunge all articles below this score
18422 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
18425 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
18426 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
18429 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
18430 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
18434 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
18435 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
18437 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
18438 keys are available:
18442 Score on the author name.
18445 Score on the subject line.
18448 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
18451 Score on the @code{References} line.
18457 Score on the number of lines.
18460 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
18463 Score on an ``extra'' header, that is, one of those in gnus-extra-headers,
18464 if your @acronym{NNTP} server tracks additional header data in overviews.
18467 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
18468 the followups to this author. (Using this key leads to the creation of
18469 @file{ADAPT} files.)
18478 Score on thread. (Using this key leads to the creation of @file{ADAPT}
18484 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
18485 what headers you are scoring on.
18497 Substring matching.
18500 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
18529 Greater than number.
18534 The fourth and usually final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e.,
18535 expiring) score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry,
18536 or whether it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score
18541 Temporary score entry.
18544 Permanent score entry.
18547 Immediately scoring.
18551 If you are scoring on `e' (extra) headers, you will then be prompted for
18552 the header name on which you wish to score. This must be a header named
18553 in gnus-extra-headers, and @samp{TAB} completion is available.
18557 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
18558 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
18559 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
18560 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
18562 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
18563 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
18564 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
18565 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
18566 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
18568 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
18569 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
18570 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
18571 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
18572 current score file.
18574 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
18575 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
18576 pretend they are keymaps or not.
18579 @node Group Score Commands
18580 @section Group Score Commands
18581 @cindex group score commands
18583 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
18588 @kindex W f (Group)
18589 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
18590 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
18591 all the time. This command will flush the cache
18592 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
18596 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
18598 @findex gnus-batch-score
18599 @cindex batch scoring
18601 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
18605 @node Score Variables
18606 @section Score Variables
18607 @cindex score variables
18611 @item gnus-use-scoring
18612 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
18613 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
18614 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
18616 @item gnus-kill-killed
18617 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
18618 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
18619 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
18620 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
18621 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
18622 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
18623 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
18625 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
18626 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
18627 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
18628 initialized from the @env{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
18629 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
18631 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
18632 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
18633 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
18634 (@file{SCORE} by default.)
18636 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
18637 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
18638 @cindex score cache
18639 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
18640 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
18641 bloated, so this regexp can be used to weed out score files unlikely
18642 to be needed again. It would be a bad idea to deny caching of
18643 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
18644 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
18645 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
18648 @item gnus-save-score
18649 @vindex gnus-save-score
18650 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
18651 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
18652 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
18654 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
18655 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
18656 across group visits.
18658 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
18659 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
18660 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
18661 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
18662 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
18663 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
18664 manually entered data.
18666 @item gnus-summary-default-score
18667 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
18668 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
18670 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
18671 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
18672 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
18673 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
18674 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
18675 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
18677 @item gnus-score-over-mark
18678 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
18679 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
18680 default. Default is @samp{+}.
18682 @item gnus-score-below-mark
18683 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
18684 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
18685 default. Default is @samp{-}.
18687 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
18688 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
18689 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
18690 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
18692 Predefined functions available are:
18695 @item gnus-score-find-single
18696 @findex gnus-score-find-single
18697 Only apply the group's own score file.
18699 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
18700 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
18701 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
18702 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
18703 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
18704 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
18705 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
18706 then a regexp match is done.
18708 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
18709 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
18711 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
18712 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
18713 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
18714 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
18716 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
18717 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
18718 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
18719 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
18720 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
18724 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all
18725 these functions will be called with the group name as argument, and
18726 all the returned lists of score files will be applied. These
18727 functions can also return lists of lists of score alists directly. In
18728 that case, the functions that return these non-file score alists
18729 should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file functions, to
18730 ensure that the last score file returned is the local score file.
18733 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
18734 overall score file, you could use the value
18736 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE"))
18737 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
18740 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
18741 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
18742 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
18743 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
18744 are expired. It's 7 by default.
18746 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
18747 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
18748 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, temporary score entries that have
18749 been triggered (matched) will have their dates updated. (This is how Gnus
18750 controls expiry---all non-matched-entries will become too old while
18751 matched entries will stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this
18752 variable to @code{nil}, even matched entries will grow old and will
18753 have to face that oh-so grim reaper.
18755 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
18756 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
18757 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
18759 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
18760 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
18761 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be
18762 simplified for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
18763 threading---according to the current value of
18764 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions}. If the scoring entry uses
18765 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
18766 simplified in this manner.
18771 @node Score File Format
18772 @section Score File Format
18773 @cindex score file format
18775 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
18776 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
18777 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
18779 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
18783 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
18785 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
18787 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
18789 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
18794 (mark-and-expunge -10)
18798 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
18799 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
18800 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
18801 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
18805 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
18806 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
18808 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
18809 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
18810 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
18812 Six keys are supported by this alist:
18817 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
18818 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
18819 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
18820 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
18821 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
18822 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
18823 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
18824 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
18825 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
18826 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
18827 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
18828 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
18829 to articles that matches these score entries.
18831 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
18832 score entry has one to four elements.
18836 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
18837 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
18841 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
18842 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
18843 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
18844 is successful. If this element is not present, the
18845 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
18846 instead. This is 1000 by default.
18849 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
18850 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
18851 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
18852 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
18853 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
18856 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
18857 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
18858 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
18859 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
18862 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
18863 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
18864 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
18865 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
18866 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
18867 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
18868 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
18869 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
18870 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
18871 instead, if you feel like.
18874 Just as for the standard string overview headers, if you are using
18875 gnus-extra-headers, you can score on these headers' values. In this
18876 case, there is a 5th element in the score entry, being the name of the
18877 header to be scored. The following entry is useful in your
18878 @file{all.SCORE} file in case of spam attacks from a single origin host,
18879 if your @acronym{NNTP} server tracks NNTP-Posting-Host in overviews:
18882 ("111.222.333.444" -1000 nil s "NNTP-Posting-Host")
18886 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
18887 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
18889 These predicates are true if
18892 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
18895 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
18896 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
18903 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
18904 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
18905 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
18906 it's not. I think.)
18908 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some back ends (like
18909 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
18910 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
18911 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
18914 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
18915 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
18916 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
18917 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
18918 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
18919 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
18920 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
18924 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
18925 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
18926 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
18927 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
18928 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
18929 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
18930 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
18931 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
18934 @item Head, Body, All
18935 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
18939 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
18940 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
18941 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
18942 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
18943 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
18944 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
18945 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
18949 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
18950 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
18951 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
18952 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
18953 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
18954 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
18955 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
18956 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
18957 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
18958 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
18959 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
18963 @cindex Score File Atoms
18965 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
18966 lower than this number will be marked as read.
18969 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
18970 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
18972 @item mark-and-expunge
18973 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
18974 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
18977 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
18978 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
18979 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
18980 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
18981 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
18984 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
18985 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
18988 @item exclude-files
18989 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
18990 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
18994 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
18995 ignored when handling global score files.
18998 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
18999 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
19000 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
19001 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
19004 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
19005 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
19006 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
19007 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
19009 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
19013 (mark-and-expunge -100)
19016 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
19017 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
19018 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
19019 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
19020 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
19022 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where a few
19023 interesting threads which can't be found automatically by ordinary
19024 scoring rules exist.
19027 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
19028 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
19029 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
19030 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
19031 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
19032 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
19033 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
19034 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
19035 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
19036 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
19037 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
19041 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
19042 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
19043 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
19044 file for a number of groups.
19047 @cindex local variables
19048 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(@var{var}
19049 @var{value})} pairs. Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the
19050 current summary buffer, and set to the value specified. This is a
19051 convenient, if somewhat strange, way of setting variables in some
19052 groups if you don't like hooks much. Note that the @var{value} won't
19057 @node Score File Editing
19058 @section Score File Editing
19060 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
19061 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
19062 with a mode for that.
19064 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
19065 additional commands:
19070 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
19071 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
19072 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
19073 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
19076 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
19077 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
19078 Insert the current date in numerical format
19079 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
19080 you were wondering.
19083 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
19084 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
19085 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
19086 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
19087 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
19092 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
19094 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
19095 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
19097 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
19098 e} to begin editing score files.
19101 @node Adaptive Scoring
19102 @section Adaptive Scoring
19103 @cindex adaptive scoring
19105 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
19106 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
19107 stupidity, to be precise.
19109 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
19110 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
19111 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
19112 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
19113 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
19114 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
19115 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
19116 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
19117 variable to @code{(word line)}.
19119 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
19120 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
19121 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
19122 might look something like this:
19125 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
19126 '((gnus-unread-mark)
19127 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
19128 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
19129 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
19130 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
19131 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
19132 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
19133 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
19134 (gnus-ancient-mark)
19135 (gnus-low-score-mark)
19136 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
19139 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
19140 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
19141 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
19142 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
19143 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
19144 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
19147 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
19148 will be applied to each article.
19150 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
19151 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{e}) will have a
19152 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
19153 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
19155 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
19156 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
19157 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
19158 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
19160 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
19161 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
19162 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
19163 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
19165 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
19166 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
19167 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
19168 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
19169 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
19170 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
19172 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
19173 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
19174 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
19176 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
19177 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
19178 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
19180 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
19181 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
19182 let you use different rules in different groups.
19184 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
19185 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
19186 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
19189 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
19190 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
19191 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
19192 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
19193 the length of the match is less than
19194 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
19195 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
19198 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
19199 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
19200 headers. If you adapt on words, the
19201 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
19202 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
19205 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
19206 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
19207 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
19208 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
19209 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
19212 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
19213 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
19214 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
19215 score with 30 points.
19217 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
19218 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
19219 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
19220 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
19221 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
19223 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit
19224 Some may feel that short words shouldn't count when doing adaptive
19225 scoring. If so, you may set @code{gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit} to
19226 an integer. Words shorter than this number will be ignored. This
19227 variable defaults to @code{nil}.
19229 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
19230 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
19231 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
19232 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
19234 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
19235 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
19236 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
19237 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
19239 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
19240 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
19241 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
19242 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
19243 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
19245 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
19246 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
19247 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
19249 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
19250 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
19251 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
19252 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
19255 @node Home Score File
19256 @section Home Score File
19258 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
19259 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
19260 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
19261 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
19263 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
19264 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
19265 could perhaps use the same home score file.
19267 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
19268 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
19273 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
19277 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
19278 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
19282 A list. The elements in this list can be:
19286 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
19287 group name, the @var{file-name} will be used as the home score file.
19290 A function. If the function returns non-@code{nil}, the result will
19291 be used as the home score file.
19294 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
19297 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
19302 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
19305 (setq gnus-home-score-file
19306 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
19309 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
19310 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
19312 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
19314 (setq gnus-home-score-file
19315 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
19318 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
19319 Other functions include
19322 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
19323 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
19324 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
19325 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
19329 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
19330 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
19331 their own home score files:
19334 (setq gnus-home-score-file
19335 ;; @r{All groups that match the regexp @code{"\\.emacs"}}
19336 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
19337 ;; @r{All the comp groups in one score file}
19338 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
19341 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
19342 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
19343 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
19344 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
19345 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
19347 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
19348 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
19349 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
19350 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
19351 precedence over this variable.
19354 @node Followups To Yourself
19355 @section Followups To Yourself
19357 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
19358 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
19359 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
19360 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
19361 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
19362 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
19366 @item gnus-score-followup-article
19367 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
19368 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
19371 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
19372 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
19373 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
19377 @vindex message-sent-hook
19378 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
19379 @code{message-sent-hook}, like this:
19381 (add-hook 'message-sent-hook 'gnus-score-followup-thread)
19385 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
19386 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
19390 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
19391 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
19394 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
19395 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
19400 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore\\.no>"
19404 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
19405 is system-dependent.
19408 @node Scoring On Other Headers
19409 @section Scoring On Other Headers
19410 @cindex scoring on other headers
19412 Gnus is quite fast when scoring the ``traditional''
19413 headers---@samp{From}, @samp{Subject} and so on. However, scoring
19414 other headers requires writing a @code{head} scoring rule, which means
19415 that Gnus has to request every single article from the back end to find
19416 matches. This takes a long time in big groups.
19418 Now, there's not much you can do about this for news groups, but for
19419 mail groups, you have greater control. In the @pxref{To From
19420 Newsgroups} section of the manual, it's explained in greater detail what
19421 this mechanism does, but here's a cookbook example for @code{nnml} on
19422 how to allow scoring on the @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers.
19424 Put the following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file.
19427 (setq gnus-extra-headers '(To Cc Newsgroups Keywords)
19428 nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
19431 Restart Gnus and rebuild your @code{nnml} overview files with the
19432 @kbd{M-x nnml-generate-nov-databases} command. This will take a long
19433 time if you have much mail.
19435 Now you can score on @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} as ``extra headers'' like
19436 so: @kbd{I e s p To RET <your name> RET}.
19442 @section Scoring Tips
19443 @cindex scoring tips
19449 @cindex scoring crossposts
19450 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
19451 the @code{Xref} header.
19453 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
19456 @item Multiple crossposts
19457 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
19458 more than, say, 3 groups:
19461 ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+"
19465 @item Matching on the body
19466 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
19467 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
19468 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
19469 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
19470 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
19471 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
19472 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
19475 @item Marking as read
19476 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
19477 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
19478 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
19482 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
19484 @item Negated character classes
19485 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
19486 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
19487 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
19491 @node Reverse Scoring
19492 @section Reverse Scoring
19493 @cindex reverse scoring
19495 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
19496 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
19497 like this in your score file:
19501 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
19506 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
19507 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
19510 @node Global Score Files
19511 @section Global Score Files
19512 @cindex global score files
19514 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
19515 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
19516 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
19518 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
19519 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
19520 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
19522 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
19523 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
19524 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
19525 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
19526 files are applicable to which group.
19528 To use the score file
19529 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
19530 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory,
19534 (setq gnus-global-score-files
19535 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
19536 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
19539 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
19541 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
19542 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
19543 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
19544 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
19546 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
19547 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
19549 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
19550 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
19551 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
19552 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
19553 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
19554 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
19556 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
19562 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
19564 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
19566 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
19568 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
19569 lowered out of existence.
19571 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
19572 articles completely.
19575 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
19576 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
19577 old articles for a long time.
19580 @dots{} I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
19581 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
19582 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
19583 holding our breath yet?
19587 @section Kill Files
19590 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
19591 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
19592 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
19594 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
19595 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
19596 files into score files.
19598 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
19599 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
19600 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
19601 that isn't a very good idea.
19603 Normal kill files look like this:
19606 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19607 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
19611 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
19612 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
19614 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
19615 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
19618 Two summary functions for editing a @sc{gnus} kill file:
19623 @kindex M-k (Summary)
19624 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
19625 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
19628 @kindex M-K (Summary)
19629 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
19630 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
19633 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
19638 @kindex M-k (Group)
19639 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
19640 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
19643 @kindex M-K (Group)
19644 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
19645 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
19648 Kill file variables:
19651 @item gnus-kill-file-name
19652 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
19653 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
19654 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
19655 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
19656 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
19657 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
19659 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
19660 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
19661 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
19662 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
19665 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
19666 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
19667 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
19668 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
19669 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
19670 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
19671 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
19672 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
19673 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
19675 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
19676 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
19677 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
19682 @node Converting Kill Files
19683 @section Converting Kill Files
19685 @cindex converting kill files
19687 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
19688 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
19689 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
19692 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
19693 You can fetch it from
19694 @uref{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
19696 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
19697 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
19698 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
19706 GroupLens (@uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/}) is a
19707 collaborative filtering system that helps you work together with other
19708 people to find the quality news articles out of the huge volume of
19709 news articles generated every day.
19711 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
19712 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
19713 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
19714 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
19715 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
19716 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
19717 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
19718 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
19721 @sc{Note:} Unfortunately the GroupLens system seems to have shut down,
19722 so this section is mostly of historical interest.
19725 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
19726 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
19727 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
19728 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
19732 @node Using GroupLens
19733 @subsection Using GroupLens
19735 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
19737 @uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
19738 better bit in town at the moment.
19740 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
19744 @item gnus-use-grouplens
19745 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
19746 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
19747 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
19749 @item grouplens-pseudonym
19750 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
19751 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
19752 with the Better Bit Bureau.
19754 @item grouplens-newsgroups
19755 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
19756 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
19760 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
19761 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
19762 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
19763 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
19764 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
19765 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
19768 @node Rating Articles
19769 @subsection Rating Articles
19771 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
19772 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
19773 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
19774 yourself is, ``on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
19777 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
19782 @kindex r (GroupLens)
19783 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
19784 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
19787 @kindex k (GroupLens)
19788 @findex grouplens-score-thread
19789 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
19790 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
19791 threads in rec.humor.
19795 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
19796 the score of the article you're reading.
19801 @kindex n (GroupLens)
19802 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
19803 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
19806 @kindex , (GroupLens)
19807 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
19808 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
19812 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
19813 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
19816 @node Displaying Predictions
19817 @subsection Displaying Predictions
19819 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
19820 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
19821 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
19822 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
19823 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
19825 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
19826 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
19827 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
19828 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
19829 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
19830 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
19831 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
19832 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
19833 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
19834 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
19835 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
19836 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
19837 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
19839 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
19840 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
19841 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
19842 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
19844 The following are valid values for that variable.
19847 @item prediction-spot
19848 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
19851 @item confidence-interval
19852 A numeric confidence interval.
19854 @item prediction-bar
19855 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
19857 @item confidence-bar
19858 Numerical confidence.
19860 @item confidence-spot
19861 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
19863 @item prediction-num
19864 Plain-old numeric value.
19866 @item confidence-plus-minus
19867 Prediction +/- confidence.
19872 @node GroupLens Variables
19873 @subsection GroupLens Variables
19877 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
19878 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
19879 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
19880 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%)
19883 @item grouplens-bbb-host
19884 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
19887 @item grouplens-bbb-port
19888 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
19890 @item grouplens-score-offset
19891 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
19892 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
19895 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
19896 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
19897 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
19902 @node Advanced Scoring
19903 @section Advanced Scoring
19905 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
19906 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
19907 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
19908 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
19909 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
19911 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
19915 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
19916 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
19917 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
19921 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
19922 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
19924 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
19925 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
19926 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
19927 non-@code{nil} value.
19929 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
19930 operator, and various match operators.
19937 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
19938 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
19939 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
19944 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
19945 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
19946 then this operator will return @code{false}.
19951 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
19952 logical negation of the value of its argument.
19956 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
19957 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
19958 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
19959 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
19960 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
19961 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
19962 the ancestry you want to go.
19964 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
19965 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
19966 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
19967 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
19968 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
19971 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
19972 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
19974 Please note that the following examples are score file rules. To
19975 make a complete score file from them, surround them with another pair
19978 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
19979 when he's talking about Gnus:
19983 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19984 ("subject" "Gnus"))
19990 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
19994 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
20001 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
20002 really don't want to read what he's written:
20006 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
20007 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
20011 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
20012 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
20013 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
20020 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
20021 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
20022 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
20023 ("body" "white.*socks"))
20027 The possibilities are endless.
20030 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
20031 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
20033 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
20034 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
20035 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
20036 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
20037 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
20038 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
20039 @samp{subject}) first.
20041 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
20042 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
20053 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
20054 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
20060 ("subject" "Gnus")))
20067 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
20068 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
20073 @section Score Decays
20074 @cindex score decays
20077 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
20078 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
20079 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
20080 use them in any sensible way.
20082 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
20083 @findex gnus-decay-score
20084 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
20085 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
20086 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
20087 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
20088 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
20089 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
20090 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
20091 definition of that function:
20094 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
20096 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
20097 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
20100 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
20102 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
20104 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
20107 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
20108 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
20109 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
20110 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
20114 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
20117 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
20120 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
20124 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
20125 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
20126 the new score, which should be an integer.
20128 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
20129 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
20134 @include message.texi
20135 @chapter Emacs MIME
20136 @include emacs-mime.texi
20138 @include sieve.texi
20148 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
20149 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
20150 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
20151 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
20152 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
20153 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
20154 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
20155 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
20156 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
20157 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
20158 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
20159 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
20160 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
20161 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
20162 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
20163 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
20164 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
20165 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
20166 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
20170 @node Process/Prefix
20171 @section Process/Prefix
20172 @cindex process/prefix convention
20174 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
20175 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
20177 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
20178 command to be performed on.
20182 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
20183 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
20184 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
20185 with the current one.
20187 @vindex transient-mark-mode
20188 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
20189 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
20191 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
20192 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
20195 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
20196 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
20198 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
20201 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
20202 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
20203 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
20204 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
20206 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
20207 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
20208 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
20209 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
20210 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
20211 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
20212 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
20213 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
20215 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
20216 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
20217 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
20218 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
20219 expirable, you could say @kbd{M P b M-& E}.
20223 @section Interactive
20224 @cindex interaction
20228 @item gnus-novice-user
20229 @vindex gnus-novice-user
20230 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
20231 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
20232 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
20233 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
20236 @item gnus-expert-user
20237 @vindex gnus-expert-user
20238 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
20239 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
20240 matter how strange.
20242 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
20243 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
20244 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
20245 is @code{t} by default.
20247 @item gnus-interactive-exit
20248 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
20249 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
20254 @node Symbolic Prefixes
20255 @section Symbolic Prefixes
20256 @cindex symbolic prefixes
20258 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
20259 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
20260 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
20261 rule of 900 to the current article.
20263 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
20264 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
20265 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
20266 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
20267 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
20268 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
20269 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
20271 @kindex M-i (Summary)
20272 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
20273 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
20274 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
20275 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
20276 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a C-M-u} means ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u}
20277 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b C-M-u} means
20278 ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
20279 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
20281 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
20282 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
20283 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
20285 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
20289 @node Formatting Variables
20290 @section Formatting Variables
20291 @cindex formatting variables
20293 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
20294 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
20295 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
20296 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
20297 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
20300 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
20301 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
20302 lots of percentages everywhere.
20305 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
20306 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
20307 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
20308 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
20309 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
20310 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
20311 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
20312 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
20315 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
20316 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
20317 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
20318 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
20319 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
20320 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
20321 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
20322 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
20324 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
20325 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
20327 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
20328 @findex gnus-update-format
20329 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
20330 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
20331 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
20332 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
20336 @node Formatting Basics
20337 @subsection Formatting Basics
20339 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
20340 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
20341 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
20343 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
20344 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
20345 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
20346 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
20347 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
20350 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
20351 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
20352 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
20353 less than 4 characters wide.
20355 Also Gnus supports some extended format specifications, such as
20356 @samp{%&user-date;}.
20359 @node Mode Line Formatting
20360 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
20362 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
20363 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
20364 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
20365 with the following two differences:
20370 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
20373 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
20374 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
20375 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
20376 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
20377 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
20378 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
20379 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
20384 @node Advanced Formatting
20385 @subsection Advanced Formatting
20387 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
20388 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
20389 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
20390 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
20392 These are the valid modifiers:
20397 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
20401 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
20406 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
20409 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
20414 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
20417 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
20420 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
20423 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
20429 "~(form (current-time-string))@@"
20434 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
20435 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
20436 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
20437 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
20438 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
20439 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
20440 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
20442 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
20443 last operation, padding.
20445 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
20446 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
20447 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
20448 @xref{Compilation}.
20451 @node User-Defined Specs
20452 @subsection User-Defined Specs
20454 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
20455 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
20456 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
20457 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
20458 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
20459 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
20460 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
20461 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
20462 should protect against that.
20464 Also Gnus supports extended user-defined specs, such as @samp{%u&foo;}.
20465 Gnus will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{foo}.
20467 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
20468 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
20469 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
20470 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
20474 @node Formatting Fonts
20475 @subsection Formatting Fonts
20477 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
20478 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
20479 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
20480 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
20483 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
20484 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
20485 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
20486 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
20487 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
20488 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
20490 Text inside the @samp{%<<} and @samp{%>>} specifiers will get the
20491 special @code{balloon-help} property set to
20492 @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you say @samp{%1<<}, you'll get
20493 @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The @code{gnus-balloon-face-*}
20494 variables should be either strings or symbols naming functions that
20495 return a string. When the mouse passes over text with this property
20496 set, a balloon window will appear and display the string. Please
20497 refer to @ref{Tooltips, ,Tooltips, emacs, The Emacs Manual},
20498 (in GNU Emacs) or the doc string of @code{balloon-help-mode} (in
20499 XEmacs) for more information on this. (For technical reasons, the
20500 guillemets have been approximated as @samp{<<} and @samp{>>} in this
20503 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
20506 ;; @r{Create three face types.}
20507 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
20508 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
20510 ;; @r{We want the article count to be in}
20511 ;; @r{a bold and green face. So we create}
20512 ;; @r{a new face called @code{my-green-bold}.}
20513 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
20514 ;; @r{Set the color.}
20515 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
20516 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
20518 ;; @r{Set the new & fancy format.}
20519 (setq gnus-group-line-format
20520 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
20523 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
20524 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
20526 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
20527 mode-line variables.
20529 @node Positioning Point
20530 @subsection Positioning Point
20532 Gnus usually moves point to a pre-defined place on each line in most
20533 buffers. By default, point move to the first colon character on the
20534 line. You can customize this behaviour in three different ways.
20536 You can move the colon character to somewhere else on the line.
20538 @findex gnus-goto-colon
20539 You can redefine the function that moves the point to the colon. The
20540 function is called @code{gnus-goto-colon}.
20542 But perhaps the most convenient way to deal with this, if you don't want
20543 to have a colon in your line, is to use the @samp{%*} specifier. If you
20544 put a @samp{%*} somewhere in your format line definition, Gnus will
20549 @subsection Tabulation
20551 You can usually line up your displays by padding and cutting your
20552 strings. However, when combining various strings of different size, it
20553 can often be more convenient to just output the strings, and then worry
20554 about lining up the following text afterwards.
20556 To do that, Gnus supplies tabulator specs---@samp{%=}. There are two
20557 different types---@dfn{hard tabulators} and @dfn{soft tabulators}.
20559 @samp{%50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
20560 50. If the text is already past column 50, nothing will be inserted.
20561 This is the soft tabulator.
20563 @samp{%-50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
20564 50. If the text is already past column 50, the excess text past column
20565 50 will be removed. This is the hard tabulator.
20568 @node Wide Characters
20569 @subsection Wide Characters
20571 Proportional fonts in most countries have characters of the same width.
20572 Some countries, however, use Latin characters mixed with wider
20573 characters---most notable East Asian countries.
20575 The problem is that when formatting, Gnus assumes that if a string is 10
20576 characters wide, it'll be 10 Latin characters wide on the screen. In
20577 these countries, that's not true.
20579 @vindex gnus-use-correct-string-widths
20580 To help fix this, you can set @code{gnus-use-correct-string-widths} to
20581 @code{t}. This makes buffer generation slower, but the results will be
20582 prettier. The default value under XEmacs is @code{t} but @code{nil}
20586 @node Window Layout
20587 @section Window Layout
20588 @cindex window layout
20590 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
20592 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
20593 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
20594 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
20595 @code{t} by default.
20597 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
20598 glitches. Use at your own peril.
20600 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
20601 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
20602 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
20605 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
20606 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
20607 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
20611 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
20612 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
20613 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
20614 possible names is listed below.
20616 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
20617 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
20620 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
20624 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
20625 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
20626 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
20627 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
20628 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
20629 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
20630 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
20631 size spec per split.
20633 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
20634 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
20635 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
20636 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
20637 present) gets focus.
20639 Here's a more complicated example:
20642 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
20643 (summary 0.25 point)
20644 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
20648 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
20649 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
20650 occupy, not a percentage.
20652 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
20653 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
20654 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
20655 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
20656 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
20659 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
20662 (article (horizontal 1.0
20667 (summary 0.25 point)
20672 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
20673 @code{horizontal} thingie?
20675 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
20676 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
20677 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
20678 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
20679 the screen is to be given to this strip.
20681 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
20682 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
20683 lines from the splits.
20685 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
20689 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
20690 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
20691 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
20692 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
20693 buffer = "(" buf-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
20694 size = number | frame-params
20695 buf-name = group | article | summary ...
20698 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
20699 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
20700 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
20701 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
20703 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
20704 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
20705 @cindex window height
20706 @cindex window width
20707 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
20708 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
20709 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
20710 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
20711 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
20712 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
20714 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
20715 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
20716 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
20717 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
20719 @findex gnus-configure-frame
20720 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
20721 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
20722 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
20723 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
20724 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
20725 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
20726 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
20727 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
20728 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
20729 configuration list.
20732 (gnus-configure-frame
20736 (article 0.3 point))
20744 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
20745 @code{frame} split:
20748 (gnus-configure-frame
20751 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
20753 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
20754 (user-position . t)
20755 (left . -1) (top . 1))
20760 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
20761 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
20762 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
20763 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
20764 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
20765 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
20766 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
20767 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
20769 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
20770 be found in its default value.
20772 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
20773 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
20774 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
20778 (message (horizontal 1.0
20779 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
20781 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
20786 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
20787 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
20788 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
20793 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
20794 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
20795 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
20796 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
20797 (name . "Message"))
20798 (message 1.0 point))))
20801 @findex gnus-add-configuration
20802 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
20803 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
20804 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
20805 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
20808 (gnus-add-configuration
20809 '(article (vertical 1.0
20811 (summary .25 point)
20815 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
20816 @file{~/.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
20817 Gnus has been loaded.
20819 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
20820 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
20821 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
20822 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
20823 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
20825 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
20826 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
20827 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
20830 @subsection Example Window Configurations
20834 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
20835 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
20850 (gnus-add-configuration
20853 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
20855 (summary 0.16 point)
20858 (gnus-add-configuration
20861 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
20862 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
20868 @node Faces and Fonts
20869 @section Faces and Fonts
20874 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
20875 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
20876 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
20881 @section Compilation
20882 @cindex compilation
20883 @cindex byte-compilation
20885 @findex gnus-compile
20887 Remember all those line format specification variables?
20888 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
20889 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
20890 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
20891 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
20892 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
20895 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
20896 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
20897 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
20898 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
20899 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
20900 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
20901 them into the @file{~/.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
20905 @section Mode Lines
20908 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
20909 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
20910 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
20911 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
20912 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
20913 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
20914 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
20917 @cindex display-time
20919 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
20920 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
20921 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
20922 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
20923 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
20924 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
20925 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
20926 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
20929 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
20931 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
20932 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
20934 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
20935 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
20936 (length display-time-string)))))
20939 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
20940 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
20941 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
20942 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
20943 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
20946 @node Highlighting and Menus
20947 @section Highlighting and Menus
20949 @cindex highlighting
20952 @vindex gnus-visual
20953 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
20954 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
20955 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
20958 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
20959 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
20962 @item group-highlight
20963 Do highlights in the group buffer.
20964 @item summary-highlight
20965 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
20966 @item article-highlight
20967 Do highlights in the article buffer.
20969 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
20971 Create menus in the group buffer.
20973 Create menus in the summary buffers.
20975 Create menus in the article buffer.
20977 Create menus in the browse buffer.
20979 Create menus in the server buffer.
20981 Create menus in the score buffers.
20983 Create menus in all buffers.
20986 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
20987 buffers, you could say something like:
20990 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
20993 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
20996 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
20999 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
21000 in all Gnus buffers.
21002 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
21005 @item gnus-mouse-face
21006 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
21007 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
21008 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
21012 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
21016 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
21017 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
21018 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
21020 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
21021 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
21022 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
21024 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
21025 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
21026 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
21028 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
21029 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
21030 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
21032 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
21033 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
21034 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
21036 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
21037 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
21038 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
21049 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
21050 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
21051 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
21052 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
21053 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
21057 @vindex gnus-carpal
21058 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
21059 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
21060 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
21065 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
21066 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
21067 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
21069 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
21070 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
21071 Face used on buttons.
21073 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
21074 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
21075 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
21077 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
21078 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
21079 Buttons in the group buffer.
21081 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
21082 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
21083 Buttons in the summary buffer.
21085 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
21086 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
21087 Buttons in the server buffer.
21089 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
21090 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
21091 Buttons in the browse buffer.
21094 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
21095 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
21096 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
21104 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
21105 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
21106 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
21107 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
21108 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
21110 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
21111 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
21112 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
21114 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
21115 been idle for thirty minutes:
21118 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
21121 Here's a handler that scans for @acronym{PGP} headers every hour when
21125 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
21128 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
21129 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
21130 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
21132 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
21133 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
21134 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
21135 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
21137 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
21138 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
21139 @var{idle} minutes.
21141 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
21142 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
21145 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
21146 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
21147 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
21149 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
21150 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
21151 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
21152 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
21154 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
21155 your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
21157 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
21159 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
21162 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
21163 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
21164 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
21165 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
21166 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
21167 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
21168 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
21169 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
21170 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
21171 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
21172 @file{~/.gnus.el} if you want those abilities.
21174 @findex gnus-demon-init
21175 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
21176 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
21177 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
21178 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
21179 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
21181 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
21182 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
21183 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
21192 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
21193 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
21195 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
21196 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
21197 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
21198 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
21201 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
21202 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
21203 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
21204 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
21206 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
21207 this will make spam disappear.
21209 There are some variables to customize, of course:
21212 @item gnus-use-nocem
21213 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
21214 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
21217 @item gnus-nocem-groups
21218 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
21219 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
21220 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
21221 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
21223 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
21224 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
21225 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
21226 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
21227 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
21228 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
21230 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
21231 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
21233 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
21234 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
21235 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
21236 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
21237 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
21238 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
21239 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
21240 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
21241 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
21242 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
21244 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
21245 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
21248 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
21251 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
21252 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
21255 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
21258 The specs are applied left-to-right.
21261 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
21262 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
21264 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
21265 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
21266 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
21267 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
21269 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
21270 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
21273 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
21275 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
21283 This might be dangerous, though.
21285 @item gnus-nocem-directory
21286 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
21287 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
21288 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
21290 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
21291 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
21292 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
21293 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
21294 might then see old spam.
21296 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
21297 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
21298 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
21299 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
21300 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
21303 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
21304 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
21305 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
21306 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
21310 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
21311 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
21312 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
21313 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
21320 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
21321 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
21322 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
21324 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
21325 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
21326 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
21327 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
21328 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
21329 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
21330 @code{undo} function.
21332 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
21333 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
21334 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
21335 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
21336 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
21337 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
21338 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
21339 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
21340 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
21341 never be totally undoable.
21343 @findex gnus-undo-mode
21344 @vindex gnus-use-undo
21346 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
21347 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
21348 default. The @kbd{C-M-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo}
21349 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
21353 @node Predicate Specifiers
21354 @section Predicate Specifiers
21355 @cindex predicate specifiers
21357 Some Gnus variables are @dfn{predicate specifiers}. This is a special
21358 form that allows flexible specification of predicates without having
21359 to type all that much.
21361 These specifiers are lists consisting of functions, symbols and lists.
21366 (or gnus-article-unseen-p
21367 gnus-article-unread-p)
21370 The available symbols are @code{or}, @code{and} and @code{not}. The
21371 functions all take one parameter.
21373 @findex gnus-make-predicate
21374 Internally, Gnus calls @code{gnus-make-predicate} on these specifiers
21375 to create a function that can be called. This input parameter to this
21376 function will be passed along to all the functions in the predicate
21381 @section Moderation
21384 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
21385 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
21386 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
21389 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
21393 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
21396 in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file.
21398 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
21403 You split your incoming mail by matching on
21404 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
21405 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
21408 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
21409 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
21412 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
21413 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
21417 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
21420 (setq gnus-moderated-list
21421 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
21425 @node Image Enhancements
21426 @section Image Enhancements
21428 XEmacs, as well as Emacs 21, is able to display pictures and stuff, so
21429 Gnus has taken advantage of that.
21432 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
21433 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
21434 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
21435 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
21448 So@dots{} You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
21449 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
21450 over your shoulder as you read news.
21452 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
21461 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
21462 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
21463 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
21464 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
21465 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
21466 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
21467 @code{GIF} formats.
21470 @vindex gnus-picon-databases
21471 For instructions on obtaining and installing the picons databases,
21472 point your Web browser at
21473 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}.
21475 If you are using Debian GNU/Linux, saying @samp{apt-get install
21476 picons.*} will install the picons where Gnus can find them.
21478 To enable displaying picons, simply make sure that
21479 @code{gnus-picon-databases} points to the directory containing the
21482 The following variables offer control over where things are located.
21486 @item gnus-picon-databases
21487 @vindex gnus-picon-databases
21488 The location of the picons database. This is a list of directories
21489 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
21490 subdirectories. Defaults to @code{("/usr/lib/picon"
21491 "/usr/local/faces")}.
21493 @item gnus-picon-news-directories
21494 @vindex gnus-picon-news-directories
21495 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picon-databases} for
21496 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
21498 @item gnus-picon-user-directories
21499 @vindex gnus-picon-user-directories
21500 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picon-databases} for user
21501 faces. @code{("users" "usenix" "local" "misc")} is the default.
21503 @item gnus-picon-domain-directories
21504 @vindex gnus-picon-domain-directories
21505 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picon-databases} for
21506 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
21507 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
21509 @item gnus-picon-file-types
21510 @vindex gnus-picon-file-types
21511 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
21512 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your Emacs.
21517 @subsection Smileys
21522 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/BigFace,height=20cm}}
21527 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
21528 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
21530 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
21531 @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
21534 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
21537 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{8-)}, @samp{:-(} and
21538 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
21539 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
21540 text and maps that to file names.
21542 @vindex smiley-regexp-alist
21543 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist}
21544 variable. The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched;
21545 the second element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by
21546 the picture; and the third element is the name of the file to be
21549 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
21554 @item smiley-data-directory
21555 @vindex smiley-data-directory
21556 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
21558 @item gnus-smiley-file-types
21559 @vindex gnus-smiley-file-types
21560 List of suffixes on smiley file names to try.
21569 @code{X-Face} headers describe a 48x48 pixel black-and-white (1 bit
21570 depth) image that's supposed to represent the author of the message.
21571 It seems to be supported by an ever-growing number of mail and news
21575 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
21576 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
21577 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
21578 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
21586 Decoding an @code{X-Face} header either requires an Emacs that has
21587 @samp{compface} support (which most XEmacs versions has), or that you
21588 have @samp{compface} installed on your system. If either is true,
21589 Gnus will default to displaying @code{X-Face} headers.
21591 The variable that controls this is the
21592 @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable. If this variable is a
21593 string, this string will be executed in a sub-shell. If it is a
21594 function, this function will be called with the face as the argument.
21595 If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which is a regexp) matches
21596 the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
21598 The default action under Emacs 20 is to fork off the @code{display}
21599 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For
21600 the @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
21601 like @code{compface} or @code{faces-xface} on a GNU/Linux system.} to
21604 Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image support, the default
21605 action is to display the face before the @code{From} header. (It's
21606 nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with @code{X-Face} support---that
21607 will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native @code{X-Face}
21608 support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
21609 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
21610 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
21611 like @code{netpbm}, @code{libgr-progs} and @code{compface}.})
21613 (Note: @code{x-face} is used in the variable/function names, not
21616 Gnus provides a few convenience functions and variables to allow
21617 easier insertion of X-Face headers in outgoing messages.
21619 @findex gnus-random-x-face
21620 @vindex gnus-convert-pbm-to-x-face-command
21621 @vindex gnus-x-face-directory
21622 @code{gnus-random-x-face} goes through all the @samp{pbm} files in
21623 @code{gnus-x-face-directory} and picks one at random, and then
21624 converts it to the X-Face format by using the
21625 @code{gnus-convert-pbm-to-x-face-command} shell command. The
21626 @samp{pbm} files should be 48x48 pixels big. It returns the X-Face
21627 header data as a string.
21629 @findex gnus-insert-random-x-face-header
21630 @code{gnus-insert-random-x-face-header} calls
21631 @code{gnus-random-x-face} and inserts a @samp{X-Face} header with the
21632 randomly generated data.
21634 @findex gnus-x-face-from-file
21635 @vindex gnus-convert-image-to-x-face-command
21636 @code{gnus-x-face-from-file} takes a GIF file as the parameter, and then
21637 converts the file to X-Face format by using the
21638 @code{gnus-convert-image-to-x-face-command} shell command.
21640 Here's how you would typically use the first function. Put something
21641 like the following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
21644 (setq message-required-news-headers
21645 (nconc message-required-news-headers
21646 (list '(X-Face . gnus-random-x-face))))
21649 Using the last function would be something like this:
21652 (setq message-required-news-headers
21653 (nconc message-required-news-headers
21654 (list '(X-Face . (lambda ()
21655 (gnus-x-face-from-file
21656 "~/My-face.gif"))))))
21661 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
21664 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
21665 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
21666 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
21667 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
21668 unusual directory structure.
21670 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
21671 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
21672 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
21673 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
21675 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
21676 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
21677 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
21678 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
21679 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
21680 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
21682 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
21683 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
21684 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
21689 @subsubsection Toolbar
21693 @item gnus-use-toolbar
21694 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
21695 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
21696 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
21697 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
21699 @item gnus-group-toolbar
21700 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
21701 The toolbar in the group buffer.
21703 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
21704 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
21705 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
21707 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
21708 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
21709 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
21720 @node Fuzzy Matching
21721 @section Fuzzy Matching
21722 @cindex fuzzy matching
21724 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
21725 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
21727 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
21728 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
21729 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
21731 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
21732 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
21733 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
21734 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
21735 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
21738 @node Thwarting Email Spam
21739 @section Thwarting Email Spam
21743 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
21745 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
21746 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
21747 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
21748 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
21749 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
21750 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
21751 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
21752 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
21755 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
21756 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
21757 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
21758 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
21759 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
21760 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
21762 This is annoying. Here's what you can do about it.
21765 * The problem of spam:: Some background, and some solutions
21766 * Anti-Spam Basics:: Simple steps to reduce the amount of spam.
21767 * SpamAssassin:: How to use external anti-spam tools.
21768 * Hashcash:: Reduce spam by burning CPU time.
21769 * Filtering Spam Using The Spam ELisp Package::
21770 * Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat::
21773 @node The problem of spam
21774 @subsection The problem of spam
21776 @cindex spam filtering approaches
21777 @cindex filtering approaches, spam
21779 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
21781 First, some background on spam.
21783 If you have access to e-mail, you are familiar with spam (technically
21784 termed @acronym{UCE}, Unsolicited Commercial E-mail). Simply put, it exists
21785 because e-mail delivery is very cheap compared to paper mail, so only
21786 a very small percentage of people need to respond to an UCE to make it
21787 worthwhile to the advertiser. Ironically, one of the most common
21788 spams is the one offering a database of e-mail addresses for further
21789 spamming. Senders of spam are usually called @emph{spammers}, but terms like
21790 @emph{vermin}, @emph{scum}, and @emph{morons} are in common use as well.
21792 Spam comes from a wide variety of sources. It is simply impossible to
21793 dispose of all spam without discarding useful messages. A good
21794 example is the TMDA system, which requires senders
21795 unknown to you to confirm themselves as legitimate senders before
21796 their e-mail can reach you. Without getting into the technical side
21797 of TMDA, a downside is clearly that e-mail from legitimate sources may
21798 be discarded if those sources can't or won't confirm themselves
21799 through the TMDA system. Another problem with TMDA is that it
21800 requires its users to have a basic understanding of e-mail delivery
21803 The simplest approach to filtering spam is filtering. If you get 200
21804 spam messages per day from @samp{random-address@@vmadmin.com}, you
21805 block @samp{vmadmin.com}. If you get 200 messages about
21806 @samp{VIAGRA}, you discard all messages with @samp{VIAGRA} in the
21807 message. This, unfortunately, is a great way to discard legitimate
21808 e-mail. For instance, the very informative and useful RISKS digest
21809 has been blocked by overzealous mail filters because it
21810 @strong{contained} words that were common in spam messages.
21811 Nevertheless, in isolated cases, with great care, direct filtering of
21812 mail can be useful.
21814 Another approach to filtering e-mail is the distributed spam
21815 processing, for instance DCC implements such a system. In essence,
21816 @code{N} systems around the world agree that a machine @samp{X} in
21817 China, Ghana, or California is sending out spam e-mail, and these
21818 @code{N} systems enter @samp{X} or the spam e-mail from @samp{X} into
21819 a database. The criteria for spam detection vary---it may be the
21820 number of messages sent, the content of the messages, and so on. When
21821 a user of the distributed processing system wants to find out if a
21822 message is spam, he consults one of those @code{N} systems.
21824 Distributed spam processing works very well against spammers that send
21825 a large number of messages at once, but it requires the user to set up
21826 fairly complicated checks. There are commercial and free distributed
21827 spam processing systems. Distributed spam processing has its risks as
21828 well. For instance legitimate e-mail senders have been accused of
21829 sending spam, and their web sites have been shut down for some time
21830 because of the incident.
21832 The statistical approach to spam filtering is also popular. It is
21833 based on a statistical analysis of previous spam messages. Usually
21834 the analysis is a simple word frequency count, with perhaps pairs of
21835 words or 3-word combinations thrown into the mix. Statistical
21836 analysis of spam works very well in most of the cases, but it can
21837 classify legitimate e-mail as spam in some cases. It takes time to
21838 run the analysis, the full message must be analyzed, and the user has
21839 to store the database of spam analyses.
21841 @node Anti-Spam Basics
21842 @subsection Anti-Spam Basics
21846 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
21848 One way of dealing with spam is having Gnus split out all spam into a
21849 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
21851 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
21852 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
21853 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
21854 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
21855 sysadmin whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
21856 part of the mail address.)
21859 (setq message-default-news-headers
21860 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
21863 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
21864 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
21869 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
21870 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
21871 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
21877 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
21878 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
21879 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
21880 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
21882 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @acronym{SMTP} server
21883 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
21884 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
21885 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
21886 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
21887 your fancy split rule in this way:
21892 (to "larsi" "misc")
21896 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
21897 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
21898 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
21899 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
21900 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
21902 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
21903 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
21904 at @* @uref{http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html}.
21905 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
21906 cosmic balance somewhat.
21908 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
21909 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
21910 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
21911 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
21916 @subsection SpamAssassin, Vipul's Razor, DCC, etc
21917 @cindex SpamAssassin
21918 @cindex Vipul's Razor
21921 The days where the hints in the previous section was sufficient in
21922 avoiding spam is coming to an end. There are many tools out there
21923 that claim to reduce the amount of spam you get. This section could
21924 easily become outdated fast, as new products replace old, but
21925 fortunately most of these tools seem to have similar interfaces. Even
21926 though this section will use SpamAssassin as an example, it should be
21927 easy to adapt it to most other tools.
21929 If the tool you are using is not installed on the mail server, you
21930 need to invoke it yourself. Ideas on how to use the
21931 @code{:postscript} mail source parameter (@pxref{Mail Source
21932 Specifiers}) follows.
21936 '((file :prescript "formail -bs spamassassin < /var/mail/%u")
21939 :postscript "mv %t /tmp/foo; formail -bs spamc < /tmp/foo > %t")))
21942 Once you managed to process your incoming spool somehow, thus making
21943 the mail contain e.g. a header indicating it is spam, you are ready to
21944 filter it out. Using normal split methods (@pxref{Splitting Mail}):
21947 (setq nnmail-split-methods '(("spam" "^X-Spam-Flag: YES")
21951 Or using fancy split methods (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
21954 (setq nnmail-split-methods 'nnmail-split-fancy
21955 nnmail-split-fancy '(| ("X-Spam-Flag" "YES" "spam")
21959 Some people might not like the idea of piping the mail through various
21960 programs using a @code{:prescript} (if some program is buggy, you
21961 might lose all mail). If you are one of them, another solution is to
21962 call the external tools during splitting. Example fancy split method:
21965 (setq nnmail-split-fancy '(| (: kevin-spamassassin)
21967 (defun kevin-spamassassin ()
21969 (let ((buf (or (get-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
21970 (get-buffer " *nnml move*"))))
21972 (progn (message "Oops, cannot find message buffer") nil)
21974 (if (eq 1 (call-process-region (point-min) (point-max)
21975 "spamc" nil nil nil "-c"))
21979 That is about it. As some spam is likely to get through anyway, you
21980 might want to have a nifty function to call when you happen to read
21981 spam. And here is the nifty function:
21984 (defun my-gnus-raze-spam ()
21985 "Submit SPAM to Vipul's Razor, then mark it as expirable."
21987 (gnus-summary-show-raw-article)
21988 (gnus-summary-save-in-pipe "razor-report -f -d")
21989 (gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable 1))
21993 @subsection Hashcash
21996 A novel technique to fight spam is to require senders to do something
21997 costly for each message they send. This has the obvious drawback that
21998 you cannot rely on that everyone in the world uses this technique,
21999 since it is not part of the Internet standards, but it may be useful
22000 in smaller communities.
22002 While the tools in the previous section work well in practice, they
22003 work only because the tools are constantly maintained and updated as
22004 new form of spam appears. This means that a small percentage of spam
22005 will always get through. It also means that somewhere, someone needs
22006 to read lots of spam to update these tools. Hashcash avoids that, but
22007 instead requires that everyone you communicate with supports the
22008 scheme. You can view the two approaches as pragmatic vs dogmatic.
22009 The approaches have their own advantages and disadvantages, but as
22010 often in the real world, a combination of them is stronger than either
22011 one of them separately.
22014 The ``something costly'' is to burn CPU time, more specifically to
22015 compute a hash collision up to a certain number of bits. The
22016 resulting hashcash cookie is inserted in a @samp{X-Hashcash:}
22017 header. For more details, and for the external application
22018 @code{hashcash} you need to install to use this feature, see
22019 @uref{http://www.cypherspace.org/~adam/hashcash/}. Even more
22020 information can be found at @uref{http://www.camram.org/}.
22022 If you wish to call hashcash for each message you send, say something
22026 (require 'hashcash)
22027 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'mail-add-payment)
22030 The @code{hashcash.el} library can be found at
22031 @uref{http://users.actrix.gen.nz/mycroft/hashcash.el}, or in the Gnus
22032 development contrib directory.
22034 You will need to set up some additional variables as well:
22038 @item hashcash-default-payment
22039 @vindex hashcash-default-payment
22040 This variable indicates the default number of bits the hash collision
22041 should consist of. By default this is 0, meaning nothing will be
22042 done. Suggested useful values include 17 to 29.
22044 @item hashcash-payment-alist
22045 @vindex hashcash-payment-alist
22046 Some receivers may require you to spend burn more CPU time than the
22047 default. This variable contains a list of @samp{(@var{addr}
22048 @var{amount})} cells, where @var{addr} is the receiver (email address
22049 or newsgroup) and @var{amount} is the number of bits in the collision
22050 that is needed. It can also contain @samp{(@var{addr} @var{string}
22051 @var{amount})} cells, where the @var{string} is the string to use
22052 (normally the email address or newsgroup name is used).
22056 Where the @code{hashcash} binary is installed.
22060 Currently there is no built in functionality in Gnus to verify
22061 hashcash cookies, it is expected that this is performed by your hand
22062 customized mail filtering scripts. Improvements in this area would be
22063 a useful contribution, however.
22065 @node Filtering Spam Using The Spam ELisp Package
22066 @subsection Filtering Spam Using The Spam ELisp Package
22067 @cindex spam filtering
22070 The idea behind @code{spam.el} is to have a control center for spam detection
22071 and filtering in Gnus. To that end, @code{spam.el} does two things: it
22072 filters incoming mail, and it analyzes mail known to be spam or ham.
22073 @emph{Ham} is the name used throughout @code{spam.el} to indicate
22076 So, what happens when you load @code{spam.el}? First of all, you get
22077 the following keyboard commands:
22087 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-spam
22088 @code{gnus-summary-mark-as-spam}.
22090 Mark current article as spam, showing it with the @samp{$} mark.
22091 Whenever you see a spam article, make sure to mark its summary line
22092 with @kbd{M-d} before leaving the group. This is done automatically
22093 for unread articles in @emph{spam} groups.
22099 @findex spam-bogofilter-score
22100 @code{spam-bogofilter-score}.
22102 You must have Bogofilter installed for that command to work properly.
22108 Also, when you load @code{spam.el}, you will be able to customize its
22109 variables. Try @code{customize-group} on the @samp{spam} variable
22112 The concepts of ham processors and spam processors are very important.
22113 Ham processors and spam processors for a group can be set with the
22114 @code{spam-process} group parameter, or the
22115 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. Ham processors take
22116 mail known to be non-spam (@emph{ham}) and process it in some way so
22117 that later similar mail will also be considered non-spam. Spam
22118 processors take mail known to be spam and process it so similar spam
22119 will be detected later.
22121 Gnus learns from the spam you get. You have to collect your spam in
22122 one or more spam groups, and set or customize the variable
22123 @code{spam-junk-mailgroups} as appropriate. You can also declare
22124 groups to contain spam by setting their group parameter
22125 @code{spam-contents} to @code{gnus-group-spam-classification-spam}, or
22126 by customizing the corresponding variable
22127 @code{gnus-spam-newsgroup-contents}. The @code{spam-contents} group
22128 parameter and the @code{gnus-spam-newsgroup-contents} variable can
22129 also be used to declare groups as @emph{ham} groups if you set their
22130 classification to @code{gnus-group-spam-classification-ham}. If
22131 groups are not classified by means of @code{spam-junk-mailgroups},
22132 @code{spam-contents}, or @code{gnus-spam-newsgroup-contents}, they are
22133 considered @emph{unclassified}. All groups are unclassified by
22136 In spam groups, all messages are considered to be spam by default:
22137 they get the @samp{$} mark when you enter the group. You must review
22138 these messages from time to time and remove the @samp{$} mark for
22139 every message that is not spam after all. To remove the @samp{$}
22140 mark, you can use @kbd{M-u} to ``unread'' the article, or @kbd{d} for
22141 declaring it read the non-spam way. When you leave a group, all
22142 spam-marked (@samp{$}) articles are sent to a spam processor which
22143 will study them as spam samples.
22145 Messages may also be deleted in various other ways, and unless
22146 @code{spam-ham-marks} gets overridden below, marks @samp{R} and
22147 @samp{r} for default read or explicit delete, marks @samp{X} and
22148 @samp{K} for automatic or explicit kills, as well as mark @samp{Y} for
22149 low scores, are all considered to be associated with articles which
22150 are not spam. This assumption might be false, in particular if you
22151 use kill files or score files as means for detecting genuine spam, you
22152 should then adjust the @code{spam-ham-marks} variable.
22154 @defvar spam-ham-marks
22155 You can customize this variable to be the list of marks you want to
22156 consider ham. By default, the list contains the deleted, read,
22157 killed, kill-filed, and low-score marks.
22160 @defvar spam-spam-marks
22161 You can customize this variable to be the list of marks you want to
22162 consider spam. By default, the list contains only the spam mark.
22165 When you leave @emph{any} group, regardless of its
22166 @code{spam-contents} classification, all spam-marked articles are sent
22167 to a spam processor, which will study these as spam samples. If you
22168 explicit kill a lot, you might sometimes end up with articles marked
22169 @samp{K} which you never saw, and which might accidentally contain
22170 spam. Best is to make sure that real spam is marked with @samp{$},
22173 When you leave a @emph{spam} group, all spam-marked articles are
22174 marked as expired after processing with the spam processor. This is
22175 not done for @emph{unclassified} or @emph{ham} groups. Also, any
22176 @strong{ham} articles in a spam group will be moved to a location
22177 determined by either the @code{ham-process-destination} group
22178 parameter or a match in the @code{gnus-ham-process-destinations}
22179 variable, which is a list of regular expressions matched with group
22180 names (it's easiest to customize this variable with
22181 @code{customize-variable gnus-ham-process-destinations}). The ultimate
22182 location is a group name. If the @code{ham-process-destination}
22183 parameter is not set, spam articles are only expired.
22185 When you leave a @emph{ham} group, all ham-marked articles are sent to
22186 a ham processor, which will study these as non-spam samples.
22188 When you leave a @emph{ham} or @emph{unclassified} group, all
22189 @strong{spam} articles are moved to a location determined by either
22190 the @code{spam-process-destination} group parameter or a match in the
22191 @code{gnus-spam-process-destinations} variable, which is a list of
22192 regular expressions matched with group names (it's easiest to
22193 customize this variable with @code{customize-variable
22194 gnus-spam-process-destinations}). The ultimate location is a group
22195 name. If the @code{spam-process-destination} parameter is not set,
22196 the spam articles are only expired.
22198 To use the @code{spam.el} facilities for incoming mail filtering, you
22199 must add the following to your fancy split list
22200 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} or @code{nnimap-split-fancy}:
22206 Note that the fancy split may be called @code{nnmail-split-fancy} or
22207 @code{nnimap-split-fancy}, depending on whether you use the nnmail or
22208 nnimap back ends to retrieve your mail.
22210 The @code{spam-split} function will process incoming mail and send the
22211 mail considered to be spam into the group name given by the variable
22212 @code{spam-split-group}. By default that group name is @samp{spam},
22213 but you can customize it.
22215 @emph{Note for IMAP users}
22217 The boolean variable @code{nnimap-split-download-body} needs to be
22218 set, if you want to split based on the whole message instead of just
22219 the headers. By default, the nnimap backend will only retrieve the
22220 message headers. If you use @code{spam-check-bogofilter},
22221 @code{spam-check-ifile}, or @code{spam-check-stat} (the splitters that
22222 can benefit from the full message body), you should set this variable.
22223 It is not set by default because it will slow @acronym{IMAP} down.
22225 @xref{Splitting in IMAP}.
22227 @emph{TODO: Currently, spam.el only supports insertion of articles
22228 into a backend. There is no way to tell spam.el that an article is no
22229 longer spam or ham.}
22231 @emph{TODO: spam.el needs to provide a uniform way of training all the
22232 statistical databases. Some have that functionality built-in, others
22235 The following are the methods you can use to control the behavior of
22236 @code{spam-split} and their corresponding spam and ham processors:
22239 * Blacklists and Whitelists::
22240 * BBDB Whitelists::
22242 * Regular Expressions Header Matching::
22244 * ifile spam filtering::
22245 * spam-stat spam filtering::
22246 * Extending the spam elisp package::
22249 @node Blacklists and Whitelists
22250 @subsubsection Blacklists and Whitelists
22251 @cindex spam filtering
22252 @cindex whitelists, spam filtering
22253 @cindex blacklists, spam filtering
22256 @defvar spam-use-blacklist
22258 Set this variable to @code{t} if you want to use blacklists when
22259 splitting incoming mail. Messages whose senders are in the blacklist
22260 will be sent to the @code{spam-split-group}. This is an explicit
22261 filter, meaning that it acts only on mail senders @emph{declared} to
22266 @defvar spam-use-whitelist
22268 Set this variable to @code{t} if you want to use whitelists when
22269 splitting incoming mail. Messages whose senders are not in the
22270 whitelist will be sent to the next spam-split rule. This is an
22271 explicit filter, meaning that unless someone is in the whitelist, their
22272 messages are not assumed to be spam or ham.
22276 @defvar spam-use-whitelist-exclusive
22278 Set this variable to @code{t} if you want to use whitelists as an
22279 implicit filter, meaning that every message will be considered spam
22280 unless the sender is in the whitelist. Use with care.
22284 @defvar gnus-group-spam-exit-processor-blacklist
22286 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22287 customizing the group parameters or the
22288 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22289 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the senders of
22290 spam-marked articles will be added to the blacklist.
22294 @defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-whitelist
22296 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22297 customizing the group parameters or the
22298 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22299 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the senders of
22300 ham-marked articles in @emph{ham} groups will be added to the
22301 whitelist. Note that this ham processor has no effect in @emph{spam}
22302 or @emph{unclassified} groups.
22306 Blacklists are lists of regular expressions matching addresses you
22307 consider to be spam senders. For instance, to block mail from any
22308 sender at @samp{vmadmin.com}, you can put @samp{vmadmin.com} in your
22309 blacklist. You start out with an empty blacklist. Blacklist entries
22310 use the Emacs regular expression syntax.
22312 Conversely, whitelists tell Gnus what addresses are considered
22313 legitimate. All messages from whitelisted addresses are considered
22314 non-spam. Also see @ref{BBDB Whitelists}. Whitelist entries use the
22315 Emacs regular expression syntax.
22317 The blacklist and whitelist file locations can be customized with the
22318 @code{spam-directory} variable (@file{~/News/spam} by default), or
22319 the @code{spam-whitelist} and @code{spam-blacklist} variables
22320 directly. The whitelist and blacklist files will by default be in the
22321 @code{spam-directory} directory, named @file{whitelist} and
22322 @file{blacklist} respectively.
22324 @node BBDB Whitelists
22325 @subsubsection BBDB Whitelists
22326 @cindex spam filtering
22327 @cindex BBDB whitelists, spam filtering
22328 @cindex BBDB, spam filtering
22331 @defvar spam-use-BBDB
22333 Analogous to @code{spam-use-whitelist} (@pxref{Blacklists and
22334 Whitelists}), but uses the BBDB as the source of whitelisted
22335 addresses, without regular expressions. You must have the BBDB loaded
22336 for @code{spam-use-BBDB} to work properly. Messages whose senders are
22337 not in the BBDB will be sent to the next spam-split rule. This is an
22338 explicit filter, meaning that unless someone is in the BBDB, their
22339 messages are not assumed to be spam or ham.
22343 @defvar spam-use-BBDB-exclusive
22345 Set this variable to @code{t} if you want to use the BBDB as an
22346 implicit filter, meaning that every message will be considered spam
22347 unless the sender is in the BBDB. Use with care. Only sender
22348 addresses in the BBDB will be allowed through; all others will be
22349 classified as spammers.
22353 @defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-BBDB
22355 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22356 customizing the group parameters or the
22357 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22358 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the senders of
22359 ham-marked articles in @emph{ham} groups will be added to the
22360 BBDB. Note that this ham processor has no effect in @emph{spam}
22361 or @emph{unclassified} groups.
22366 @subsubsection Blackholes
22367 @cindex spam filtering
22368 @cindex blackholes, spam filtering
22371 @defvar spam-use-blackholes
22373 This option is disabled by default. You can let Gnus consult the
22374 blackhole-type distributed spam processing systems (DCC, for instance)
22375 when you set this option. The variable @code{spam-blackhole-servers}
22376 holds the list of blackhole servers Gnus will consult. The current
22377 list is fairly comprehensive, but make sure to let us know if it
22378 contains outdated servers.
22380 The blackhole check uses the @code{dig.el} package, but you can tell
22381 @code{spam.el} to use @code{dns.el} instead for better performance if
22382 you set @code{spam-use-dig} to @code{nil}. It is not recommended at
22383 this time to set @code{spam-use-dig} to @code{nil} despite the
22384 possible performance improvements, because some users may be unable to
22385 use it, but you can try it and see if it works for you.
22389 @defvar spam-blackhole-servers
22391 The list of servers to consult for blackhole checks.
22395 @defvar spam-blackhole-good-server-regex
22397 A regular expression for IPs that should not be checked against the
22398 blackhole server list. When set to @code{nil}, it has no effect.
22402 @defvar spam-use-dig
22404 Use the @code{dig.el} package instead of the @code{dns.el} package.
22405 The default setting of @code{t} is recommended.
22409 Blackhole checks are done only on incoming mail. There is no spam or
22410 ham processor for blackholes.
22412 @node Regular Expressions Header Matching
22413 @subsubsection Regular Expressions Header Matching
22414 @cindex spam filtering
22415 @cindex regular expressions header matching, spam filtering
22418 @defvar spam-use-regex-headers
22420 This option is disabled by default. You can let Gnus check the
22421 message headers against lists of regular expressions when you set this
22422 option. The variables @code{spam-regex-headers-spam} and
22423 @code{spam-regex-headers-ham} hold the list of regular expressions.
22424 Gnus will check against the message headers to determine if the
22425 message is spam or ham, respectively.
22429 @defvar spam-regex-headers-spam
22431 The list of regular expressions that, when matched in the headers of
22432 the message, positively identify it as spam.
22436 @defvar spam-regex-headers-ham
22438 The list of regular expressions that, when matched in the headers of
22439 the message, positively identify it as ham.
22443 Regular expression header checks are done only on incoming mail.
22444 There is no specific spam or ham processor for regular expressions.
22447 @subsubsection Bogofilter
22448 @cindex spam filtering
22449 @cindex bogofilter, spam filtering
22452 @defvar spam-use-bogofilter
22454 Set this variable if you want @code{spam-split} to use Eric Raymond's
22457 With a minimum of care for associating the @samp{$} mark for spam
22458 articles only, Bogofilter training all gets fairly automatic. You
22459 should do this until you get a few hundreds of articles in each
22460 category, spam or not. The command @kbd{S t} in summary mode, either
22461 for debugging or for curiosity, shows the @emph{spamicity} score of
22462 the current article (between 0.0 and 1.0).
22464 Bogofilter determines if a message is spam based on an internal
22465 threshold, set at compilation time. That threshold can't be
22468 If the @code{bogofilter} executable is not in your path, Bogofilter
22469 processing will be turned off.
22471 You should not enable this if you use @code{spam-use-bogofilter-headers}.
22475 @defvar spam-use-bogofilter-headers
22477 Set this variable if you want @code{spam-split} to use Eric Raymond's
22478 speedy Bogofilter, looking only at the message headers. It works
22479 similarly to @code{spam-use-bogofilter}, but the @code{X-Bogosity} header
22480 must be in the message already. Normally you would do this with a
22481 procmail recipe or something similar; consult the Bogofilter
22482 installation documents for details.
22484 You should not enable this if you use @code{spam-use-bogofilter}.
22488 @defvar gnus-group-spam-exit-processor-bogofilter
22489 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22490 customizing the group parameters or the
22491 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22492 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, spam-marked articles
22493 will be added to the Bogofilter spam database.
22496 @defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-bogofilter
22497 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22498 customizing the group parameters or the
22499 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22500 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the ham-marked
22501 articles in @emph{ham} groups will be added to the Bogofilter database
22502 of non-spam messages. Note that this ham processor has no effect in
22503 @emph{spam} or @emph{unclassified} groups.
22506 @defvar spam-bogofilter-database-directory
22508 This is the directory where Bogofilter will store its databases. It
22509 is not specified by default, so Bogofilter will use its own default
22510 database directory.
22514 The Bogofilter mail classifier is similar to ifile in intent and
22515 purpose. A ham and a spam processor are provided, plus the
22516 @code{spam-use-bogofilter} and @code{spam-use-bogofilter-headers}
22517 variables to indicate to spam-split that Bogofilter should either be
22518 used, or has already been used on the article. The 0.9.2.1 version of
22519 Bogofilter was used to test this functionality.
22521 @node ifile spam filtering
22522 @subsubsection ifile spam filtering
22523 @cindex spam filtering
22524 @cindex ifile, spam filtering
22527 @defvar spam-use-ifile
22529 Enable this variable if you want @code{spam-split} to use ifile, a
22530 statistical analyzer similar to Bogofilter.
22534 @defvar spam-ifile-all-categories
22536 Enable this variable if you want @code{spam-use-ifile} to give you all
22537 the ifile categories, not just spam/non-spam. If you use this, make
22538 sure you train ifile as described in its documentation.
22542 @defvar spam-ifile-spam-category
22544 This is the category of spam messages as far as ifile is concerned.
22545 The actual string used is irrelevant, but you probably want to leave
22546 the default value of @samp{spam}.
22549 @defvar spam-ifile-database-path
22551 This is the filename for the ifile database. It is not specified by
22552 default, so ifile will use its own default database name.
22556 The ifile mail classifier is similar to Bogofilter in intent and
22557 purpose. A ham and a spam processor are provided, plus the
22558 @code{spam-use-ifile} variable to indicate to spam-split that ifile
22559 should be used. The 1.2.1 version of ifile was used to test this
22562 @node spam-stat spam filtering
22563 @subsubsection spam-stat spam filtering
22564 @cindex spam filtering
22565 @cindex spam-stat, spam filtering
22569 @xref{Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat}.
22571 @defvar spam-use-stat
22573 Enable this variable if you want @code{spam-split} to use
22574 spam-stat.el, an Emacs Lisp statistical analyzer.
22578 @defvar gnus-group-spam-exit-processor-stat
22579 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22580 customizing the group parameters or the
22581 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22582 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the spam-marked
22583 articles will be added to the spam-stat database of spam messages.
22586 @defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-stat
22587 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22588 customizing the group parameters or the
22589 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22590 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the ham-marked
22591 articles in @emph{ham} groups will be added to the spam-stat database
22592 of non-spam messages. Note that this ham processor has no effect in
22593 @emph{spam} or @emph{unclassified} groups.
22596 This enables spam.el to cooperate with spam-stat.el. spam-stat.el
22597 provides an internal (Lisp-only) spam database, which unlike ifile or
22598 Bogofilter does not require external programs. A spam and a ham
22599 processor, and the @code{spam-use-stat} variable for @code{spam-split}
22602 @node Extending the spam elisp package
22603 @subsubsection Extending the spam elisp package
22604 @cindex spam filtering
22605 @cindex spam elisp package, extending
22606 @cindex extending the spam elisp package
22608 Say you want to add a new back end called blackbox. For filtering
22609 incoming mail, provide the following:
22617 (defvar spam-use-blackbox nil
22618 "True if blackbox should be used.")
22623 (spam-use-blackbox . spam-check-blackbox)
22625 to @code{spam-list-of-checks}.
22630 Write the @code{spam-check-blackbox} function. It should return
22631 @samp{nil} or @code{spam-split-group}. See the existing
22632 @code{spam-check-*} functions for examples of what you can do.
22634 Make sure to add @code{spam-use-blackbox} to
22635 @code{spam-list-of-statistical-checks} if Blackbox is a statistical
22636 mail analyzer that needs the full message body to operate.
22640 For processing spam and ham messages, provide the following:
22647 Note you don't have to provide a spam or a ham processor. Only
22648 provide them if Blackbox supports spam or ham processing.
22651 (defvar gnus-group-spam-exit-processor-blackbox "blackbox"
22652 "The Blackbox summary exit spam processor.
22653 Only applicable to spam groups.")
22655 (defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-blackbox "blackbox"
22656 "The whitelist summary exit ham processor.
22657 Only applicable to non-spam (unclassified and ham) groups.")
22665 (defun spam-blackbox-register-spam-routine ()
22666 (spam-generic-register-routine
22667 ;; @r{the spam function}
22669 (let ((from (spam-fetch-field-from-fast article)))
22670 (when (stringp from)
22671 (blackbox-do-something-with-this-spammer from))))
22672 ;; @r{the ham function}
22675 (defun spam-blackbox-register-ham-routine ()
22676 (spam-generic-register-routine
22677 ;; @r{the spam function}
22679 ;; @r{the ham function}
22681 (let ((from (spam-fetch-field-from-fast article)))
22682 (when (stringp from)
22683 (blackbox-do-something-with-this-ham-sender from))))))
22686 Write the @code{blackbox-do-something-with-this-ham-sender} and
22687 @code{blackbox-do-something-with-this-spammer} functions. You can add
22688 more complex code than fetching the message sender, but keep in mind
22689 that retrieving the whole message takes significantly longer than the
22690 sender through @code{spam-fetch-field-from-fast}, because the message
22691 senders are kept in memory by Gnus.
22696 @node Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat
22697 @subsection Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat
22698 @cindex Paul Graham
22699 @cindex Graham, Paul
22700 @cindex naive Bayesian spam filtering
22701 @cindex Bayesian spam filtering, naive
22702 @cindex spam filtering, naive Bayesian
22704 Paul Graham has written an excellent essay about spam filtering using
22705 statistics: @uref{http://www.paulgraham.com/spam.html,A Plan for
22706 Spam}. In it he describes the inherent deficiency of rule-based
22707 filtering as used by SpamAssassin, for example: Somebody has to write
22708 the rules, and everybody else has to install these rules. You are
22709 always late. It would be much better, he argues, to filter mail based
22710 on whether it somehow resembles spam or non-spam. One way to measure
22711 this is word distribution. He then goes on to describe a solution
22712 that checks whether a new mail resembles any of your other spam mails
22715 The basic idea is this: Create a two collections of your mail, one
22716 with spam, one with non-spam. Count how often each word appears in
22717 either collection, weight this by the total number of mails in the
22718 collections, and store this information in a dictionary. For every
22719 word in a new mail, determine its probability to belong to a spam or a
22720 non-spam mail. Use the 15 most conspicuous words, compute the total
22721 probability of the mail being spam. If this probability is higher
22722 than a certain threshold, the mail is considered to be spam.
22724 Gnus supports this kind of filtering. But it needs some setting up.
22725 First, you need two collections of your mail, one with spam, one with
22726 non-spam. Then you need to create a dictionary using these two
22727 collections, and save it. And last but not least, you need to use
22728 this dictionary in your fancy mail splitting rules.
22731 * Creating a spam-stat dictionary::
22732 * Splitting mail using spam-stat::
22733 * Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary::
22736 @node Creating a spam-stat dictionary
22737 @subsubsection Creating a spam-stat dictionary
22739 Before you can begin to filter spam based on statistics, you must
22740 create these statistics based on two mail collections, one with spam,
22741 one with non-spam. These statistics are then stored in a dictionary
22742 for later use. In order for these statistics to be meaningful, you
22743 need several hundred emails in both collections.
22745 Gnus currently supports only the nnml back end for automated dictionary
22746 creation. The nnml back end stores all mails in a directory, one file
22747 per mail. Use the following:
22749 @defun spam-stat-process-spam-directory
22750 Create spam statistics for every file in this directory. Every file
22751 is treated as one spam mail.
22754 @defun spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory
22755 Create non-spam statistics for every file in this directory. Every
22756 file is treated as one non-spam mail.
22759 Usually you would call @code{spam-stat-process-spam-directory} on a
22760 directory such as @file{~/Mail/mail/spam} (this usually corresponds
22761 the the group @samp{nnml:mail.spam}), and you would call
22762 @code{spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory} on a directory such as
22763 @file{~/Mail/mail/misc} (this usually corresponds the the group
22764 @samp{nnml:mail.misc}).
22766 When you are using @acronym{IMAP}, you won't have the mails available
22767 locally, so that will not work. One solution is to use the Gnus Agent
22768 to cache the articles. Then you can use directories such as
22769 @file{"~/News/agent/nnimap/mail.yourisp.com/personal_spam"} for
22770 @code{spam-stat-process-spam-directory}. @xref{Agent as Cache}.
22773 This variable holds the hash-table with all the statistics---the
22774 dictionary we have been talking about. For every word in either
22775 collection, this hash-table stores a vector describing how often the
22776 word appeared in spam and often it appeared in non-spam mails.
22779 If you want to regenerate the statistics from scratch, you need to
22780 reset the dictionary.
22782 @defun spam-stat-reset
22783 Reset the @code{spam-stat} hash-table, deleting all the statistics.
22786 When you are done, you must save the dictionary. The dictionary may
22787 be rather large. If you will not update the dictionary incrementally
22788 (instead, you will recreate it once a month, for example), then you
22789 can reduce the size of the dictionary by deleting all words that did
22790 not appear often enough or that do not clearly belong to only spam or
22791 only non-spam mails.
22793 @defun spam-stat-reduce-size
22794 Reduce the size of the dictionary. Use this only if you do not want
22795 to update the dictionary incrementally.
22798 @defun spam-stat-save
22799 Save the dictionary.
22802 @defvar spam-stat-file
22803 The filename used to store the dictionary. This defaults to
22804 @file{~/.spam-stat.el}.
22807 @node Splitting mail using spam-stat
22808 @subsubsection Splitting mail using spam-stat
22810 In order to use @code{spam-stat} to split your mail, you need to add the
22811 following to your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
22814 (require 'spam-stat)
22818 This will load the necessary Gnus code, and the dictionary you
22821 Next, you need to adapt your fancy splitting rules: You need to
22822 determine how to use @code{spam-stat}. The following examples are for
22823 the nnml back end. Using the nnimap back end works just as well. Just
22824 use @code{nnimap-split-fancy} instead of @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
22826 In the simplest case, you only have two groups, @samp{mail.misc} and
22827 @samp{mail.spam}. The following expression says that mail is either
22828 spam or it should go into @samp{mail.misc}. If it is spam, then
22829 @code{spam-stat-split-fancy} will return @samp{mail.spam}.
22832 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
22833 `(| (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
22837 @defvar spam-stat-split-fancy-spam-group
22838 The group to use for spam. Default is @samp{mail.spam}.
22841 If you also filter mail with specific subjects into other groups, use
22842 the following expression. Only mails not matching the regular
22843 expression are considered potential spam.
22846 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
22847 `(| ("Subject" "\\bspam-stat\\b" "mail.emacs")
22848 (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
22852 If you want to filter for spam first, then you must be careful when
22853 creating the dictionary. Note that @code{spam-stat-split-fancy} must
22854 consider both mails in @samp{mail.emacs} and in @samp{mail.misc} as
22855 non-spam, therefore both should be in your collection of non-spam
22856 mails, when creating the dictionary!
22859 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
22860 `(| (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
22861 ("Subject" "\\bspam-stat\\b" "mail.emacs")
22865 You can combine this with traditional filtering. Here, we move all
22866 HTML-only mails into the @samp{mail.spam.filtered} group. Note that since
22867 @code{spam-stat-split-fancy} will never see them, the mails in
22868 @samp{mail.spam.filtered} should be neither in your collection of spam mails,
22869 nor in your collection of non-spam mails, when creating the
22873 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
22874 `(| ("Content-Type" "text/html" "mail.spam.filtered")
22875 (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
22876 ("Subject" "\\bspam-stat\\b" "mail.emacs")
22881 @node Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary
22882 @subsubsection Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary
22884 The main interface to using @code{spam-stat}, are the following functions:
22886 @defun spam-stat-buffer-is-spam
22887 Called in a buffer, that buffer is considered to be a new spam mail.
22888 Use this for new mail that has not been processed before.
22891 @defun spam-stat-buffer-is-no-spam
22892 Called in a buffer, that buffer is considered to be a new non-spam
22893 mail. Use this for new mail that has not been processed before.
22896 @defun spam-stat-buffer-change-to-spam
22897 Called in a buffer, that buffer is no longer considered to be normal
22898 mail but spam. Use this to change the status of a mail that has
22899 already been processed as non-spam.
22902 @defun spam-stat-buffer-change-to-non-spam
22903 Called in a buffer, that buffer is no longer considered to be spam but
22904 normal mail. Use this to change the status of a mail that has already
22905 been processed as spam.
22908 @defun spam-stat-save
22909 Save the hash table to the file. The filename used is stored in the
22910 variable @code{spam-stat-file}.
22913 @defun spam-stat-load
22914 Load the hash table from a file. The filename used is stored in the
22915 variable @code{spam-stat-file}.
22918 @defun spam-stat-score-word
22919 Return the spam score for a word.
22922 @defun spam-stat-score-buffer
22923 Return the spam score for a buffer.
22926 @defun spam-stat-split-fancy
22927 Use this function for fancy mail splitting. Add the rule @samp{(:
22928 spam-stat-split-fancy)} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
22931 Make sure you load the dictionary before using it. This requires the
22932 following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
22935 (require 'spam-stat)
22939 Typical test will involve calls to the following functions:
22942 Reset: (setq spam-stat (make-hash-table :test 'equal))
22943 Learn spam: (spam-stat-process-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
22944 Learn non-spam: (spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
22945 Save table: (spam-stat-save)
22946 File size: (nth 7 (file-attributes spam-stat-file))
22947 Number of words: (hash-table-count spam-stat)
22948 Test spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
22949 Test non-spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
22950 Reduce table size: (spam-stat-reduce-size)
22951 Save table: (spam-stat-save)
22952 File size: (nth 7 (file-attributes spam-stat-file))
22953 Number of words: (hash-table-count spam-stat)
22954 Test spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
22955 Test non-spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
22958 Here is how you would create your dictionary:
22961 Reset: (setq spam-stat (make-hash-table :test 'equal))
22962 Learn spam: (spam-stat-process-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
22963 Learn non-spam: (spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
22964 Repeat for any other non-spam group you need...
22965 Reduce table size: (spam-stat-reduce-size)
22966 Save table: (spam-stat-save)
22969 @node Various Various
22970 @section Various Various
22976 @item gnus-home-directory
22977 @vindex gnus-home-directory
22978 All Gnus file and directory variables will be initialized from this
22979 variable, which defaults to @file{~/}.
22981 @item gnus-directory
22982 @vindex gnus-directory
22983 Most Gnus storage file and directory variables will be initialized from
22984 this variable, which defaults to the @env{SAVEDIR} environment
22985 variable, or @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
22987 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{~/.gnus.el} file is read.
22988 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
22989 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
22990 @file{~/.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
22992 @item gnus-default-directory
22993 @vindex gnus-default-directory
22994 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
22995 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
22996 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
22997 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
22998 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
22999 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
23002 @vindex gnus-verbose
23003 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
23004 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
23005 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
23006 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
23007 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
23009 @item gnus-verbose-backends
23010 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
23011 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
23012 to the Gnus back ends instead of Gnus proper.
23014 @item nnheader-max-head-length
23015 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
23016 When the back ends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
23017 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
23018 the absolute max length the back ends will try to read before giving up
23019 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
23020 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
23021 @code{t}, the back ends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
23022 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
23023 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
23025 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
23026 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
23027 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
23028 read when doing the operation described above.
23030 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
23031 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
23033 @cindex invalid characters in file names
23034 @cindex characters in file names
23035 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
23036 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
23037 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
23040 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
23044 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
23045 Windows (phooey) systems.
23047 @item gnus-hidden-properties
23048 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
23049 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
23050 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
23051 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
23053 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
23054 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
23055 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
23056 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
23057 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
23059 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
23060 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
23061 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
23063 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
23064 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
23066 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
23067 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
23068 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
23069 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
23072 @acronym{IMAP} users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
23080 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
23081 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
23083 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
23085 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
23091 Not because of victories @*
23094 but for the common sunshine,@*
23096 the largess of the spring.
23100 but for the day's work done@*
23101 as well as I was able;@*
23102 not for a seat upon the dais@*
23103 but at the common table.@*
23108 @chapter Appendices
23111 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
23112 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
23113 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
23114 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
23115 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
23116 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
23117 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
23118 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
23119 * Frequently Asked Questions::
23126 @cindex Installing under XEmacs
23128 XEmacs is distributed as a collection of packages. You should install
23129 whatever packages the Gnus XEmacs package requires. The current
23130 requirements are @samp{gnus}, @samp{w3}, @samp{mh-e},
23131 @samp{mailcrypt}, @samp{rmail}, @samp{eterm}, @samp{mail-lib},
23132 @samp{xemacs-base}, @samp{sh-script} and @samp{fsf-compat}. The
23133 @samp{misc-games} package is required for Morse decoding.
23140 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
23141 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
23143 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
23144 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
23145 @uref{http://quimby.gnus.org/}. This is also the primary
23146 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
23147 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
23149 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
23150 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
23151 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
23152 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
23153 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
23154 appropriate name, don't you think?)
23156 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
23157 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
23158 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
23159 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
23162 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
23163 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
23164 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
23165 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
23166 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
23167 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
23168 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
23169 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
23170 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
23174 @node Gnus Versions
23175 @subsection Gnus Versions
23177 @cindex September Gnus
23179 @cindex Quassia Gnus
23180 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
23183 @cindex Gnus versions
23185 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
23186 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
23187 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
23189 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
23190 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
23192 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
23193 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
23195 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
23196 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
23198 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
23199 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
23202 On the 26th of October 2000, Oort Gnus was begun.
23204 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
23205 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'',
23206 ``Pterodactyl Gnus'', ``Oort Gnus'' -- don't panic. Don't let it know
23207 that you're frightened. Back away. Slowly. Whatever you do, don't
23208 run. Walk away, calmly, until you're out of its reach. Find a proper
23209 released version of Gnus and snuggle up to that instead.
23212 @node Other Gnus Versions
23213 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
23216 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
23217 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
23218 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
23219 @acronym{MIME} capabilities.
23221 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
23222 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
23223 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
23224 @acronym{MIME} and multilingualization things, especially important for
23231 What's the point of Gnus?
23233 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
23234 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
23235 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
23236 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
23237 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
23238 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
23239 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
23240 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
23241 keep track of millions of people who post?
23243 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
23244 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
23245 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
23246 to separate the newsreader from the back ends, Gnus now offers a simple
23247 interface for anybody who wants to write new back ends for fetching mail
23248 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
23249 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
23250 every one of you to explore and invent.
23252 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
23253 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
23256 @node Compatibility
23257 @subsection Compatibility
23259 @cindex compatibility
23260 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
23261 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
23262 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
23267 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
23271 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
23274 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
23277 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
23278 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
23279 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
23280 important variables have their values copied into their global
23281 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
23282 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
23284 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
23285 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
23286 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
23287 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
23288 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
23292 @cindex highlighting
23293 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
23294 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
23295 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
23296 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
23297 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
23298 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
23301 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
23302 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
23303 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
23304 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
23306 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
23307 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
23308 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
23309 to stop doing it the old way.
23311 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
23313 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
23315 @cindex reporting bugs
23317 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
23318 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
23319 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
23321 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
23322 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
23323 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
23324 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
23329 @subsection Conformity
23331 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
23332 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
23340 There are no known breaches of this standard.
23344 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
23346 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
23347 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
23348 We do have some breaches to this one.
23354 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
23355 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
23356 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
23357 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
23358 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
23363 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
23364 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
23365 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
23366 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
23368 @item MIME - RFC 2045-2049 etc
23370 All the various @acronym{MIME} RFCs are supported.
23372 @item Disposition Notifications - RFC 2298
23373 Message Mode is able to request notifications from the receiver.
23375 @item PGP - RFC 1991 and RFC 2440
23378 RFC 1991 is the original @acronym{PGP} message specification,
23379 published as a Information RFC. RFC 2440 was the follow-up, now
23380 called Open PGP, and put on the Standards Track. Both document a
23381 non-@acronym{MIME} aware @acronym{PGP} format. Gnus supports both
23382 encoding (signing and encryption) and decoding (verification and
23385 @item PGP/MIME - RFC 2015/3156
23386 RFC 2015 (superseded by 3156 which references RFC 2440 instead of RFC
23387 1991) describes the @acronym{MIME}-wrapping around the RF 1991/2440 format.
23388 Gnus supports both encoding and decoding.
23390 @item S/MIME - RFC 2633
23391 RFC 2633 describes the @acronym{S/MIME} format.
23393 @item IMAP - RFC 1730/2060, RFC 2195, RFC 2086, RFC 2359, RFC 2595, RFC 1731
23394 RFC 1730 is @acronym{IMAP} version 4, updated somewhat by RFC 2060
23395 (@acronym{IMAP} 4 revision 1). RFC 2195 describes CRAM-MD5
23396 authentication for @acronym{IMAP}. RFC 2086 describes access control
23397 lists (ACLs) for @acronym{IMAP}. RFC 2359 describes a @acronym{IMAP}
23398 protocol enhancement. RFC 2595 describes the proper @acronym{TLS}
23399 integration (STARTTLS) with @acronym{IMAP}. RFC 1731 describes the
23400 GSSAPI/Kerberos4 mechanisms for @acronym{IMAP}.
23404 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
23405 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
23410 @subsection Emacsen
23416 Gnus should work on :
23424 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
23428 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
23429 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
23432 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
23433 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
23434 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
23438 @node Gnus Development
23439 @subsection Gnus Development
23441 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
23442 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
23443 propose changes and new features, post patches and new back ends. This
23444 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
23445 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
23446 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
23447 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
23448 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
23450 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
23451 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
23452 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
23453 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
23454 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
23457 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
23458 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
23459 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
23460 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
23461 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
23463 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
23464 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
23465 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
23466 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
23467 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
23468 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
23469 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
23470 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
23471 usually keep up with these rapid changes, while people on the newsgroup
23472 can't be assumed to do so.
23477 @subsection Contributors
23478 @cindex contributors
23480 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
23481 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
23482 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
23483 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
23484 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
23485 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
23486 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
23487 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
23488 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
23489 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
23491 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for@dots{} oops,
23497 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
23500 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
23501 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @acronym{MIME} and
23502 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
23503 functionality and stuff.
23506 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
23507 well as numerous other things).
23510 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
23513 Joe Reiss---creator of the smiley faces.
23516 Justin Sheehy--the @acronym{FAQ} maintainer.
23519 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
23522 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
23523 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
23526 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
23529 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
23530 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
23533 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
23536 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
23539 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
23542 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
23545 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
23546 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
23549 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
23552 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
23555 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
23558 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
23562 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
23565 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
23568 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
23571 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
23572 well as autoconf support.
23576 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
23577 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
23579 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
23594 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
23596 Katsumi Yamaoka, @c Yamaoka
23600 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
23610 Alexei V. Barantsev,
23625 Massimo Campostrini,
23630 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
23631 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
23635 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
23638 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
23644 Michael Welsh Duggan,
23649 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
23653 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
23661 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
23663 Michelangelo Grigni,
23667 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
23669 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c Hayashi
23671 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
23678 François Felix Ingrand,
23679 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c Ichikawa
23680 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
23682 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
23692 Peter Skov Knudsen,
23693 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
23695 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
23696 Thor Kristoffersen,
23699 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
23717 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
23718 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
23725 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
23730 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
23734 John McClary Prevost,
23740 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
23745 Christian von Roques,
23748 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
23755 Philippe Schnoebelen,
23757 Randal L. Schwartz,
23771 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
23776 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
23796 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
23797 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
23798 (550kB and counting).
23800 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
23803 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
23804 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
23808 @subsection New Features
23809 @cindex new features
23812 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
23813 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
23814 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
23815 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
23816 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
23819 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
23820 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
23821 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
23824 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
23826 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
23831 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
23832 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
23835 Local spool and several @acronym{NNTP} servers can be used at once
23836 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
23839 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
23842 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
23843 All the mail back ends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
23844 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
23847 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
23848 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
23849 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
23850 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
23853 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
23854 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
23857 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
23858 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
23859 (@pxref{The Active File}).
23862 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
23863 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
23866 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
23867 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
23868 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
23871 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
23872 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
23873 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
23876 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{~/.gnus.el}) to avoid
23877 cluttering up the @file{.emacs} file.
23880 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
23881 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
23884 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
23885 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
23888 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
23889 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
23892 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
23893 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
23896 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
23897 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
23900 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
23903 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
23904 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
23907 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
23908 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
23911 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
23912 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
23915 Gnus can fetch @acronym{FAQ}s and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
23918 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
23919 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
23922 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
23926 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
23930 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
23931 configuration (@pxref{Window Layout}).
23934 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
23940 @node September Gnus
23941 @subsubsection September Gnus
23945 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/september,height=20cm}}
23949 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
23954 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
23955 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
23959 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
23960 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
23964 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
23968 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
23969 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
23972 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
23976 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
23979 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
23982 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
23985 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
23989 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
23990 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
23993 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
23997 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
24001 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
24005 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
24009 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
24012 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
24013 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
24016 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
24020 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
24021 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
24024 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
24027 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
24028 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
24029 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
24032 Gnus has a new back end (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
24036 The Gnus cache is much faster.
24039 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
24043 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
24044 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
24047 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
24048 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
24051 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
24052 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
24055 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
24056 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
24057 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
24060 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
24061 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
24064 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
24067 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
24070 All mail back ends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
24073 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
24076 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
24077 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
24080 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Window
24084 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
24087 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}}
24092 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
24095 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
24099 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
24102 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
24106 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
24109 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
24112 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
24113 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
24116 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
24117 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
24121 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
24122 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
24125 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
24129 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
24130 buffer to allow easier treatment.
24133 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
24136 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
24140 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
24144 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
24145 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
24148 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
24152 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
24153 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
24156 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
24157 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
24160 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
24164 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
24167 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
24170 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
24176 @subsubsection Red Gnus
24178 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
24182 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/red,height=20cm}}
24189 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
24192 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
24193 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
24196 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
24197 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
24201 Article washing status can be displayed in the
24202 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
24205 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
24208 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
24209 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
24212 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
24216 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
24217 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
24221 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
24222 Server Internals}).
24225 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
24229 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
24232 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
24233 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
24236 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
24237 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
24238 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
24241 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
24242 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
24245 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
24246 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
24249 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{C-M-_}
24253 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
24254 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
24257 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
24258 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
24261 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
24265 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
24268 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
24272 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
24273 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
24276 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
24277 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
24280 A new command for reading collections of documents
24281 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{C-M-d}
24282 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
24285 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
24289 A new mail-to-news back end makes it possible to post even when the @acronym{NNTP}
24290 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
24293 A new back end for reading searches from Web search engines
24294 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
24295 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
24298 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
24299 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
24303 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
24307 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
24311 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}}
24316 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
24320 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
24324 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
24325 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
24328 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
24334 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
24336 New features in Gnus 5.6:
24341 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
24342 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
24343 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
24346 The @code{nndraft} back end has returned, but works differently than
24347 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
24348 group, which is created automatically.
24351 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
24355 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
24358 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
24359 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
24362 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
24366 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
24369 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
24370 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
24373 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
24376 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section ``Symbolic
24377 Prefixes'' in the Gnus manual for details.
24380 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
24381 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the @file{all.SCORE} file.
24384 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
24385 control over simplification.
24388 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
24391 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
24395 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
24398 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
24401 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
24402 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
24403 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
24406 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
24407 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
24410 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
24414 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
24415 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
24418 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
24419 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @acronym{NNTP} servers.
24422 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
24426 A history of where mails have been split is available.
24429 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
24432 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
24433 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
24436 A new function for citing in Message has been
24437 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
24440 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
24443 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
24447 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
24448 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
24451 The ``lapsed date'' article header can be kept continually
24452 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
24455 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} back end.
24458 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
24462 @node Pterodactyl Gnus
24463 @subsubsection Pterodactyl Gnus
24465 New features in Gnus 5.8:
24470 The mail-fetching functions have changed. See the manual for the
24471 many details. In particular, all procmail fetching variables are gone.
24473 If you used procmail like in
24476 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
24477 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
24478 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/mail/incoming/")
24479 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "\\.in")
24482 this now has changed to
24486 '((directory :path "~/mail/incoming/"
24490 More information is available in the info doc at Select Methods ->
24491 Getting Mail -> Mail Sources
24494 Gnus is now a @acronym{MIME}-capable reader. This affects many parts of
24495 Gnus, and adds a slew of new commands. See the manual for details.
24498 Gnus has also been multilingualized. This also affects too
24499 many parts of Gnus to summarize here, and adds many new variables.
24502 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} can now be a function to be
24503 called to position point.
24506 The user can now decide which extra headers should be included in
24507 summary buffers and @acronym{NOV} files.
24510 @code{gnus-article-display-hook} has been removed. Instead, a number
24511 of variables starting with @code{gnus-treat-} have been added.
24514 The Gnus posting styles have been redone again and now works in a
24515 subtly different manner.
24518 New web-based back ends have been added: @code{nnslashdot},
24519 @code{nnwarchive} and @code{nnultimate}. nnweb has been revamped,
24520 again, to keep up with ever-changing layouts.
24523 Gnus can now read @acronym{IMAP} mail via @code{nnimap}.
24531 @section The Manual
24535 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
24536 either @code{texi2dvi}
24538 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
24539 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
24541 to get what you hold in your hands now.
24543 The following conventions have been used:
24548 This is a @samp{string}
24551 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
24554 This is a @file{file}
24557 This is a @code{symbol}
24561 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
24565 (setq flargnoze "yes")
24568 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
24571 (setq flumphel 'yes)
24574 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
24575 ever get them confused.
24579 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
24580 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
24581 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
24582 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
24583 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
24584 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
24585 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
24591 @node On Writing Manuals
24592 @section On Writing Manuals
24594 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
24595 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
24596 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
24597 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
24598 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
24599 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
24602 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
24603 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
24604 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
24607 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
24608 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
24613 @section Terminology
24615 @cindex terminology
24620 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
24621 News is generally fetched from a nearby @acronym{NNTP} server, and is
24622 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
24623 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
24624 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
24628 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
24629 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
24630 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
24631 not posting, and replying is not following up.
24635 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
24639 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
24644 Gnus considers mail and news to be mostly the same, really. The only
24645 difference is how to access the actual articles. News articles are
24646 commonly fetched via the protocol @acronym{NNTP}, whereas mail
24647 messages could be read from a file on the local disk. The internal
24648 architecture of Gnus thus comprises a `front end' and a number of
24649 `back ends'. Internally, when you enter a group (by hitting
24650 @key{RET}, say), you thereby invoke a function in the front end in
24651 Gnus. The front end then `talks' to a back end and says things like
24652 ``Give me the list of articles in the foo group'' or ``Show me article
24655 So a back end mainly defines either a protocol (the @code{nntp} back
24656 end accesses news via @acronym{NNTP}, the @code{nnimap} back end
24657 accesses mail via @acronym{IMAP}) or a file format and directory
24658 layout (the @code{nnspool} back end accesses news via the common
24659 `spool directory' format, the @code{nnml} back end access mail via a
24660 file format and directory layout that's quite similar).
24662 Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this is all
24663 done by the back ends. A back end is a collection of functions to
24664 access the articles.
24666 However, sometimes the term `back end' is also used where `server'
24667 would have been more appropriate. And then there is the term `select
24668 method' which can mean either. The Gnus terminology can be quite
24673 Gnus will always use one method (and back end) as the @dfn{native}, or
24674 default, way of getting news.
24678 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
24679 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary back ends for getting
24684 Secondary back ends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
24685 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
24689 A message that has been posted as news.
24692 @cindex mail message
24693 A message that has been mailed.
24697 A mail message or news article
24701 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
24706 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
24711 A line from the head of an article.
24715 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
24716 collection of @acronym{NOV} lines.
24718 @item @acronym{NOV}
24720 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the back end for the headers of all
24721 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
24722 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
24723 normal @sc{head} format.
24727 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
24728 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
24729 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
24730 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
24731 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
24732 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
24734 @item killed groups
24735 @cindex killed groups
24736 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
24737 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
24739 @item zombie groups
24740 @cindex zombie groups
24741 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
24744 @cindex active file
24745 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
24746 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
24747 is rather large, as you might surmise.
24750 @cindex bogus groups
24751 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
24752 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
24753 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
24756 @cindex activating groups
24757 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
24758 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
24759 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
24763 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
24765 @item select method
24766 @cindex select method
24767 A structure that specifies the back end, the server and the virtual
24770 @item virtual server
24771 @cindex virtual server
24772 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
24773 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
24774 whole is a virtual server.
24778 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
24779 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
24782 @item ephemeral groups
24783 @cindex ephemeral groups
24784 @cindex temporary groups
24785 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
24786 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
24787 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
24790 @cindex solid groups
24791 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
24792 group buffer are solid groups.
24794 @item sparse articles
24795 @cindex sparse articles
24796 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
24797 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
24801 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
24802 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
24806 @cindex thread root
24807 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
24808 articles in the thread.
24812 An article that has responses.
24816 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
24820 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
24821 specified by RFC 1153.
24827 @node Customization
24828 @section Customization
24829 @cindex general customization
24831 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
24832 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
24833 for some quite common situations.
24836 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
24837 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
24838 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
24839 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
24843 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
24844 @subsection Slow/Expensive NNTP Connection
24846 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
24847 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
24848 Gnus has to get from the @acronym{NNTP} server.
24852 @item gnus-read-active-file
24853 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
24854 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
24855 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
24856 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
24857 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
24859 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
24860 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
24861 the @acronym{NNTP} server will not be very fast. Not all @acronym{NNTP} servers
24862 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
24866 @node Slow Terminal Connection
24867 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
24869 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
24870 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
24871 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
24875 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
24876 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
24877 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
24878 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
24879 horizontal and vertical recentering.
24881 @item gnus-visible-headers
24882 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
24883 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
24884 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
24885 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
24887 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
24889 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
24890 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
24891 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
24894 @item gnus-use-full-window
24895 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
24896 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
24897 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
24898 want to read them anyway.
24900 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
24901 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
24905 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
24906 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
24907 lines, which might save some time.
24911 @node Little Disk Space
24912 @subsection Little Disk Space
24915 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
24916 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
24920 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
24921 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
24922 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
24923 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
24926 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
24927 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
24928 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
24929 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
24932 @item gnus-save-killed-list
24933 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
24934 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
24935 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
24936 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
24942 @subsection Slow Machine
24943 @cindex slow machine
24945 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
24946 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
24948 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
24949 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
24951 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
24952 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
24953 summary buffer faster.
24957 @node Troubleshooting
24958 @section Troubleshooting
24959 @cindex troubleshooting
24961 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
24969 Make sure your computer is switched on.
24972 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
24973 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
24977 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
24978 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
24979 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
24980 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
24983 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a
24984 @acronym{FAQ} and a how-to.
24987 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
24988 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
24989 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
24990 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
24991 something like that.
24994 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
24997 @cindex reporting bugs
24999 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
25001 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
25002 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
25003 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
25004 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
25006 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
25007 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
25008 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
25009 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
25012 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
25013 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
25014 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
25015 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
25016 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
25017 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
25019 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
25020 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
25021 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
25025 If you would like to contribute a patch to fix bugs or make
25026 improvements, please produce the patch using @samp{diff -u}.
25029 If you want to debug your problem further before reporting, possibly
25030 in order to solve the problem yourself and send a patch, you can use
25031 edebug. Debugging lisp code is documented in the Elisp manual
25032 (@pxref{Debugging, , Debugging Lisp Programs, elisp, The GNU Emacs
25033 Lisp Reference Manual}). To get you started with edebug, consider if
25034 you discover some weird behaviour when pressing @kbd{c}, the first
25035 step is to do @kbd{C-h k c} and click on the hyperlink (Emacs only) in
25036 the documentation buffer that leads you to the function definition,
25037 then press @kbd{M-x edebug-defun RET} with point inside that function,
25038 return to Gnus and press @kbd{c} to invoke the code. You will be
25039 placed in the lisp buffer and can single step using @kbd{SPC} and
25040 evaluate expressions using @kbd{M-:} or inspect variables using
25041 @kbd{C-h v}, abort execution with @kbd{q}, and resume execution with
25042 @kbd{c} or @kbd{g}.
25047 Sometimes, a problem do not directly generate a elisp error but
25048 manifests itself by causing Gnus to be very slow. In these cases, you
25049 can use @kbd{M-x toggle-debug-on-quit} and press @kbd{C-g} when things are
25050 slow, and then try to analyze the backtrace (repeating the procedure
25051 helps isolating the real problem areas). A fancier approach is to use
25052 the elisp profiler, ELP. The profiler is (or should be) fully
25053 documented elsewhere, but to get you started there are a few steps
25054 that need to be followed. First, instrument the part of Gnus you are
25055 interested in for profiling, e.g. @kbd{M-x elp-instrument-package RET
25056 gnus} or @kbd{M-x elp-instrument-package RET message}. Then perform
25057 the operation that is slow and press @kbd{M-x elp-results}. You will
25058 then see which operations that takes time, and can debug them further.
25059 If the entire operation takes much longer than the time spent in the
25060 slowest function in the profiler output, you probably profiled the
25061 wrong part of Gnus. To reset profiling statistics, use @kbd{M-x
25062 elp-reset-all}. @kbd{M-x elp-restore-all} is supposed to remove
25063 profiling, but given the complexities and dynamic code generation in
25064 Gnus, it might not always work perfectly.
25066 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
25067 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
25069 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
25070 @cindex ding mailing list
25071 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@email{ding@@gnus.org}.
25072 Write to @email{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
25076 @node Gnus Reference Guide
25077 @section Gnus Reference Guide
25079 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
25080 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
25081 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
25082 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
25085 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
25086 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
25087 back ends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
25088 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
25089 and general methods of operation.
25092 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
25093 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
25094 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
25095 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
25096 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
25097 * Group Info:: The group info format.
25098 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
25099 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
25100 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
25104 @node Gnus Utility Functions
25105 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
25106 @cindex Gnus utility functions
25107 @cindex utility functions
25109 @cindex internal variables
25111 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
25112 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
25113 Below is a list of the most common ones.
25117 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
25118 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
25119 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
25121 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
25122 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
25123 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
25125 @item gnus-group-real-name
25126 @findex gnus-group-real-name
25127 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
25130 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
25131 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
25132 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
25133 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
25135 @item gnus-get-info
25136 @findex gnus-get-info
25137 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
25139 @item gnus-group-unread
25140 @findex gnus-group-unread
25141 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
25145 @findex gnus-active
25146 The active entry for @var{group}.
25148 @item gnus-set-active
25149 @findex gnus-set-active
25150 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
25152 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
25153 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
25154 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
25157 @item gnus-continuum-version
25158 @findex gnus-continuum-version
25159 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
25160 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
25163 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
25164 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
25165 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
25167 @item gnus-news-group-p
25168 @findex gnus-news-group-p
25169 Says whether @var{group} came from a news back end.
25171 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
25172 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
25173 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
25175 @item gnus-server-to-method
25176 @findex gnus-server-to-method
25177 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
25179 @item gnus-server-equal
25180 @findex gnus-server-equal
25181 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
25183 @item gnus-group-native-p
25184 @findex gnus-group-native-p
25185 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
25187 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
25188 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
25189 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
25191 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
25192 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
25193 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
25195 @item group-group-find-parameter
25196 @findex group-group-find-parameter
25197 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
25198 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
25200 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
25201 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
25202 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
25204 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
25205 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
25206 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
25208 @item gnus-check-backend-function
25209 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
25210 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the back end
25211 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
25214 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
25218 @item gnus-read-method
25219 @findex gnus-read-method
25220 Prompts the user for a select method.
25225 @node Back End Interface
25226 @subsection Back End Interface
25228 Gnus doesn't know anything about @acronym{NNTP}, spools, mail or virtual
25229 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
25230 server is a @dfn{back end} and some @dfn{back end variables}. As examples
25231 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
25232 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
25233 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
25235 When Gnus asks for information from a back end---say @code{nntp}---on
25236 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
25237 function parameters. (If not, the back end should use the ``current''
25238 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
25239 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
25240 been opened, the function should fail.
25242 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
25243 name. Take this example:
25247 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
25248 (nntp-port-number 4324))
25251 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
25252 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
25254 The back ends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
25255 The standard back ends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
25256 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
25258 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
25259 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
25260 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
25262 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
25263 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
25264 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
25265 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
25266 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
25267 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
25270 Some back ends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} back ends, and
25271 some might be said not to be. The latter are back ends that generally
25272 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
25273 ---they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
25276 Gnus identifies each message by way of group name and article number. A
25277 few remarks about these article numbers might be useful. First of all,
25278 the numbers are positive integers. Secondly, it is normally not
25279 possible for later articles to `re-use' older article numbers without
25280 confusing Gnus. That is, if a group has ever contained a message
25281 numbered 42, then no other message may get that number, or Gnus will get
25282 mightily confused.@footnote{See the function
25283 @code{nnchoke-request-update-info}, @ref{Optional Back End Functions}.}
25284 Third, article numbers must be assigned in order of arrival in the
25285 group; this is not necessarily the same as the date of the message.
25287 The previous paragraph already mentions all the `hard' restrictions that
25288 article numbers must fulfill. But it seems that it might be useful to
25289 assign @emph{consecutive} article numbers, for Gnus gets quite confused
25290 if there are holes in the article numbering sequence. However, due to
25291 the `no-reuse' restriction, holes cannot be avoided altogether. It's
25292 also useful for the article numbers to start at 1 to avoid running out
25293 of numbers as long as possible.
25295 Note that by convention, backends are named @code{nnsomething}, but
25296 Gnus also comes with some @code{nnnotbackends}, such as
25297 @file{nnheader.el}, @file{nnmail.el} and @file{nnoo.el}.
25299 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary back end
25302 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
25305 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
25306 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
25307 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
25308 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
25309 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
25310 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
25314 @node Required Back End Functions
25315 @subsubsection Required Back End Functions
25319 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
25321 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
25322 @code{Message-ID}s. Current back ends do not fully support either---only
25323 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most back ends do not support
25324 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
25326 The result data should either be HEADs or @acronym{NOV} lines, and the result
25327 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
25328 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
25329 of HEADs and @acronym{NOV} lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
25331 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching ``extra
25332 headers'', in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
25333 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
25334 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
25335 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the back end finds it
25336 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
25337 number, do maximum fetches.
25339 Here's an example HEAD:
25342 221 1056 Article retrieved.
25343 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
25344 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
25345 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
25346 Subject: Re: Something very droll
25347 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
25348 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
25350 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
25351 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
25352 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
25356 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
25357 these in the data buffer.
25359 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
25363 head = error / valid-head
25364 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
25365 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
25366 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
25367 header = <text> eol
25371 (The version of BNF used here is the one used in RFC822.)
25373 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
25374 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
25378 nov-buffer = *nov-line
25379 nov-line = field 7*8[ <TAB> field ] eol
25380 field = <text except TAB>
25383 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
25387 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
25389 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
25390 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
25392 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The back end
25393 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
25394 server. In fact, it should do so.
25396 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
25397 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
25400 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
25402 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
25403 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
25406 There should be no data returned.
25409 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
25411 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the back end
25412 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that back end
25413 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
25414 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
25416 There should be no data returned.
25419 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
25421 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
25422 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
25423 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
25424 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
25426 There should be no data returned.
25429 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
25431 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
25433 There should be no data returned.
25436 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
25438 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
25439 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
25440 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
25441 it would be nice if that were possible.
25443 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
25444 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
25445 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
25446 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
25447 into its article buffer.
25449 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
25450 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
25451 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
25452 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
25453 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
25454 on successful article retrieval.
25457 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
25459 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
25460 making @var{group} the current group.
25462 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
25465 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
25468 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
25471 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
25472 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
25473 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
25474 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
25475 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
25476 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
25477 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
25478 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader. If the group contains no
25479 articles, the lowest article number should be reported as 1 and the
25483 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
25484 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
25485 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
25489 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
25491 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
25492 a no-op on most back ends.
25494 There should be no data returned.
25497 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
25499 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
25502 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
25505 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
25506 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
25509 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
25510 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag. If the group
25511 contains no articles, the lowest article number should be reported as 1
25512 and the highest as 0.
25515 active-file = *active-line
25516 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
25518 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
25521 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
25522 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
25523 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
25526 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
25528 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
25529 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
25530 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
25531 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
25532 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
25533 clear if the posting could not be completed.
25535 There should be no result data from this function.
25540 @node Optional Back End Functions
25541 @subsubsection Optional Back End Functions
25545 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
25547 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
25548 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
25549 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
25551 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
25552 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
25553 former is in the same format as the data from
25554 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
25555 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
25558 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
25562 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
25564 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the back end for
25565 alterations. This comes in handy if the back end really carries all
25566 the information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
25567 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
25568 should return a non-@code{nil} value.
25570 There should be no result data from this function.
25573 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
25575 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
25576 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
25577 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
25578 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
25579 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
25580 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
25581 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
25582 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
25584 There should be no result data from this function.
25587 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
25589 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
25590 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
25591 @file{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some back ends (such as @acronym{IMAP}) however carry
25592 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
25593 propagate the mark information to the server.
25595 @var{action} is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
25598 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
25601 @var{range} is a range of articles you wish to update marks on.
25602 @var{action} is @code{add} or @code{del}, used to add marks or remove
25603 marks (preserving all marks not mentioned). @var{mark} is a list of
25604 marks; where each mark is a symbol. Currently used marks are
25605 @code{read}, @code{tick}, @code{reply}, @code{expire}, @code{killed},
25606 @code{dormant}, @code{save}, @code{download}, @code{unsend},
25607 @code{forward} and @code{recent}, but your back end should, if
25608 possible, not limit itself to these.
25610 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
25611 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
25612 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
25613 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
25615 An example action list:
25618 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
25619 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
25620 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
25623 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
25624 mark on (currently not used for anything).
25626 There should be no result data from this function.
25628 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
25630 If the user tries to set a mark that the back end doesn't like, this
25631 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
25632 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
25633 @var{mark}. If the back end doesn't care, it must return the original
25634 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
25636 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
25637 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
25638 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
25641 There should be no result data from this function.
25644 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
25646 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
25647 request that the back end check for incoming articles, in one way or
25648 another. A mail back end will typically read the spool file or query
25649 the @acronym{POP} server when this function is invoked. The
25650 @var{group} doesn't have to be heeded---if the back end decides that
25651 it is too much work just scanning for a single group, it may do a
25652 total scan of all groups. It would be nice, however, to keep things
25653 local if that's practical.
25655 There should be no result data from this function.
25658 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
25660 The result data from this function should be a description of
25664 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
25666 description = <text>
25669 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
25671 The result data from this function should be the description of all
25672 groups available on the server.
25675 description-buffer = *description-line
25679 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
25681 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
25682 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date format
25683 (i.e., the date format used in mail and news headers, and returned by
25684 the function @code{message-make-date} by default). The data should be
25685 in the active buffer format.
25687 It is okay for this function to return `too many' groups; some back ends
25688 might find it cheaper to return the full list of groups, rather than
25689 just the new groups. But don't do this for back ends with many groups.
25690 Normally, if the user creates the groups herself, there won't be too
25691 many groups, so @code{nnml} and the like are probably safe. But for
25692 back ends like @code{nntp}, where the groups have been created by the
25693 server, it is quite likely that there can be many groups.
25696 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
25698 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
25700 There should be no return data.
25703 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
25705 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
25706 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
25707 numbers.) It is left up to the back end to decide how old articles
25708 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
25709 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
25712 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
25715 There should be no result data returned.
25718 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM &optional LAST)
25720 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
25721 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
25723 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
25724 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
25725 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
25726 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
25727 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
25728 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
25730 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
25731 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
25734 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
25735 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
25737 There should be no data returned.
25740 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
25742 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
25743 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
25744 this function in short order.
25746 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
25747 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
25749 The group should exist before the backend is asked to accept the
25750 article for that group.
25752 There should be no data returned.
25755 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
25757 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
25758 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
25760 There should be no data returned.
25763 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
25765 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
25766 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
25767 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
25769 There should be no data returned.
25772 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
25774 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
25775 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
25777 There should be no data returned.
25782 @node Error Messaging
25783 @subsubsection Error Messaging
25785 @findex nnheader-report
25786 @findex nnheader-get-report
25787 The back ends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
25788 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
25789 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the back end
25790 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
25791 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
25792 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
25795 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
25797 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
25800 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
25801 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
25802 recently reported message for the back end in question. This function
25803 takes one argument---the server symbol.
25805 Internally, these functions access @var{back-end}@code{-status-string},
25806 so the @code{nnchoke} back end will have its error message stored in
25807 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
25810 @node Writing New Back Ends
25811 @subsubsection Writing New Back Ends
25813 Many back ends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
25814 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
25815 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
25816 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
25817 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
25820 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
25821 back ends when writing new back ends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
25822 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
25824 All the back ends declare their public variables and functions by using a
25825 package called @code{nnoo}.
25827 To inherit functions from other back ends (and allow other back ends to
25828 inherit functions from the current back end), you should use the
25834 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
25835 parameters. For instance:
25838 (nnoo-declare nndir
25842 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
25843 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
25846 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
25847 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
25848 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
25850 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
25851 variables in the parent back ends to map the variable to when executing
25852 a function in those back ends.
25855 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
25856 "Where nndir will look for groups."
25857 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
25860 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
25861 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
25862 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
25864 @item nnoo-define-basics
25865 This macro defines some common functions that almost all back ends should
25869 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
25873 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
25874 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
25875 function as being public so that other back ends can inherit it.
25877 @item nnoo-map-functions
25878 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current back end to
25879 functions from the parent back ends.
25882 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
25883 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
25884 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
25887 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
25888 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
25889 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
25890 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
25893 This macro allows importing functions from back ends. It should be the
25894 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
25895 haven't already been defined.
25901 nnmh-request-newgroups)
25905 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
25906 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
25907 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
25912 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} back end.
25915 ;;; @r{nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus}
25916 ;; @r{Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.}
25920 (require 'nnheader)
25924 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
25926 (nnoo-declare nndir
25929 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
25930 "Where nndir will look for groups."
25931 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
25933 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
25934 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
25937 (defvoo nndir-current-group ""
25939 nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
25940 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
25941 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
25943 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
25944 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
25946 ;;; @r{Interface functions.}
25948 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
25950 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
25951 (setq nndir-directory
25952 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
25954 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
25955 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
25956 (push `(nndir-current-group
25957 ,(file-name-nondirectory
25958 (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
25960 (push `(nndir-top-directory
25961 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
25963 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
25965 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
25966 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
25967 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
25968 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
25969 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
25973 nnmh-status-message
25975 nnmh-request-newgroups))
25981 @node Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
25982 @subsubsection Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
25984 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
25985 @findex gnus-declare-backend
25986 Having Gnus start using your new back end is rather easy---you just
25987 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
25988 enter the back end into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
25990 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the back end name and
25991 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
25996 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
25999 The above line would then go in the @file{nnchoke.el} file.
26001 The abilities can be:
26005 This is a mailish back end---followups should (probably) go via mail.
26007 This is a newsish back end---followups should (probably) go via news.
26009 This back end supports both mail and news.
26011 This is neither a post nor mail back end---it's something completely
26014 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
26015 articles and groups.
26017 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
26018 true for almost all back ends.
26019 @item prompt-address
26020 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
26021 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for back ends like
26022 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
26026 @node Mail-like Back Ends
26027 @subsubsection Mail-like Back Ends
26029 One of the things that separate the mail back ends from the rest of the
26030 back ends is the heavy dependence by most of the mail back ends on
26031 common functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the
26032 definition of @code{nnml-request-scan}:
26035 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
26036 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
26037 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
26040 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
26041 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
26044 This function takes four parameters.
26048 This should be a symbol to designate which back end is responsible for
26051 @item exit-function
26052 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
26054 @item temp-directory
26055 Where the temporary files should be stored.
26058 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
26059 performed for one group only.
26062 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{back-end}@code{-save-mail} to
26063 save each article. @var{back-end}@code{-active-number} will be called to
26064 find the article number assigned to this article.
26066 The function also uses the following variables:
26067 @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
26068 this back end); and @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} and
26069 @var{back-end}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
26070 @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
26074 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
26075 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
26079 @node Score File Syntax
26080 @subsection Score File Syntax
26082 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
26083 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
26084 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
26086 Here's a typical score file:
26090 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
26097 BNF definition of a score file:
26100 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
26101 element = rule / atom
26102 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
26103 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
26104 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
26105 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
26107 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
26108 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
26109 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
26110 date-header = "date"
26111 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
26112 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
26113 score = "nil" / <integer>
26114 date = "nil" / <natural number>
26115 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
26116 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
26117 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
26118 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
26119 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
26120 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
26121 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
26122 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
26123 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
26124 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
26125 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
26126 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
26127 exclude-files / read-only / touched
26128 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
26129 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
26130 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
26131 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
26132 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
26133 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
26134 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
26135 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
26136 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
26137 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
26138 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
26139 eval = "eval" space <form>
26140 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
26143 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
26146 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
26147 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
26148 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
26149 one looong line, then that's ok.
26151 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
26152 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
26156 @subsection Headers
26158 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
26159 corresponds to the @acronym{NOV} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
26160 almost suspect that the author looked at the @acronym{NOV} specification and
26161 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
26163 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
26164 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
26165 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
26166 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
26167 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
26168 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
26169 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
26171 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
26172 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
26173 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
26174 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
26175 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
26177 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
26178 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
26184 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
26185 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
26187 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
26188 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
26189 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
26190 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
26192 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
26196 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
26199 is transformed into
26202 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
26205 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
26206 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
26209 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
26212 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
26213 is slightly tricky:
26216 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
26222 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
26225 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
26231 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
26238 and is equal to the previous range.
26240 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
26241 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
26242 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
26246 range = simple-range / normal-range
26247 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
26248 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
26249 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
26250 number *[ " " contents ]
26253 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
26254 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
26255 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
26256 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
26257 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
26262 @subsection Group Info
26264 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
26265 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
26266 describes the group.
26268 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
26269 second is a more complex one:
26272 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
26274 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
26275 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
26277 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
26280 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
26281 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
26282 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
26283 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
26284 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
26285 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
26286 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
26287 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
26288 this section is about.
26290 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
26291 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
26292 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
26294 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
26297 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
26298 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
26299 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
26300 group = quote <string> quote
26301 ralevel = rank / level
26302 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
26303 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
26304 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
26306 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
26307 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
26308 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
26309 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
26312 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
26313 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
26316 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
26317 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
26320 @item gnus-info-group
26321 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
26322 @findex gnus-info-group
26323 @findex gnus-info-set-group
26324 Get/set the group name.
26326 @item gnus-info-rank
26327 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
26328 @findex gnus-info-rank
26329 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
26330 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
26332 @item gnus-info-level
26333 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
26334 @findex gnus-info-level
26335 @findex gnus-info-set-level
26336 Get/set the group level.
26338 @item gnus-info-score
26339 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
26340 @findex gnus-info-score
26341 @findex gnus-info-set-score
26342 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
26344 @item gnus-info-read
26345 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
26346 @findex gnus-info-read
26347 @findex gnus-info-set-read
26348 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
26350 @item gnus-info-marks
26351 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
26352 @findex gnus-info-marks
26353 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
26354 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
26356 @item gnus-info-method
26357 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
26358 @findex gnus-info-method
26359 @findex gnus-info-set-method
26360 Get/set the group select method.
26362 @item gnus-info-params
26363 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
26364 @findex gnus-info-params
26365 @findex gnus-info-set-params
26366 Get/set the group parameters.
26369 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
26370 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
26372 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
26373 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
26374 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
26375 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
26378 @node Extended Interactive
26379 @subsection Extended Interactive
26380 @cindex interactive
26381 @findex gnus-interactive
26383 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
26384 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
26385 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
26388 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
26389 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
26394 The best thing to do would have been to implement
26395 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
26396 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
26397 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
26398 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
26399 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
26400 @code{interactive}.
26402 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
26407 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
26408 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
26412 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
26413 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
26414 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
26417 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
26421 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
26425 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
26431 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
26432 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
26436 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
26437 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
26438 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
26440 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
26441 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
26442 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
26443 Gnus, that's very useful.
26445 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
26446 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
26447 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
26448 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
26449 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
26450 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
26451 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
26452 following function:
26455 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
26459 (,function ,@@args))
26463 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
26464 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
26465 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
26468 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
26469 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
26470 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
26472 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
26473 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
26474 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
26477 @node Various File Formats
26478 @subsection Various File Formats
26481 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
26482 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
26486 @node Active File Format
26487 @subsubsection Active File Format
26489 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
26490 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
26493 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
26496 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
26497 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
26498 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
26499 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
26500 no.general 1000 900 y
26503 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
26506 active = *group-line
26507 group-line = group spc high-number spc low-number spc flag <NEWLINE>
26508 group = <non-white-space string>
26510 high-number = <non-negative integer>
26511 low-number = <positive integer>
26512 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
26515 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
26516 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
26519 @node Newsgroups File Format
26520 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
26522 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
26523 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
26524 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
26527 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
26528 Here's the definition:
26532 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
26533 group = <non-white-space string>
26535 description = <string>
26540 @node Emacs for Heathens
26541 @section Emacs for Heathens
26543 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
26544 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
26545 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{C-M-a}'', ``kill the
26546 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
26547 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
26548 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
26549 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
26553 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
26554 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
26559 @subsection Keystrokes
26563 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
26566 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
26569 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
26570 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
26571 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
26572 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
26573 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
26574 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
26576 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
26577 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
26578 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
26579 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
26580 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
26581 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
26582 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
26584 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
26585 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{C-M-m}
26586 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
26587 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
26588 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
26589 ``Press @kbd{C-M-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
26590 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
26592 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
26593 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
26594 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
26595 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
26596 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
26602 @subsection Emacs Lisp
26604 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
26605 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
26606 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
26607 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
26609 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
26610 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
26611 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
26612 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
26613 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
26614 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
26615 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
26618 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
26619 write the following:
26622 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
26625 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
26626 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
26627 you can go and fill your @file{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
26630 If you have put that thing in your @file{.emacs} file, it will be read
26631 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
26632 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
26633 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
26634 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
26636 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
26637 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
26638 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
26642 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
26646 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
26649 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
26650 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
26653 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
26656 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
26657 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
26660 @include gnus-faq.texi
26680 @c Local Variables:
26682 @c coding: iso-8859-1
26684 % LocalWords: BNF mucho detailmenu cindex kindex kbd
26685 % LocalWords: findex Gnusae vindex dfn dfn samp nntp setq nnspool nntpserver
26686 % LocalWords: nnmbox newusers Blllrph NEWGROUPS dingnusdingnusdingnus
26687 % LocalWords: pre fab rec comp nnslashdot regex ga ga sci nnml nnbabyl nnmh
26688 % LocalWords: nnfolder emph looong eld newsreaders defun init elc pxref