10 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
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284 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
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293 Copyright \copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001,
295 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
298 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
299 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
300 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
301 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
302 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
303 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
304 License'' in the Emacs manual.
306 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
307 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
308 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
310 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
311 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
312 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
313 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
321 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
323 Copyright (C) 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003
324 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
326 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
327 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
328 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
329 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
330 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
331 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
332 License'' in the Emacs manual.
334 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
335 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
336 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
338 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
339 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
340 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
341 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
349 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
352 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
353 Copyright @copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001,
355 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
357 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
358 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
359 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
360 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
361 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
362 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
363 License'' in the Emacs manual.
365 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
366 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
367 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
369 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
370 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
371 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
372 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
381 @top The Gnus Newsreader
385 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
386 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
387 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
390 This manual corresponds to Oort Gnus v0.18.
401 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
402 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
404 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
405 being accused of plagiarism:
407 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
408 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
409 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
410 can even read news with it!
412 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
413 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
414 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
415 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
416 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
422 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
423 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
424 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
425 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
426 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
427 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
428 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
429 * Various:: General purpose settings.
430 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
431 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
432 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
433 * Key Index:: Key Index.
435 Other related manuals
437 * Message:(message). Composing messages.
438 * Emacs-MIME:(emacs-mime). Composing messages; MIME-specific parts.
439 * Sieve:(sieve). Managing Sieve scripts in Emacs.
440 * PGG:(pgg). PGP/MIME with Gnus.
443 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
447 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
448 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
449 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
450 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
451 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
452 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
453 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
454 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
455 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
456 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
457 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
461 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
462 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
463 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
467 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
468 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
469 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
470 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
471 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
472 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
473 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
474 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
475 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
476 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
477 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
478 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
479 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
480 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
481 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
482 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
483 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
487 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
488 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
489 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
493 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
494 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
495 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
496 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
497 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
501 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
502 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
503 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
504 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
505 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
509 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
510 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
511 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
512 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
513 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
514 * Delayed Articles:: Send articles at a later time.
515 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
516 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
517 * Threading:: How threads are made.
518 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
519 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
520 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
521 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
522 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
523 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
524 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
525 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
526 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
527 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
528 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
529 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
530 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
531 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
532 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
533 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
534 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
535 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
536 or reselecting the current group.
537 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
538 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
539 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
540 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
542 Summary Buffer Format
544 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
545 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
546 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
547 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
551 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
552 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
554 Reply, Followup and Post
556 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
557 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
558 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
559 * Canceling and Superseding::
563 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
564 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
565 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
567 * Generic Marking Commands::
568 * Setting Process Marks::
572 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
573 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
574 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
578 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
579 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
581 Customizing Threading
583 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
584 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
585 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
586 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over@dots{} but you were wrong!
590 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
591 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
592 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
593 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
594 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
595 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
599 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
600 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
601 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
605 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
606 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
607 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
608 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
609 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
610 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
611 * Article Button Levels:: Controlling appearance of buttons.
612 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
613 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
614 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
615 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
617 Alternative Approaches
619 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
620 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
622 Various Summary Stuff
624 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
625 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
626 * Summary Generation Commands::
627 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
631 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
632 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
633 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
634 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
635 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
639 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
640 * Posting Server:: What server should you post and mail via?
641 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
642 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
643 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
644 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
645 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
646 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
650 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
651 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
652 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
653 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
654 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
655 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
656 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
657 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
661 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
662 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
663 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
664 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
665 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
666 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
667 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
671 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
672 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
676 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
677 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
678 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
682 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
683 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
684 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
685 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
686 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
687 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
688 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
689 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
690 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
691 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
692 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
693 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
694 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
698 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
699 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
700 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
702 Choosing a Mail Back End
704 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
705 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
706 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
707 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
708 * Maildir:: Another one-file-per-message format.
709 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
710 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
715 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
716 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
717 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
718 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
719 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
720 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
724 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
725 * Expiring in IMAP:: Expiring mail with nnimap.
726 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
727 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a ``compress mailbox'' button.
728 * A note on namespaces:: How to (not) use IMAP namespace in Gnus.
732 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
733 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
734 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
735 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
736 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
740 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
744 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
745 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
746 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
750 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
751 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
755 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
756 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
757 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
758 * Agent as Cache:: The Agent is a big cache too.
759 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
760 * Agent Regeneration:: How to recover from lost connections and other accidents.
761 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
762 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
763 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
764 * Example Setup:: An example @file{~/.gnus.el} file for offline people.
765 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
766 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
770 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
771 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
772 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
776 * Group Agent Commands:: Configure groups and fetch their contents.
777 * Summary Agent Commands:: Manually select then fetch specific articles.
778 * Server Agent Commands:: Select the servers that are supported by the agent.
782 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
783 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
784 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
785 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
786 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
787 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
788 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
789 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
790 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
791 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
792 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
793 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
794 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
795 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
796 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
797 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
798 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
802 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
803 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
804 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
805 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
809 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
810 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
811 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
815 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
816 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
817 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
818 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
819 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
820 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
821 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
822 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
823 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
824 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
825 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
826 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
827 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
828 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
829 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
830 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
831 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
832 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
833 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
837 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
838 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
839 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
840 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
841 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
842 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
843 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
844 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
848 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
849 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
850 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
851 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
855 * The problem of spam:: Some background, and some solutions
856 * Anti-Spam Basics:: Simple steps to reduce the amount of spam.
857 * SpamAssassin:: How to use external anti-spam tools.
858 * Hashcash:: Reduce spam by burning CPU time.
859 * Filtering Spam Using The Spam ELisp Package::
860 * Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat::
864 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
865 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
866 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
867 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
868 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
869 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
870 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
871 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
872 * Frequently Asked Questions::
876 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
877 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
878 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
879 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
880 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
881 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
882 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
883 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
884 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
888 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
889 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
890 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
891 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
892 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
896 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
897 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
898 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
899 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
903 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
904 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
905 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
906 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
907 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
908 * Group Info:: The group info format.
909 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
910 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
911 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
915 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
916 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
917 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
918 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
919 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
920 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
924 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
925 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
929 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
930 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
936 @chapter Starting Gnus
941 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
942 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
945 @findex gnus-other-frame
946 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
947 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
948 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
950 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
951 variables in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file. This file is similar to
952 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
954 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
955 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
958 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
959 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
960 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
961 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
962 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
963 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
964 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
965 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
966 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
967 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
968 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
972 @node Finding the News
973 @section Finding the News
976 @vindex gnus-select-method
978 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
979 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
980 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
981 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
984 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
985 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
988 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
991 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
994 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
997 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
998 certainly be much faster. But do not use the local spool if your
999 server is running Leafnode; in this case, use @code{(nntp "localhost")}.
1001 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
1003 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
1004 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
1005 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
1006 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
1007 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
1008 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
1010 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
1011 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
1012 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
1013 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
1015 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
1016 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
1017 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
1018 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
1019 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
1020 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
1021 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
1022 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
1023 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
1026 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
1028 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
1029 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
1030 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
1031 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
1032 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
1033 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
1035 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
1037 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
1038 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
1039 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
1040 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
1041 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
1042 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
1045 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} back end to read your mail,
1046 you would typically set this variable to
1049 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
1053 @node The First Time
1054 @section The First Time
1055 @cindex first time usage
1057 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
1058 be subscribed by default.
1060 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
1061 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
1062 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
1063 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1066 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1067 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1068 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1070 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
1071 help you with most common problems.
1073 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
1074 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1078 @node The Server is Down
1079 @section The Server is Down
1080 @cindex server errors
1082 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
1083 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1084 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
1086 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1087 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1088 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1089 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1090 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1091 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1092 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1094 @findex gnus-no-server
1095 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1097 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1098 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1099 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
1100 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1101 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1102 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1103 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1107 @section Slave Gnusae
1110 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
1111 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1112 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
1113 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1115 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1116 @file{.newsrc} file.
1118 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
1119 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1120 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1121 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1122 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1123 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1124 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1127 Anyway, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1128 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
1129 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1130 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1131 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
1132 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1133 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1134 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1136 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1137 information in the normal (i.e., master) @file{.newsrc} file.
1139 If the @file{.newsrc*} files have not been saved in the master when the
1140 slave starts, you may be prompted as to whether to read an auto-save
1141 file. If you answer ``yes'', the unsaved changes to the master will be
1142 incorporated into the slave. If you answer ``no'', the slave may see some
1143 messages as unread that have been read in the master.
1145 @node Fetching a Group
1146 @section Fetching a Group
1147 @cindex fetching a group
1149 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1150 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1151 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
1152 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1153 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1154 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1160 @cindex subscription
1162 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1163 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1164 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1165 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1166 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1167 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1168 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1169 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the back ends for new groups even
1170 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1173 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1174 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1175 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1179 @node Checking New Groups
1180 @subsection Checking New Groups
1182 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1183 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1184 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1185 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
1186 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1187 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1188 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1189 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1190 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1191 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1193 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1194 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1195 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1196 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1197 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1198 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
1199 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1200 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1201 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1202 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1203 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1205 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
1206 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1207 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1208 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1209 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1210 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1213 @node Subscription Methods
1214 @subsection Subscription Methods
1216 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1217 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1218 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1220 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1221 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1223 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1227 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1228 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1229 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1230 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1231 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1233 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1234 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1235 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1236 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1238 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1239 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1240 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1242 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1243 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1244 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1245 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1246 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1247 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1248 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1249 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1250 up. Or something like that.
1252 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1253 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1254 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
1255 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1256 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1258 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1259 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1260 Kill all new groups.
1262 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1263 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1264 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1265 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1266 topic parameter that looks like
1272 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1275 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1280 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1281 A closely related variable is
1282 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1283 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
1284 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1285 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1288 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1289 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1290 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1291 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1294 @node Filtering New Groups
1295 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1297 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1298 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1299 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1302 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1305 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1306 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1307 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1308 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1309 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1310 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1311 subscribing these groups.
1312 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1313 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1315 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1316 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1317 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1318 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1319 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1320 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1321 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1322 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1324 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1325 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1326 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1327 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1328 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1329 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1330 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1331 that come from mail back ends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1332 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, @code{nnmh}, and @code{nnmaildir})
1333 subscribed. If you don't like that, just set this variable to
1336 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1337 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1340 @node Changing Servers
1341 @section Changing Servers
1342 @cindex changing servers
1344 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
1345 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1346 very flaky and you want to use another.
1348 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1349 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1353 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1354 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1355 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1356 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1359 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1360 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1361 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1362 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1364 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1365 @findex gnus-change-server
1366 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1367 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1368 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1369 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1370 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1372 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1373 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1374 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1375 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1376 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1378 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1379 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1380 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1381 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1382 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1383 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1385 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data
1386 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1387 Clear the data from the current group only---nix out marks and the
1388 list of read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1390 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1391 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1392 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1393 @code{gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} will ask you if you want
1394 to have it done automatically; for @code{gnus-group-clear-data}, you
1395 can use @kbd{M-x gnus-cache-move-cache} (but beware, it will move the
1396 cache for all groups).
1400 @section Startup Files
1401 @cindex startup files
1406 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1407 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1409 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1410 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1411 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1412 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1413 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1414 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1415 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1417 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1418 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1419 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1420 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1421 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1422 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1424 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1425 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1426 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1427 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1428 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
1429 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1430 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1431 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
1432 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1433 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1435 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1436 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1437 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1438 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1439 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1440 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1441 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1442 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1443 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1444 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1445 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1446 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1448 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1449 @vindex gnus-backup-startup-file
1450 @vindex version-control
1451 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1452 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1453 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1454 If you want version control for this file, set
1455 @code{gnus-backup-startup-file}. It respects the same values as the
1456 @code{version-control} variable.
1458 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1459 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1460 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1461 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1462 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1463 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1464 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1465 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1466 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1467 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1470 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1471 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1473 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1474 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1477 @vindex gnus-init-file
1478 @vindex gnus-site-init-file
1479 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1480 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1481 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1482 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1483 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1484 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1485 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1486 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1487 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1493 @cindex dribble file
1496 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
1497 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1498 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1499 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1500 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1503 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1504 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1507 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1508 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
1509 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1511 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1512 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1513 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
1514 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1515 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1516 file permissions as the @file{.newsrc} file.
1518 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1519 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1520 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1523 @node The Active File
1524 @section The Active File
1526 @cindex ignored groups
1528 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1529 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1530 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1532 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1533 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
1534 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1535 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
1536 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1537 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1538 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1541 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1542 @c if you set it to anything else.
1544 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1546 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1547 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
1548 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1550 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1551 you actually subscribe to.
1553 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1554 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
1555 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
1556 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1558 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1559 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1560 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1561 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1562 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1563 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1565 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1566 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1567 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1570 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
1571 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1572 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1573 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1574 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1575 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1577 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1578 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1580 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1581 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1583 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1584 secondary select methods.
1587 @node Startup Variables
1588 @section Startup Variables
1592 @item gnus-load-hook
1593 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1594 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1595 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1596 times you start Gnus.
1598 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1599 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1600 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1602 @item gnus-startup-hook
1603 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1604 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1606 @item gnus-started-hook
1607 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1608 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1611 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1612 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1613 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1614 generating the group buffer.
1616 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1617 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1618 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1619 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1620 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1621 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1622 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1623 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1625 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1626 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1627 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1628 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1629 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1630 @file{~/.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @file{.emacs} instead.
1632 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1633 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1634 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1636 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1637 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1638 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1640 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1641 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1642 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1643 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1649 @chapter Group Buffer
1650 @cindex group buffer
1652 @c Alex Schroeder suggests to rearrange this as follows:
1654 @c <kensanata> ok, just save it for reference. I'll go to bed in a minute.
1655 @c 1. Selecting a Group, 2. (new) Finding a Group, 3. Group Levels,
1656 @c 4. Subscription Commands, 5. Group Maneuvering, 6. Group Data,
1657 @c 7. Group Score, 8. Group Buffer Format
1658 @c <kensanata> Group Levels should have more information on levels 5 to 9. I
1659 @c suggest to split the 4th paragraph ("Gnus considers groups...") as follows:
1660 @c <kensanata> First, "Gnus considers groups... (default 9)."
1661 @c <kensanata> New, a table summarizing what levels 1 to 9 mean.
1662 @c <kensanata> Third, "Gnus treats subscribed ... reasons of efficiency"
1663 @c <kensanata> Then expand the next paragraph or add some more to it.
1664 @c This short one sentence explains levels 1 and 2, therefore I understand
1665 @c that I should keep important news at 3 and boring news at 4.
1666 @c Say so! Then go on to explain why I should bother with levels 6 to 9.
1667 @c Maybe keep those that you don't want to read temporarily at 6,
1668 @c those that you never want to read at 8, those that offend your
1669 @c human rights at 9...
1672 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1673 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1674 long as Gnus is active.
1678 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1679 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group,height=9cm}}
1680 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1681 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1682 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1683 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1684 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1685 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1691 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1692 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1693 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1694 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1695 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1696 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1697 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1698 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1699 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1700 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1701 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1702 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1703 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1704 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1705 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1706 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1707 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1711 @node Group Buffer Format
1712 @section Group Buffer Format
1715 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1716 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1717 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1721 @node Group Line Specification
1722 @subsection Group Line Specification
1723 @cindex group buffer format
1725 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1726 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1728 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1731 25: news.announce.newusers
1732 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1737 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1738 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1739 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1740 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1742 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1743 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1744 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1745 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1746 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1747 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1749 @samp{%M%S%5y:%B%(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1751 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1752 the colon after performing an operation. @xref{Positioning
1753 Point}. Nothing else is required---not even the group name. All
1754 displayed text is just window dressing, and is never examined by Gnus.
1755 Gnus stores all real information it needs using text properties.
1757 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1758 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1759 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1761 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1766 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1769 Whether the group is subscribed.
1772 Level of subscribedness.
1775 Number of unread articles.
1778 Number of dormant articles.
1781 Number of ticked articles.
1784 Number of read articles.
1787 Number of unseen articles.
1790 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1791 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1793 Gnus uses this estimation because the @sc{nntp} protocol provides
1794 efficient access to @var{max-number} and @var{min-number} but getting
1795 the true unread message count is not possible efficiently. For
1796 hysterical raisins, even the mail back ends, where the true number of
1797 unread messages might be available efficiently, use the same limited
1798 interface. To remove this restriction from Gnus means that the back
1799 end interface has to be changed, which is not an easy job. If you
1800 want to work on this, please contact the Gnus mailing list.
1803 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1806 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1815 Group comment (@pxref{Group Parameters}) or group name if there is no
1816 comment element in the group parameters.
1819 Newsgroup description. You need to read the group descriptions
1820 before these will appear, and to do that, you either have to set
1821 @code{gnus-read-active-file} or use the group buffer @kbd{M-d}
1825 @samp{m} if moderated.
1828 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1834 If the summary buffer for the group is open or not.
1840 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1844 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1847 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1848 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1849 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1850 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1851 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1854 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1856 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1860 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1863 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1867 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1868 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1869 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1870 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1871 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1872 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1877 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1878 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1879 group, or a bogus native group.
1882 @node Group Modeline Specification
1883 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1884 @cindex group modeline
1886 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1887 The mode line can be changed by setting
1888 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1889 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1893 The native news server.
1895 The native select method.
1899 @node Group Highlighting
1900 @subsection Group Highlighting
1901 @cindex highlighting
1902 @cindex group highlighting
1904 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1905 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1906 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1907 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1908 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1910 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1914 (cond (window-system
1915 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1916 (defface my-group-face-1
1917 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1918 (defface my-group-face-2
1919 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1920 (defface my-group-face-3
1921 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1922 (defface my-group-face-4
1923 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1924 (defface my-group-face-5
1925 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1927 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1928 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1929 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1930 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1931 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1932 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1935 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1937 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1944 The number of unread articles in the group.
1948 Whether the group is a mail group.
1950 The level of the group.
1952 The score of the group.
1954 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1956 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather,
1957 @var{max-number} minus @var{min-number} plus one.
1959 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1960 topic being inserted.
1963 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1964 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1965 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1967 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1968 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1969 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1970 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1971 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1974 @node Group Maneuvering
1975 @section Group Maneuvering
1976 @cindex group movement
1978 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1979 expected, hopefully.
1985 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1986 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1987 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1993 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1994 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1995 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1999 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2000 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2004 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2005 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2009 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
2010 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
2011 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
2015 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
2016 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
2017 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
2020 Three commands for jumping to groups:
2026 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
2027 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
2028 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
2033 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
2034 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
2035 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
2039 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
2040 Jump to the first group with unread articles
2041 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
2044 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
2045 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
2046 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
2047 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
2051 @node Selecting a Group
2052 @section Selecting a Group
2053 @cindex group selection
2058 @kindex SPACE (Group)
2059 @findex gnus-group-read-group
2060 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
2061 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
2062 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
2063 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
2064 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{n}, @var{n}
2065 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{n} is
2066 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{n} newest articles, if @var{n} is
2067 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{n})} oldest articles.
2069 Thus, @kbd{SPC} enters the group normally, @kbd{C-u SPC} offers old
2070 articles, @kbd{C-u 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 newest articles, and @kbd{C-u
2071 - 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 oldest ones.
2073 When you are in the group (in the Summary buffer), you can type
2074 @kbd{M-g} to fetch new articles, or @kbd{C-u M-g} to also show the old
2079 @findex gnus-group-select-group
2080 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
2081 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
2082 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
2083 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
2087 @kindex M-RET (Group)
2088 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
2089 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
2090 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
2091 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
2092 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
2093 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
2094 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
2095 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
2096 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
2099 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
2100 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
2101 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
2102 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
2103 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
2106 @kindex C-M-RET (Group)
2107 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
2108 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
2109 doing any processing of its contents
2110 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
2111 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
2112 manner will have no permanent effects.
2116 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
2117 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
2118 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
2119 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
2120 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
2121 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
2122 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
2123 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
2126 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
2127 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
2128 @vindex gnus-auto-select-subject
2129 If @code{gnus-auto-select-first} is non-@code{nil}, select an article
2130 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
2131 Which article this is is controlled by the
2132 @code{gnus-auto-select-subject} variable. Valid values for this
2138 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article.
2141 Place point on the subject line of the first article.
2144 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article.
2146 @item unseen-or-unread
2147 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article, and if
2148 there is no such article, place point on the subject line of the first
2152 Place point on the subject line of the highest-scored unread article.
2156 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function
2157 will be called to place point on a subject line.
2159 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2160 binary group with Huge articles) you can set the
2161 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} variable to @code{nil} in
2162 @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2166 @node Subscription Commands
2167 @section Subscription Commands
2168 @cindex subscription
2176 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2177 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2178 Toggle subscription to the current group
2179 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2185 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2186 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2187 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2188 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2194 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2195 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2196 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2202 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2203 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2206 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2207 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2208 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2209 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2210 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2216 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2217 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2221 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2222 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2225 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2226 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2227 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2228 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2229 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2230 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2231 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2232 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2233 @file{.newsrc} file.
2237 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2247 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2248 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2249 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2250 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2251 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2252 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2257 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2258 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2259 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2263 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2264 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2265 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2267 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2268 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2269 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2270 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
2271 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2272 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2279 @section Group Levels
2283 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2284 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2285 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2286 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2287 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2289 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2295 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2296 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2297 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2298 prompted for a level.
2301 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2302 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2303 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2304 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2305 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2306 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2307 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2308 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2309 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2310 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2311 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2312 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2313 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2314 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2315 reasons of efficiency.
2317 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2318 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2320 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2321 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2322 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2323 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2324 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2325 groups are hidden, in a way.
2327 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2328 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2329 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2330 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2331 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2332 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2334 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2335 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2336 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2337 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2338 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2339 list of killed groups.)
2341 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2342 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2343 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2345 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2346 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2347 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2348 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2349 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2350 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2351 relevant valid ranges.
2353 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2354 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2355 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2356 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2357 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2358 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2361 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2362 one with the best level.
2364 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2365 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2366 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2369 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2370 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2371 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2372 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2375 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2376 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2377 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2378 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2380 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2381 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2382 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2383 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2384 to 5. The default is 6.
2388 @section Group Score
2393 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2394 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2395 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2398 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2399 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2400 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2401 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2402 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2403 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2404 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2405 least significant part.))
2407 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2408 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2409 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2410 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2411 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2412 action after each summary exit, you can add
2413 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2414 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2415 slow things down somewhat.
2418 @node Marking Groups
2419 @section Marking Groups
2420 @cindex marking groups
2422 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2423 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2424 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2425 bidding on those groups.
2427 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2428 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2429 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2437 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2438 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2444 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2445 Remove the mark from the current group
2446 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2450 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2451 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2455 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2456 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2460 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2461 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2465 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2466 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2467 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2470 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2472 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2473 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2474 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2475 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2476 the command to be executed.
2479 @node Foreign Groups
2480 @section Foreign Groups
2481 @cindex foreign groups
2483 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2484 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2485 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2486 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2493 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2494 @cindex making groups
2495 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2496 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2497 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2501 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2502 @cindex renaming groups
2503 Rename the current group to something else
2504 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2505 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2511 @findex gnus-group-customize
2512 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2516 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2517 @cindex renaming groups
2518 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2519 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2523 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2524 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2525 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2529 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2530 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2531 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2535 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2537 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2538 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2543 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2544 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2548 @cindex (ding) archive
2549 @cindex archive group
2550 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2551 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2552 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2553 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2554 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2555 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2556 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2560 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2562 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2563 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2564 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2565 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2569 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2571 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2572 @code{nneething} back end (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2573 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2577 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2578 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2580 Make a group based on some file or other
2581 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2582 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2583 Currently supported types are @code{mbox}, @code{babyl},
2584 @code{digest}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward},
2585 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts},
2586 @code{standard-digest}, @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs},
2587 @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook}, @code{oe-dbx}, and @code{mailman}. If
2588 you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2589 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2593 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2594 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2595 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2596 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2600 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2604 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2605 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2606 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2607 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2608 include @code{google}, @code{dejanews}, and @code{gmane}.
2609 @xref{Web Searches}.
2611 If you use the @code{google} search engine, you can limit the search
2612 to a particular group by using a match string like
2613 @samp{shaving group:alt.sysadmin.recovery}.
2616 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2617 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2618 This function will delete the current group
2619 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2620 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2621 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2622 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2623 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2627 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2628 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2629 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2633 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2634 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2635 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2638 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2641 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2642 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2643 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2644 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2645 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2646 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2650 @node Group Parameters
2651 @section Group Parameters
2652 @cindex group parameters
2654 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2655 Here's an example group parameter list:
2658 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2662 We see that each element consists of a ``dotted pair''---the thing before
2663 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2664 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2665 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2667 Some parameters have correspondant customizable variables, each of which
2668 is an alist of regexps and values.
2670 The following group parameters can be used:
2675 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2678 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2681 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2682 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2683 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2684 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2685 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2687 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2688 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2689 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2690 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2691 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2692 list address instead.
2694 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-address-alist}.
2698 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2701 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2704 It is totally ignored
2705 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2706 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2708 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2709 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2710 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2711 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2712 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2714 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2715 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2716 sending the message.
2718 @findex gnus-mailing-list-mode
2719 @cindex Mail List Groups
2720 If this variable is set, @code{gnus-mailing-list-mode} is turned on when
2721 entering summary buffer.
2723 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-list-alist}.
2728 If this parameter is set to @code{t}, Gnus will consider the
2729 to-address and to-list parameters for this group as addresses of
2730 mailing lists you are subscribed to. Giving Gnus this information is
2731 (only) a first step in getting it to generate correct Mail-Followup-To
2732 headers for your posts to these lists. Look here @pxref{Mailing
2733 Lists, , Mailing Lists, message, The Message Manual} for a complete
2734 treatment of available MFT support.
2736 See also @code{gnus-find-subscribed-addresses}, the function that
2737 directly uses this group parameter.
2741 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2742 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2743 of whether it has any unread articles.
2745 @item broken-reply-to
2746 @cindex broken-reply-to
2747 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2748 headers in this group are to be ignored, and for the header to be hidden
2749 if @code{reply-to} is part of @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}. This
2750 can be useful if you're reading a mailing list group where the listserv
2751 has inserted @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv
2752 itself. That is broken behavior. So there!
2756 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2757 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2761 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2762 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2763 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2768 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2769 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2770 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2771 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2772 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2773 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2774 (@pxref{Archived Messages}). CAVEAT:: It yields an error putting
2775 @code{(gcc-self . t)} in groups of a @code{nntp} server or so, because
2776 a @code{nntp} server doesn't accept articles.
2780 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2781 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2782 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2784 See also @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups}.
2787 @cindex total-expire
2788 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2789 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2790 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2791 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2794 See also @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups}.
2798 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2799 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2800 @code{(expiry-wait . 10)}, this value will override any
2801 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function}
2802 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}) when expiring expirable messages. The value
2803 can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or the
2804 symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2807 @cindex score file group parameter
2808 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2809 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2810 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2813 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2814 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2815 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2816 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2819 @cindex admin-address
2820 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2821 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2822 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2823 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2827 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2828 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2832 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2835 Display the last @var{integer} articles in the group. This is the same as
2836 entering the group with C-u @var{integer}.
2839 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2843 Display articles that satisfy a predicate.
2845 Here are some examples:
2849 Display only unread articles.
2852 Display everything except expirable articles.
2854 @item [and (not reply) (not expire)]
2855 Display everything except expirable and articles you've already
2859 The available operators are @code{not}, @code{and} and @code{or}.
2860 Predicates include @code{tick}, @code{unsend}, @code{undownload},
2861 @code{unread}, @code{dormant}, @code{expire}, @code{reply},
2862 @code{killed}, @code{bookmark}, @code{score}, @code{save},
2863 @code{cache}, @code{forward}, @code{unseen} and @code{recent}.
2867 The @code{display} parameter works by limiting the summary buffer to
2868 the subset specified. You can pop the limit by using the @kbd{/ w}
2869 command (@pxref{Limiting}).
2873 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")} are
2874 arbitrary comments on the group. You can display comments in the
2875 group line (@pxref{Group Line Specification}).
2879 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2880 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2881 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2883 See also @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}.
2885 @item ignored-charsets
2886 @cindex ignored-charset
2887 Elements that look like @code{(ignored-charsets x-unknown iso-8859-1)}
2888 will make @code{iso-8859-1} and @code{x-unknown} ignored; that is, the
2889 default charset will be used for decoding articles.
2891 See also @code{gnus-group-ignored-charsets-alist}.
2894 @cindex posting-style
2895 You can store additional posting style information for this group
2896 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2897 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2898 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2899 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2901 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2902 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2903 like this in the group parameters:
2908 ("X-My-Header" "Funky Value")
2909 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2914 If it is set, the value is used as the method for posting message
2915 instead of @code{gnus-post-method}.
2919 An item like @code{(banner . "regex")} causes any part of an article
2920 that matches the regular expression "regex" to be stripped. Instead of
2921 "regex", you can also use the symbol @code{signature} which strips the
2922 last signature or any of the elements of the alist
2923 @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}.
2927 This parameter contains a Sieve test that should match incoming mail
2928 that should be placed in this group. From this group parameter, a
2929 Sieve @samp{IF} control structure is generated, having the test as the
2930 condition and @samp{fileinto "group.name";} as the body.
2932 For example, if the INBOX.list.sieve group has the @code{(sieve
2933 address "sender" "sieve-admin@@extundo.com")} group parameter, when
2934 translating the group parameter into a Sieve script (@pxref{Sieve
2935 Commands}) the following Sieve code is generated:
2938 if address \"sender\" \"sieve-admin@@extundo.com\" @{
2939 fileinto \"INBOX.list.sieve\";
2943 The Sieve language is described in RFC 3028. @xref{Top, , Top, sieve,
2946 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2947 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2948 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2949 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2950 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2951 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2952 @code{eval}ed there.
2954 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
2955 A use for this feature, is to remove a mailing list identifier tag in
2956 the subject fields of articles. E.g. if the news group
2957 @samp{nntp+news.gnus.org:gmane.text.docbook.apps} has the tag
2958 @samp{DOC-BOOK-APPS:} in the subject of all articles, this tag can be
2959 removed from the article subjects in the summary buffer for the group by
2960 putting @code{(gnus-list-identifiers "DOCBOOK-APPS:")} into the group
2961 parameters for the group.
2964 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2965 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2966 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2967 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2968 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2972 Use the @kbd{G p} or the @kbd{G c} command to edit group parameters of a
2973 group. (@kbd{G p} presents you with a Lisp-based interface, @kbd{G c}
2974 presents you with a Customize-like interface. The latter helps avoid
2975 silly Lisp errors.) You might also be interested in reading about topic
2976 parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}).
2978 @vindex gnus-parameters
2979 Group parameters can be set via the @code{gnus-parameters} variable too.
2980 But some variables, such as @code{visible}, have no effect. For
2984 (setq gnus-parameters
2986 (gnus-show-threads nil)
2987 (gnus-use-scoring nil)
2988 (gnus-summary-line-format
2989 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%d:%ub%-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
2993 ("^nnimap:\\(foo.bar\\)$"
2997 (gnus-use-scoring t))
3001 (broken-reply-to . t))))
3004 String value of parameters will be subjected to regexp substitution, as
3005 the @code{to-group} example shows.
3008 @node Listing Groups
3009 @section Listing Groups
3010 @cindex group listing
3012 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
3020 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
3021 List all groups that have unread articles
3022 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
3023 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
3024 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
3025 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
3032 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
3033 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
3034 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
3035 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
3036 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
3037 unsubscribed groups).
3041 @findex gnus-group-list-level
3042 List all unread groups on a specific level
3043 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
3044 with no unread articles.
3048 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
3049 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
3050 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
3051 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
3056 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
3057 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
3061 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
3062 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
3063 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
3067 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
3068 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
3072 @findex gnus-group-list-active
3073 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
3074 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
3075 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
3076 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
3077 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
3078 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
3079 Take the output with some grains of salt.
3083 @findex gnus-group-apropos
3084 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
3085 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
3089 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
3090 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
3091 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
3095 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
3096 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
3100 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
3101 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
3105 @findex gnus-group-list-limit
3106 List groups limited within the current selection
3107 (@code{gnus-group-list-limit}).
3111 @findex gnus-group-list-flush
3112 Flush groups from the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-flush}).
3116 @findex gnus-group-list-plus
3117 List groups plus the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-plus}).
3121 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3122 @cindex visible group parameter
3123 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
3124 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
3125 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
3126 get the same effect.
3128 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
3129 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
3130 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
3131 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
3132 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
3135 @node Sorting Groups
3136 @section Sorting Groups
3137 @cindex sorting groups
3139 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
3140 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
3141 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
3142 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
3143 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
3144 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
3149 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3150 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3151 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
3153 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3154 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3155 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
3157 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
3158 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
3159 Sort by group level.
3161 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
3162 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
3163 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
3165 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3166 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3167 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
3168 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
3170 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3171 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3172 Sort by number of unread articles.
3174 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
3175 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
3176 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
3178 @item gnus-group-sort-by-server
3179 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-server
3180 Sort alphabetically on the Gnus server name.
3185 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
3186 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
3190 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
3191 some sorting criteria:
3195 @kindex G S a (Group)
3196 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3197 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
3198 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3201 @kindex G S u (Group)
3202 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
3203 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
3204 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3207 @kindex G S l (Group)
3208 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
3209 Sort the group buffer by group level
3210 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
3213 @kindex G S v (Group)
3214 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
3215 Sort the group buffer by group score
3216 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3219 @kindex G S r (Group)
3220 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
3221 Sort the group buffer by group rank
3222 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3225 @kindex G S m (Group)
3226 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
3227 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by back end name
3228 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
3231 @kindex G S n (Group)
3232 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-real-name
3233 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by real (unprefixed) group name
3234 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-real-name}).
3238 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
3239 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3241 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
3242 commands will sort in reverse order.
3244 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
3248 @kindex G P a (Group)
3249 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
3250 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
3251 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
3254 @kindex G P u (Group)
3255 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
3256 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
3257 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
3260 @kindex G P l (Group)
3261 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
3262 Sort the groups by group level
3263 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
3266 @kindex G P v (Group)
3267 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
3268 Sort the groups by group score
3269 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3272 @kindex G P r (Group)
3273 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
3274 Sort the groups by group rank
3275 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3278 @kindex G P m (Group)
3279 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
3280 Sort the groups alphabetically by back end name
3281 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
3284 @kindex G P n (Group)
3285 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-real-name
3286 Sort the groups alphabetically by real (unprefixed) group name
3287 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-real-name}).
3290 @kindex G P s (Group)
3291 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups
3292 Sort the groups according to @code{gnus-group-sort-function}.
3296 And finally, note that you can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} to manually
3300 @node Group Maintenance
3301 @section Group Maintenance
3302 @cindex bogus groups
3307 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
3308 Find bogus groups and delete them
3309 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
3313 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
3314 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
3315 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
3316 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
3317 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
3321 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
3322 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
3323 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
3324 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}). That is, delete
3325 all expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
3326 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3329 @kindex C-c C-M-x (Group)
3330 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3331 Run all expirable articles in all groups through the expiry process
3332 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3337 @node Browse Foreign Server
3338 @section Browse Foreign Server
3339 @cindex foreign servers
3340 @cindex browsing servers
3345 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3346 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3347 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3348 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3351 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3352 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3353 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3354 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3356 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3361 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3362 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3366 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3367 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3370 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3371 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3372 Enter the current group and display the first article
3373 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3376 @kindex RET (Browse)
3377 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3378 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3382 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3383 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3384 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3390 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3391 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3395 @findex gnus-browse-describe-group
3396 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-browse-describe-group}).
3400 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3401 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3402 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3407 @section Exiting Gnus
3408 @cindex exiting Gnus
3410 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
3415 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3416 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
3417 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3418 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3422 @findex gnus-group-exit
3423 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3424 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3428 @findex gnus-group-quit
3429 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3430 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3433 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3434 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3435 @vindex gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook
3436 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
3437 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
3438 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3444 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3445 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3446 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3452 @section Group Topics
3455 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3456 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3457 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3458 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3459 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3460 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3464 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3465 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group-topic,height=9cm}}
3476 2: alt.religion.emacs
3479 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3481 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3482 13: comp.sources.unix
3485 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3487 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3488 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3489 is a toggling command.)
3491 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3492 dum@dots{} Nice tune, that@dots{} la la la@dots{} What, you're back?
3493 Yes, and now press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed
3494 under @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy?
3497 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3498 the hook for the group mode. Put the following line in your
3499 @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
3502 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3506 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3507 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3508 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3509 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3510 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3514 @node Topic Commands
3515 @subsection Topic Commands
3516 @cindex topic commands
3518 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3519 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3520 definitions slightly.
3522 In general, the following kinds of operations are possible on topics.
3523 First of all, you want to create topics. Secondly, you want to put
3524 groups in topics and to move them around until you have an order you
3525 like. The third kind of operation is to show/hide parts of the whole
3526 shebang. You might want to hide a topic including its subtopics and
3527 groups, to get a better overview of the other groups.
3529 Here is a list of the basic keys that you might need to set up topics
3536 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3537 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3538 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3542 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3544 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3545 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3546 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3547 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3550 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3551 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3552 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3553 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3557 The following two keys can be used to move groups and topics around.
3558 They work like the well-known cut and paste. @kbd{C-k} is like cut and
3559 @kbd{C-y} is like paste. Of course, this being Emacs, we use the terms
3560 kill and yank rather than cut and paste.
3566 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3567 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3568 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3572 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3573 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3574 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3577 So, to move a topic to the beginning of the list of topics, just hit
3578 @kbd{C-k} on it. This is like the `cut' part of cut and paste. Then,
3579 move the cursor to the beginning of the buffer (just below the `Gnus'
3580 topic) and hit @kbd{C-y}. This is like the `paste' part of cut and
3581 paste. Like I said -- E-Z.
3583 You can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} on groups as well as on topics. So
3584 you can move topics around as well as groups.
3588 After setting up the topics the way you like them, you might wish to
3589 hide a topic, or to show it again. That's why we have the following
3596 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3598 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3599 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3600 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3601 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3602 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3603 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3607 Now for a list of other commands, in no particular order.
3613 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3614 Move the current group to some other topic
3615 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3616 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3620 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3621 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3625 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3626 Copy the current group to some other topic
3627 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3628 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3632 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3633 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3634 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3638 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3639 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3640 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3644 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3645 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3646 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3647 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3648 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3649 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3650 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3653 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3654 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3658 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3659 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3660 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3664 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3665 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3666 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3670 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3671 Toggle hiding empty topics
3672 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3676 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3677 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3678 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}). This command works recursively on
3679 sub-topics unless given a prefix.
3682 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3683 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3684 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3685 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}). This command works recursively on
3686 sub-topics unless given a prefix.
3689 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3690 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3691 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the
3692 expiry process (if any)
3693 (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}). (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3697 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3698 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3701 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3702 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3703 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3707 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3708 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3709 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3712 @kindex T M-n (Topic)
3713 @findex gnus-topic-goto-next-topic
3714 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-next-topic}).
3717 @kindex T M-p (Topic)
3718 @findex gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic
3719 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic}).
3723 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3724 @cindex group parameters
3725 @cindex topic parameters
3727 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3728 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3733 @node Topic Variables
3734 @subsection Topic Variables
3735 @cindex topic variables
3737 The previous section told you how to tell Gnus which topics to display.
3738 This section explains how to tell Gnus what to display about each topic.
3740 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3741 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3742 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3755 Number of groups in the topic.
3757 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3759 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3762 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3763 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3764 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3767 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3768 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3770 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3771 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3772 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3776 @subsection Topic Sorting
3777 @cindex topic sorting
3779 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3785 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3786 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3787 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3788 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3791 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3792 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3793 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3794 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3797 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3798 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3799 Sort the current topic by group level
3800 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3803 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3804 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3805 Sort the current topic by group score
3806 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3809 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3810 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3811 Sort the current topic by group rank
3812 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3815 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3816 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3817 Sort the current topic alphabetically by back end name
3818 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3821 @kindex T S e (Topic)
3822 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server
3823 Sort the current topic alphabetically by server name
3824 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server}).
3828 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups
3829 Sort the current topic according to the function(s) given by the
3830 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable
3831 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups}).
3835 When given a prefix argument, all these commands will sort in reverse
3836 order. @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group
3840 @node Topic Topology
3841 @subsection Topic Topology
3842 @cindex topic topology
3845 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3851 2: alt.religion.emacs
3854 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3856 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3857 13: comp.sources.unix
3860 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3861 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3862 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3867 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3868 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3872 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3873 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3874 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3875 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3876 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3877 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3879 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3880 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3881 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3884 @node Topic Parameters
3885 @subsection Topic Parameters
3886 @cindex topic parameters
3888 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3889 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3890 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3892 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3897 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3898 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3899 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3902 @item subscribe-level
3903 When subscribing new groups by topic (see the @code{subscribe} parameter),
3904 the group will be subscribed with the level specified in the
3905 @code{subscribe-level} instead of @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}.
3909 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3910 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3911 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3912 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3918 2: alt.religion.emacs
3922 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3924 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3925 13: comp.sources.unix
3929 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3930 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3931 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3932 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3933 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3934 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3936 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3937 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3938 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3939 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3940 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3942 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3943 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3944 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3945 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3946 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3947 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3948 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3949 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3952 @node Misc Group Stuff
3953 @section Misc Group Stuff
3956 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3957 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
3958 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3959 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3960 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
3967 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3968 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3969 @xref{Server Buffer}.
3973 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3974 Start composing a message (a news by default)
3975 (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a prefix, post to the group
3976 under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
3977 Contrary to what the name of this function suggests, the prepared
3978 article might be a mail instead of a news, if a mail group is specified
3979 with the prefix argument. @xref{Composing Messages}.
3983 @findex gnus-group-mail
3984 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}). If given a prefix,
3985 use the posting style of the group under the point. If the prefix is 1,
3986 prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
3987 @xref{Composing Messages}.
3991 @findex gnus-group-news
3992 Start composing a news (@code{gnus-group-news}). If given a prefix,
3993 post to the group under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt
3994 for group to post to. @xref{Composing Messages}.
3996 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
3997 This is useful for ``posting'' messages to mail groups without actually
3998 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
3999 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
4000 for this to work though.
4004 Variables for the group buffer:
4008 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
4009 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
4010 is called after the group buffer has been
4013 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
4014 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
4015 is called after the group buffer is
4016 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
4019 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
4020 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
4021 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
4022 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
4024 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
4025 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
4026 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
4027 whether they are empty or not.
4029 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
4030 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
4031 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
4032 non-ASCII group names.
4036 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
4037 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
4040 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
4041 @cindex UTF-8 group names
4042 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
4043 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names. It
4044 is used to show non-ASCII group names. @code{((".*" utf-8))} is the
4045 default value if UTF-8 is supported, otherwise the default is
4050 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
4051 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
4056 @node Scanning New Messages
4057 @subsection Scanning New Messages
4058 @cindex new messages
4059 @cindex scanning new news
4065 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
4066 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
4067 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
4068 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
4069 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
4070 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
4075 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
4076 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
4077 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
4078 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
4079 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
4080 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
4081 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
4083 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
4084 @cindex activating groups
4086 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
4087 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
4092 @findex gnus-group-restart
4093 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
4094 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
4095 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
4099 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
4100 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
4102 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
4103 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
4107 @node Group Information
4108 @subsection Group Information
4109 @cindex group information
4110 @cindex information on groups
4117 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
4118 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
4121 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
4122 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
4123 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
4124 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
4125 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
4126 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
4127 for fetching the file.
4129 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
4130 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
4134 @findex gnus-group-fetch-charter
4135 @vindex gnus-group-charter-alist
4137 Try to open the charter for the current group in a web browser
4138 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-charter}). Query for a group if given a
4141 Gnus will use @code{gnus-group-charter-alist} to find the location of
4142 the charter. If no location is known, Gnus will fetch the control
4143 messages for the group, which in some cases includes the charter.
4147 @findex gnus-group-fetch-control
4148 @vindex gnus-group-fetch-control-use-browse-url
4149 @cindex control message
4150 Fetch the control messages for the group from the archive at
4151 @code{ftp.isc.org} (@code{gnus-group-fetch-control}). Query for a
4152 group if given a prefix argument.
4154 If @code{gnus-group-fetch-control-use-browse-url} is non-@code{nil},
4155 Gnus will open the control messages in a browser using
4156 @code{browse-url}. Otherwise they are fetched using @code{ange-ftp}
4157 and displayed in an ephemeral group.
4159 Note that the control messages are compressed. To use this command
4160 you need to turn on @code{auto-compression-mode} (@pxref{Compressed
4161 Files, ,Compressed Files, emacs, The Emacs Manual}).
4165 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
4167 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
4168 @cindex describing groups
4169 @cindex group description
4170 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
4171 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
4172 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
4176 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
4177 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
4178 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
4185 @findex gnus-version
4186 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
4190 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
4191 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
4194 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
4197 @findex gnus-info-find-node
4198 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
4202 @node Group Timestamp
4203 @subsection Group Timestamp
4205 @cindex group timestamps
4207 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
4208 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
4209 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
4212 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
4215 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
4217 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
4218 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
4221 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4222 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
4225 This will result in lines looking like:
4228 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
4229 0: custom 19961002T012713
4232 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
4233 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
4237 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4238 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
4241 If you would like greater control of the time format, you can use a
4242 user-defined format spec. Something like the following should do the
4246 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4247 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %ud\n")
4248 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
4249 (let ((time (gnus-group-timestamp gnus-tmp-group)))
4251 (format-time-string "%b %d %H:%M" time)
4257 @subsection File Commands
4258 @cindex file commands
4264 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
4265 @vindex gnus-init-file
4266 @cindex reading init file
4267 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
4268 @file{~/.gnus.el}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
4272 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
4273 @cindex saving .newsrc
4274 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
4275 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
4276 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
4279 @c @kindex Z (Group)
4280 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
4281 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
4286 @node Sieve Commands
4287 @subsection Sieve Commands
4288 @cindex group sieve commands
4290 Sieve is a server-side mail filtering language. In Gnus you can use
4291 the @code{sieve} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to specify
4292 sieve rules that should apply to each group. Gnus provides two
4293 commands to translate all these group parameters into a proper Sieve
4294 script that can be transfered to the server somehow.
4296 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4297 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-start
4298 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-end
4299 The generated Sieve script is placed in @code{gnus-sieve-file} (by
4300 default @file{~/.sieve}). The Sieve code that Gnus generate is placed
4301 between two delimiters, @code{gnus-sieve-region-start} and
4302 @code{gnus-sieve-region-end}, so you may write additional Sieve code
4303 outside these delimiters that will not be removed the next time you
4304 regenerate the Sieve script.
4306 @vindex gnus-sieve-crosspost
4307 The variable @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} controls how the Sieve script
4308 is generated. If it is non-@code{nil} (the default) articles is
4309 placed in all groups that have matching rules, otherwise the article
4310 is only placed in the group with the first matching rule. For
4311 example, the group parameter @samp{(sieve address "sender"
4312 "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu")} will generate the following piece of Sieve
4313 code if @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is @code{nil}. (When
4314 @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is non-@code{nil}, it looks the same
4315 except that the line containing the call to @code{stop} is removed.)
4318 if address "sender" "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu" @{
4319 fileinto "INBOX.ding";
4324 @xref{Top, ,Top, sieve, Emacs Sieve}.
4330 @findex gnus-sieve-generate
4331 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4332 @cindex generating sieve script
4333 Regenerate a Sieve script from the @code{sieve} group parameters and
4334 put you into the @code{gnus-sieve-file} without saving it.
4338 @findex gnus-sieve-update
4339 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4340 @cindex updating sieve script
4341 Regenerates the Gnus managed part of @code{gnus-sieve-file} using the
4342 @code{sieve} group parameters, save the file and upload it to the
4343 server using the @code{sieveshell} program.
4348 @node Summary Buffer
4349 @chapter Summary Buffer
4350 @cindex summary buffer
4352 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
4353 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
4355 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
4356 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
4358 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
4361 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
4362 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
4363 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
4364 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
4365 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
4366 * Delayed Articles:: Send articles at a later time.
4367 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
4368 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
4369 * Threading:: How threads are made.
4370 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
4371 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
4372 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
4373 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
4374 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
4375 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
4376 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
4377 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
4378 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
4379 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
4380 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
4381 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
4382 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
4383 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
4384 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
4385 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
4386 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
4387 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
4388 or reselecting the current group.
4389 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
4390 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
4391 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
4392 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
4396 @node Summary Buffer Format
4397 @section Summary Buffer Format
4398 @cindex summary buffer format
4402 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
4403 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary,width=7.5cm}}
4404 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-article,width=7.5cm}}}
4410 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
4411 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
4412 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
4413 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
4416 @findex mail-extract-address-components
4417 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
4418 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
4419 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
4420 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
4421 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
4422 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
4423 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
4424 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
4425 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
4426 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead:
4429 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
4430 'mail-extract-address-components)
4433 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
4434 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
4435 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
4436 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
4439 @node Summary Buffer Lines
4440 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
4442 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4443 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
4444 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
4445 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
4446 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
4448 There should always be a colon or a point position marker on the line;
4449 the cursor always moves to the point position marker or the colon after
4450 performing an operation. (Of course, Gnus wouldn't be Gnus if it wasn't
4451 possible to change this. Just write a new function
4452 @code{gnus-goto-colon} which does whatever you like with the cursor.)
4453 @xref{Positioning Point}.
4455 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n}.
4457 The following format specification characters and extended format
4458 specification(s) are understood:
4464 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
4465 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
4467 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
4468 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
4469 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
4471 Full @code{From} header.
4473 The name (from the @code{From} header).
4475 The name, @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header (@pxref{To
4478 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
4479 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
4480 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
4481 may be more thorough.
4483 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
4486 Number of lines in the article.
4488 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported
4489 in some methods (like nnfolder).
4491 Pretty-printed version of the number of characters in the article;
4492 for example, @samp{1.2k} or @samp{0.4M}.
4494 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4496 A complex trn-style thread tree, showing response-connecting trace
4497 lines. A thread could be drawn like this:
4510 You can customize the appearance with the following options. Note
4511 that it is possible to make the thread display look really neat by
4512 replacing the default ASCII characters with graphic line-drawing
4515 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-root
4516 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-root
4517 Used for the root of a thread. If @code{nil}, use subject
4518 instead. The default is @samp{> }.
4520 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-single-indent
4521 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-single-indent
4522 Used for a thread with just one message. If @code{nil}, use subject
4523 instead. The default is @samp{}.
4525 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-vertical
4526 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-vertical
4527 Used for drawing a vertical line. The default is @samp{| }.
4529 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-indent
4530 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-indent
4531 Used for indenting. The default is @samp{ }.
4533 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-leaf-with-other
4534 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-leaf-with-other
4535 Used for a leaf with brothers. The default is @samp{+-> }.
4537 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-single-leaf
4538 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-single-leaf
4539 Used for a leaf without brothers. The default is @samp{\-> }
4544 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
4545 pushes everything after it off the screen).
4547 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
4548 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4550 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
4551 for adopted articles.
4553 One space for each thread level.
4555 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
4557 Unread. @xref{Read Articles}.
4560 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
4561 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
4562 or has been saved. @xref{Other Marks}.
4565 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
4567 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
4568 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
4569 default level. If the difference between
4570 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
4571 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
4579 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
4581 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
4587 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
4588 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
4590 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
4591 article has any children.
4597 Age sensitive date format. Various date format is defined in
4598 @code{gnus-user-date-format-alist}.
4600 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4601 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4602 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4603 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4604 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4605 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4608 Text between @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} will be highlighted with
4609 @code{gnus-mouse-face} when the mouse point is placed inside the area.
4610 There can only be one such area.
4612 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4613 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
4614 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4615 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4616 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4617 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4619 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4620 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4622 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
4625 @node To From Newsgroups
4626 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4630 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4631 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4632 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4633 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4634 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4638 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4639 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4640 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4644 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4645 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4648 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4649 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4652 @findex gnus-extra-header
4653 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4654 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4655 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4658 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4662 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4663 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4664 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4665 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4666 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4667 headers are used instead.
4671 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4672 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4673 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files.
4674 If you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after
4675 changing this variable, by entering the server buffer using @kbd{^},
4676 and then @kbd{g} on the appropriate mail server (e.g. nnml) to cause
4679 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4680 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4681 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4682 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4684 In summary, you'd typically put something like the following in
4688 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4690 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4691 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4692 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
4693 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4697 (The values listed above are the default values in Gnus. Alter them
4700 A note for news server administrators, or for users who wish to try to
4701 convince their news server administrator to provide some additional
4704 The above is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4705 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4706 nntp admin to add (in the usual implementation, notably INN):
4712 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4713 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4716 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4717 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4719 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4720 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4721 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4722 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4724 Here are the elements you can play with:
4730 Unprefixed group name.
4732 Current article number.
4734 Current article score.
4738 Number of unread articles in this group.
4740 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4743 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4744 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4745 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4746 and no unselected ones.
4748 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4749 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4751 Subject of the current article.
4753 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4755 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4757 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4759 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4761 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4763 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4767 @node Summary Highlighting
4768 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4772 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4773 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4774 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4775 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4776 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4778 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4779 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4780 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4781 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4783 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4784 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4785 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4786 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4788 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4789 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4790 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4791 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4792 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4793 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4796 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4797 ((> score default) . bold))
4799 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4800 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4804 @node Summary Maneuvering
4805 @section Summary Maneuvering
4806 @cindex summary movement
4808 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4809 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4811 None of these commands select articles.
4816 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4817 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4818 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4819 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4820 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4824 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4825 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4826 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4827 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4828 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4831 @kindex G g (Summary)
4832 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4833 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4834 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4837 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4838 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4839 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4840 to the group buffer.
4842 Variables related to summary movement:
4846 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4847 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4848 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4849 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
4850 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4851 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4852 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
4853 next group with unread articles. As a special case, if this variable
4854 is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the next group without asking for
4855 confirmation. If this variable is @code{almost-quietly}, the same
4856 will happen only if you are located on the last article in the group.
4857 Finally, if this variable is @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n}
4858 command will go to the next group without confirmation. Also
4859 @pxref{Group Levels}.
4861 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4862 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4863 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4864 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4865 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4866 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4867 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4869 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4871 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4872 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4873 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4874 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4875 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4877 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4878 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4879 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4880 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4881 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4882 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4883 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4884 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4887 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4888 the given number of lines from the top.
4893 @node Choosing Articles
4894 @section Choosing Articles
4895 @cindex selecting articles
4898 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4899 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4903 @node Choosing Commands
4904 @subsection Choosing Commands
4906 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4907 and they all select and display an article.
4909 If you want to fetch new articles or redisplay the group, see
4910 @ref{Exiting the Summary Buffer}.
4914 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4915 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4916 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4917 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4919 If you have an article window open already and you press @kbd{SPACE}
4920 again, the article will be scrolled. This lets you conveniently
4921 @kbd{SPACE} through an entire newsgroup. @pxref{Paging the Article}.
4926 @kindex G n (Summary)
4927 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4928 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4929 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4934 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4935 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4936 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4941 @kindex G N (Summary)
4942 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4943 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4948 @kindex G P (Summary)
4949 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4950 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4953 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4954 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4955 Go to the next article with the same subject
4956 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4959 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4960 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4961 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4962 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4966 @kindex G f (Summary)
4968 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4969 Go to the first unread article
4970 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
4974 @kindex G b (Summary)
4976 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
4977 Go to the unread article with the highest score
4978 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}). If given a prefix argument,
4979 go to the first unread article that has a score over the default score.
4984 @kindex G l (Summary)
4985 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
4986 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
4989 @kindex G o (Summary)
4990 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
4992 @cindex article history
4993 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
4994 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
4995 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
4996 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
4997 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
4998 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
5003 @kindex G j (Summary)
5004 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
5005 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
5006 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
5011 @node Choosing Variables
5012 @subsection Choosing Variables
5014 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
5017 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
5018 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
5019 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
5020 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
5021 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
5022 the server and display it in the article buffer.
5024 @item gnus-select-article-hook
5025 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
5026 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
5027 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article. If you would
5028 like each article to be saved in the Agent as you read it, putting
5029 @code{gnus-agent-fetch-selected-article} on this hook will do so.
5031 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
5032 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
5033 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
5034 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
5035 @findex gnus-unread-mark
5036 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
5037 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
5038 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
5039 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
5040 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
5041 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
5042 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
5043 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
5044 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
5049 @node Paging the Article
5050 @section Scrolling the Article
5051 @cindex article scrolling
5056 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
5057 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
5058 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
5059 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
5060 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
5062 @vindex gnus-article-boring-faces
5063 @vindex gnus-article-skip-boring
5064 If @code{gnus-article-skip-boring} is non-@code{nil} and the rest of
5065 the article consists only of citations and signature, then it will be
5066 skipped; the next article will be shown instead. You can customize
5067 what is considered uninteresting with
5068 @code{gnus-article-boring-faces}. You can manually view the article's
5069 pages, no matter how boring, using @kbd{C-M-v}.
5072 @kindex DEL (Summary)
5073 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
5074 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
5077 @kindex RET (Summary)
5078 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
5079 Scroll the current article one line forward
5080 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
5083 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
5084 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
5085 Scroll the current article one line backward
5086 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
5090 @kindex A g (Summary)
5092 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
5093 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
5094 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
5095 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
5096 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
5097 the way it came from the server.
5099 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
5100 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
5101 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
5104 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
5109 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
5114 @kindex A < (Summary)
5115 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
5116 Scroll to the beginning of the article
5117 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
5122 @kindex A > (Summary)
5123 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
5124 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
5128 @kindex A s (Summary)
5130 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
5131 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
5132 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
5136 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
5137 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
5142 @node Reply Followup and Post
5143 @section Reply, Followup and Post
5146 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
5147 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
5148 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
5149 * Canceling and Superseding::
5153 @node Summary Mail Commands
5154 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
5156 @cindex composing mail
5158 Commands for composing a mail message:
5164 @kindex S r (Summary)
5166 @findex gnus-summary-reply
5167 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
5168 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
5169 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
5170 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
5175 @kindex S R (Summary)
5176 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
5177 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
5178 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
5179 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
5180 command uses the process/prefix convention.
5183 @kindex S w (Summary)
5184 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
5185 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
5186 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
5187 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
5188 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
5191 @kindex S W (Summary)
5192 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
5193 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
5194 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
5195 the process/prefix convention.
5198 @kindex S v (Summary)
5199 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply
5200 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article
5201 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{very wide reply} is a reply
5202 that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
5203 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers in all the process/prefixed
5204 articles. This command uses the process/prefix convention.
5207 @kindex S V (Summary)
5208 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply-with-original
5209 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article and include the
5210 original message (@code{gnus-summary-very-wide-reply-with-original}). This
5211 command uses the process/prefix convention.
5214 @kindex S B r (Summary)
5215 @findex gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to
5216 Mail a reply to the author of the current article but ignore the
5217 @code{Reply-To} field (@code{gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to}).
5218 If you need this because a mailing list incorrectly sets a
5219 @code{Reply-To} header pointing to the list, you probably want to set
5220 the @code{broken-reply-to} group parameter instead, so things will work
5221 correctly. @xref{Group Parameters}.
5224 @kindex S B R (Summary)
5225 @findex gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to-with-original
5226 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
5227 original message but ignore the @code{Reply-To} field
5228 (@code{gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to-with-original}).
5232 @kindex S o m (Summary)
5233 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
5234 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
5235 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
5236 Forward the current article to some other person
5237 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If no prefix is given, the message
5238 is forwarded according to the value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime})
5239 and (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
5240 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
5241 as an rfc822 @sc{mime} section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
5242 forward as an rfc822 @sc{mime} section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
5243 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
5244 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
5245 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 @sc{mime}
5251 @kindex S m (Summary)
5252 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
5253 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
5254 Prepare a mail (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}). By default, use
5255 the posting style of the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5256 If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
5261 @kindex S i (Summary)
5262 @findex gnus-summary-news-other-window
5263 Prepare a news (@code{gnus-summary-news-other-window}). By default,
5264 post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that. If the
5265 prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
5267 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
5268 This is useful for ``posting'' messages to mail groups without actually
5269 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
5270 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
5271 for this to work though.
5274 @kindex S D b (Summary)
5275 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
5276 @cindex bouncing mail
5277 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
5278 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
5279 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
5280 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
5281 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
5282 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
5283 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
5284 very well fail, though.
5287 @kindex S D r (Summary)
5288 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
5289 Not to be confused with the previous command,
5290 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
5291 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
5292 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
5293 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
5294 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
5295 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
5296 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
5298 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
5299 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
5300 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
5301 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
5302 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muss sein!
5304 This command understands the process/prefix convention
5305 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5308 @kindex S O m (Summary)
5309 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
5310 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
5311 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
5312 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5315 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
5316 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
5317 @cindex crossposting
5318 @cindex excessive crossposting
5319 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
5320 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
5322 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
5323 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
5324 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
5325 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
5326 command understands the process/prefix convention
5327 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
5331 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5332 Manual}, for more information.
5335 @node Summary Post Commands
5336 @subsection Summary Post Commands
5338 @cindex composing news
5340 Commands for posting a news article:
5346 @kindex S p (Summary)
5347 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
5348 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
5349 Prepare for posting an article (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}). By
5350 default, post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5351 If the prefix is 1, prompt for another group instead.
5356 @kindex S f (Summary)
5357 @findex gnus-summary-followup
5358 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
5359 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
5363 @kindex S F (Summary)
5365 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
5366 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
5367 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
5368 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
5369 process/prefix convention.
5372 @kindex S n (Summary)
5373 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
5374 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5375 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
5378 @kindex S N (Summary)
5379 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
5380 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5381 message through mail and include the original message
5382 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
5383 the process/prefix convention.
5386 @kindex S o p (Summary)
5387 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
5388 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
5389 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}).
5390 If no prefix is given, the message is forwarded according to the value
5391 of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}) and
5392 (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
5393 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
5394 as an rfc822 @sc{mime} section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
5395 forward as an rfc822 @sc{mime} section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
5396 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
5397 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
5398 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 @sc{mime} section.
5401 @kindex S O p (Summary)
5402 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
5404 @cindex making digests
5405 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
5406 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
5407 process/prefix convention.
5410 @kindex S u (Summary)
5411 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
5412 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
5413 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
5414 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
5417 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5418 Manual}, for more information.
5421 @node Summary Message Commands
5422 @subsection Summary Message Commands
5426 @kindex S y (Summary)
5427 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
5428 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
5429 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
5430 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
5431 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5436 @node Canceling and Superseding
5437 @subsection Canceling Articles
5438 @cindex canceling articles
5439 @cindex superseding articles
5441 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
5442 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
5444 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
5446 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
5448 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
5449 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
5450 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
5451 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
5452 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
5453 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5455 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
5456 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
5459 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
5460 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
5461 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
5463 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
5464 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
5465 your original article.
5467 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
5469 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
5470 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
5471 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
5474 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
5475 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
5476 have posted almost the same article twice.
5478 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
5479 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
5480 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
5481 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
5482 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
5483 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
5484 header by substituting one of those words for the word
5485 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
5486 you would do normally. The previous article will be
5487 canceled/superseded.
5489 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
5491 @node Delayed Articles
5492 @section Delayed Articles
5493 @cindex delayed sending
5494 @cindex send delayed
5496 Sometimes, you might wish to delay the sending of a message. For
5497 example, you might wish to arrange for a message to turn up just in time
5498 to remind your about the birthday of your Significant Other. For this,
5499 there is the @code{gnus-delay} package. Setup is simple:
5502 (gnus-delay-initialize)
5505 @findex gnus-delay-article
5506 Normally, to send a message you use the @kbd{C-c C-c} command from
5507 Message mode. To delay a message, use @kbd{C-c C-j}
5508 (@code{gnus-delay-article}) instead. This will ask you for how long the
5509 message should be delayed. Possible answers are:
5513 A time span. Consists of an integer and a letter. For example,
5514 @code{42d} means to delay for 42 days. Available letters are @code{m}
5515 (minutes), @code{h} (hours), @code{d} (days), @code{w} (weeks), @code{M}
5516 (months) and @code{Y} (years).
5519 A specific date. Looks like @code{YYYYY-MM-DD}. The message will be
5520 delayed until that day, at a specific time (eight o'clock by default).
5521 See also @code{gnus-delay-default-hour}.
5524 A specific time of day. Given in @code{hh:mm} format, 24h, no am/pm
5525 stuff. The deadline will be at that time today, except if that time has
5526 already passed, then it's at the given time tomorrow. So if it's ten
5527 o'clock in the morning and you specify @code{11:15}, then the deadline
5528 is one hour and fifteen minutes hence. But if you specify @code{9:20},
5529 that means a time tomorrow.
5532 The action of the @code{gnus-delay-article} command is influenced by a
5533 couple of variables:
5536 @item gnus-delay-default-hour
5537 @vindex gnus-delay-default-hour
5538 When you specify a specific date, the message will be due on that hour
5539 on the given date. Possible values are integers 0 through 23.
5541 @item gnus-delay-default-delay
5542 @vindex gnus-delay-default-delay
5543 This is a string and gives the default delay. It can be of any of the
5544 formats described above.
5546 @item gnus-delay-group
5547 @vindex gnus-delay-group
5548 Delayed articles will be kept in this group on the drafts server until
5549 they are due. You probably don't need to change this. The default
5550 value is @code{"delayed"}.
5552 @item gnus-delay-header
5553 @vindex gnus-delay-header
5554 The deadline for each article will be stored in a header. This variable
5555 is a string and gives the header name. You probably don't need to
5556 change this. The default value is @code{"X-Gnus-Delayed"}.
5559 The way delaying works is like this: when you use the
5560 @code{gnus-delay-article} command, you give a certain delay. Gnus
5561 calculates the deadline of the message and stores it in the
5562 @code{X-Gnus-Delayed} header and puts the message in the
5563 @code{nndraft:delayed} group.
5565 @findex gnus-delay-send-queue
5566 And whenever you get new news, Gnus looks through the group for articles
5567 which are due and sends them. It uses the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue}
5568 function for this. By default, this function is added to the hook
5569 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But of course, you can change this.
5570 Maybe you want to use the demon to send drafts? Just tell the demon to
5571 execute the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} function.
5574 @item gnus-delay-initialize
5575 @findex gnus-delay-initialize
5576 By default, this function installs @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} in
5577 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But it accepts the optional second
5578 argument @code{no-check}. If it is non-@code{nil},
5579 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is not changed. The optional first
5580 argument is ignored.
5582 For example, @code{(gnus-delay-initialize nil t)} means to do nothing.
5583 Presumably, you want to use the demon for sending due delayed articles.
5584 Just don't forget to set that up :-)
5588 @node Marking Articles
5589 @section Marking Articles
5590 @cindex article marking
5591 @cindex article ticking
5594 There are several marks you can set on an article.
5596 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
5597 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
5598 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
5600 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
5603 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
5604 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
5605 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
5609 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
5613 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
5614 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
5615 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
5619 @node Unread Articles
5620 @subsection Unread Articles
5622 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
5627 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
5628 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
5630 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
5631 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
5632 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
5633 tick it. However, articles can be expired (from news servers by the
5634 news server software, Gnus itself never expires ticked messages), so if
5635 you want to keep an article forever, you'll have to make it persistent
5636 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
5639 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
5640 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
5642 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
5643 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
5644 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
5645 Otherwise (except for the visibility issue), they are just like ticked
5649 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
5650 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
5652 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
5657 @subsection Read Articles
5658 @cindex expirable mark
5660 All the following marks mark articles as read.
5665 @vindex gnus-del-mark
5666 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
5667 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
5670 @vindex gnus-read-mark
5671 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
5674 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
5675 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
5676 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
5679 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
5680 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
5683 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
5684 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
5687 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
5688 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
5691 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
5692 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
5695 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
5696 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
5699 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
5700 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
5703 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
5704 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
5708 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
5709 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
5710 (@code{gnus-duplicate-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
5714 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
5715 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
5717 One more special mark, though:
5721 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
5722 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
5724 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
5725 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
5726 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
5727 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
5733 @subsection Other Marks
5734 @cindex process mark
5737 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
5743 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
5744 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
5745 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
5746 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
5747 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
5750 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
5751 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
5752 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
5753 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
5756 @vindex gnus-forwarded-mark
5757 All articles that you have forwarded will be marked with an @samp{F} in
5758 the second column (@code{gnus-forwarded-mark}).
5761 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
5762 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
5763 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5766 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
5767 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
5768 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
5769 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
5772 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5773 Articles that according to the server haven't been shown to the user
5774 before are marked with a @samp{N} in the second column
5775 (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Note that not all servers support this
5776 mark, in which case it simply never appears. Compare with
5777 @code{gnus-unseen-mark}.
5780 @vindex gnus-unseen-mark
5781 Articles that haven't been seen before in Gnus by the user are marked
5782 with a @samp{.} in the second column (@code{gnus-unseen-mark}).
5783 Compare with @code{gnus-recent-mark}.
5786 @vindex gnus-downloaded-mark
5787 When using the Gnus agent @pxref{Agent Basics}, articles may be
5788 downloaded for unplugged (offline) viewing. If you are using the
5789 @samp{%O} spec, these articles get the @samp{+} mark in that spec.
5790 (The variable @code{gnus-downloaded-mark} controls which character to
5794 @vindex gnus-undownloaded-mark
5795 When using the Gnus agent @pxref{Agent Basics}, some articles might
5796 not have been downloaded. Such articles cannot be viewed while you
5797 are unplugged (offline). If you are using the @samp{%O} spec, these
5798 articles get the @samp{-} mark in that spec. (The variable
5799 @code{gnus-undownloaded-mark} controls which character to use.)
5802 @vindex gnus-downloadable-mark
5803 The Gnus agent @pxref{Agent Basics} downloads some articles
5804 automatically, but it is also possible to explicitly mark articles for
5805 download, even if they would not be downloaded automatically. Such
5806 explicitly-marked articles get the @samp{%} mark in the first column.
5807 (The variable @code{gnus-downloadable-mark} controls which character to
5811 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
5812 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
5813 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
5814 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
5815 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
5818 @vindex gnus-process-mark
5819 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
5820 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
5821 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
5822 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
5823 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
5827 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
5828 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
5829 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
5831 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
5832 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
5833 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
5837 @subsection Setting Marks
5838 @cindex setting marks
5840 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
5845 @kindex M c (Summary)
5846 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5847 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5848 @cindex mark as unread
5849 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5850 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5856 @kindex M t (Summary)
5857 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5858 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5859 @xref{Article Caching}.
5864 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5865 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5866 Mark the current article as dormant
5867 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5871 @kindex M d (Summary)
5873 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5874 Mark the current article as read
5875 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5879 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5880 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5881 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5886 @kindex M k (Summary)
5887 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5888 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5889 and then select the next unread article
5890 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5894 @kindex M K (Summary)
5895 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5896 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5897 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5898 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5901 @kindex M C (Summary)
5902 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5903 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5904 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5907 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5908 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5909 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5910 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5913 @kindex M H (Summary)
5914 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5915 Catchup the current group to point (before the point)
5916 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5919 @kindex M h (Summary)
5920 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-from-here
5921 Catchup the current group from point (after the point)
5922 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-from-here}).
5925 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5926 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5927 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5928 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5931 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5932 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5933 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5934 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5938 @kindex M e (Summary)
5940 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5941 Mark the current article as expirable
5942 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5945 @kindex M b (Summary)
5946 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5947 Set a bookmark in the current article
5948 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5951 @kindex M B (Summary)
5952 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5953 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5954 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5957 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5958 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5959 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5960 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5963 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5964 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5965 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5966 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5969 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5970 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5971 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5972 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5973 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5976 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
5977 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
5978 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
5979 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
5980 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
5981 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
5982 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
5983 The default is @code{t}.
5986 @node Generic Marking Commands
5987 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
5989 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
5990 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
5991 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
5992 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
5993 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
5996 Multiply these five behaviors with five different marking commands, and
5997 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
6000 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
6001 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
6002 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
6003 to list in this manual.
6005 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
6006 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
6007 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
6008 article, you could say something like:
6011 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
6012 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
6013 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
6019 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
6020 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
6024 @node Setting Process Marks
6025 @subsection Setting Process Marks
6026 @cindex setting process marks
6028 Process marks are displayed as @code{#} in the summary buffer, and are
6029 used for marking articles in such a way that other commands will
6030 process these articles. For instance, if you process mark four
6031 articles and then use the @kbd{*} command, Gnus will enter these four
6032 commands into the cache. For more information,
6033 @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
6040 @kindex M P p (Summary)
6041 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
6042 Mark the current article with the process mark
6043 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
6044 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
6048 @kindex M P u (Summary)
6049 @kindex M-# (Summary)
6050 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
6051 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
6054 @kindex M P U (Summary)
6055 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
6056 Remove the process mark from all articles
6057 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
6060 @kindex M P i (Summary)
6061 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
6062 Invert the list of process marked articles
6063 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
6066 @kindex M P R (Summary)
6067 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
6068 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
6069 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
6072 @kindex M P G (Summary)
6073 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
6074 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
6075 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
6078 @kindex M P r (Summary)
6079 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
6080 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
6084 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-region
6085 Unmark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-region}).
6088 @kindex M P t (Summary)
6089 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6090 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
6091 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6094 @kindex M P T (Summary)
6095 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6096 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
6097 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6100 @kindex M P v (Summary)
6101 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
6102 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
6103 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
6106 @kindex M P s (Summary)
6107 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
6108 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
6111 @kindex M P S (Summary)
6112 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
6113 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
6114 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
6117 @kindex M P a (Summary)
6118 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
6119 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
6122 @kindex M P b (Summary)
6123 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
6124 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
6125 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
6128 @kindex M P k (Summary)
6129 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
6130 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
6131 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
6134 @kindex M P y (Summary)
6135 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
6136 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
6137 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
6140 @kindex M P w (Summary)
6141 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
6142 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
6143 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
6147 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
6148 set process marks based on article body contents.
6155 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
6156 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
6157 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
6160 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
6161 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
6162 additional articles.
6168 @kindex / / (Summary)
6169 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
6170 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
6171 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}). If given a prefix, exclude
6175 @kindex / a (Summary)
6176 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
6177 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
6178 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}). If given a prefix, exclude
6182 @kindex / x (Summary)
6183 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
6184 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
6185 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
6186 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}). If given a prefix, exclude
6191 @kindex / u (Summary)
6193 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
6194 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
6195 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
6196 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
6197 dormant articles will also be excluded.
6200 @kindex / m (Summary)
6201 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
6202 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
6203 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
6206 @kindex / t (Summary)
6207 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
6208 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
6209 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
6210 articles younger than that number of days.
6213 @kindex / n (Summary)
6214 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
6215 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
6216 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
6217 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
6220 @kindex / w (Summary)
6221 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
6222 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
6223 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
6227 @kindex / . (Summary)
6228 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unseen
6229 Limit the summary buffer to the unseen articles
6230 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unseen}).
6233 @kindex / v (Summary)
6234 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
6235 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
6236 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
6239 @kindex / p (Summary)
6240 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-display-predicate
6241 Limit the summary buffer to articles that satisfy the @code{display}
6242 group parameter predicate
6243 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-display-predicate}). See @pxref{Group
6244 Parameters} for more on this predicate.
6248 @kindex M S (Summary)
6249 @kindex / E (Summary)
6250 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
6251 Include all expunged articles in the limit
6252 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
6255 @kindex / D (Summary)
6256 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
6257 Include all dormant articles in the limit
6258 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
6261 @kindex / * (Summary)
6262 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
6263 Include all cached articles in the limit
6264 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
6267 @kindex / d (Summary)
6268 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
6269 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
6270 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
6273 @kindex / M (Summary)
6274 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
6275 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
6278 @kindex / T (Summary)
6279 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
6280 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
6283 @kindex / c (Summary)
6284 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
6285 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
6286 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
6289 @kindex / C (Summary)
6290 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
6291 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
6292 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
6293 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
6296 @kindex / N (Summary)
6297 @findex gnus-summary-insert-new-articles
6298 Insert all new articles in the summary buffer. It scans for new emails
6299 if @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} is non-@code{nil}.
6302 @kindex / o (Summary)
6303 @findex gnus-summary-insert-old-articles
6304 Insert all old articles in the summary buffer. If given a numbered
6305 prefix, fetch this number of articles.
6313 @cindex article threading
6315 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
6316 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
6317 hierarchical fashion.
6319 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
6320 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
6321 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
6322 or simply missing. Weird news propagation exacerbates the problem,
6323 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
6324 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
6325 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
6327 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
6331 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
6334 A tree-like article structure.
6337 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
6340 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
6341 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
6342 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
6343 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
6344 called loose threads.
6346 @item thread gathering
6347 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
6349 @item sparse threads
6350 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
6351 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
6357 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
6358 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
6362 @node Customizing Threading
6363 @subsection Customizing Threading
6364 @cindex customizing threading
6367 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
6368 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
6369 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
6370 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over@dots{} but you were wrong!
6375 @subsubsection Loose Threads
6378 @cindex loose threads
6381 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
6382 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
6383 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
6384 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
6385 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
6386 read or killed the root in a previous session.
6388 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
6389 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
6390 There are four possible values:
6394 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
6395 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-adopt,width=7.5cm}}
6396 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-empty,width=7.5cm}}}
6397 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-none,width=7.5cm}}}
6398 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-dummy,width=7.5cm}}}
6403 @cindex adopting articles
6408 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
6409 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
6410 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
6411 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
6414 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
6415 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root-always
6416 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
6417 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
6418 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
6419 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
6420 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
6421 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
6422 If you want all threads to have a dummy root, even the non-gathered
6423 ones, set @code{gnus-summary-make-false-root-always} to @code{t}.
6426 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
6427 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
6428 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
6432 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
6433 display them after one another.
6436 Don't gather loose threads.
6439 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6440 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6441 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
6442 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
6443 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
6444 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
6445 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
6446 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
6447 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
6448 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
6449 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
6451 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
6452 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
6453 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
6456 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6457 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6458 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
6459 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
6460 simplification is used.
6462 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6463 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6464 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
6465 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
6467 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
6469 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6475 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
6476 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
6477 "answer" "reference" "announce"
6478 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
6483 (mapconcat 'identity
6484 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
6486 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
6489 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
6492 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6493 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6494 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
6495 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
6496 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
6497 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
6499 Useful functions to put in this list include:
6502 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
6503 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
6504 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
6506 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6507 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6510 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
6511 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
6512 Remove excessive whitespace.
6514 @item gnus-simplify-all-whitespace
6515 @findex gnus-simplify-all-whitespace
6516 Remove all whitespace.
6519 You may also write your own functions, of course.
6522 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6523 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6524 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
6525 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
6526 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
6527 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
6528 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
6529 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
6531 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6532 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6533 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
6534 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
6535 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
6536 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
6537 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
6538 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
6539 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
6543 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6544 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6545 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
6546 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
6548 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6549 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6550 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
6553 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
6557 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6558 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
6564 @node Filling In Threads
6565 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
6568 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
6569 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
6570 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
6571 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
6572 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
6573 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
6574 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
6575 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
6576 fetching old headers only works if the back end you are using carries
6577 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool},
6578 @code{nnml}, and @code{nnmaildir}. Also remember that if the root of
6579 the thread has been expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do
6582 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
6583 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
6584 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
6586 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
6587 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
6588 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
6589 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
6590 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
6591 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
6592 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
6593 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
6594 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
6595 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
6596 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
6597 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
6598 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
6599 @code{nil} by default.
6601 @item gnus-read-all-available-headers
6602 @vindex gnus-read-all-available-headers
6603 This is a rather obscure variable that few will find useful. It's
6604 intended for those non-news newsgroups where the back end has to fetch
6605 quite a lot to present the summary buffer, and where it's impossible to
6606 go back to parents of articles. This is mostly the case in the
6607 web-based groups, like the @code{nnultimate} groups.
6609 If you don't use those, then it's safe to leave this as the default
6610 @code{nil}. If you want to use this variable, it should be a regexp
6611 that matches the group name, or @code{t} for all groups.
6616 @node More Threading
6617 @subsubsection More Threading
6620 @item gnus-show-threads
6621 @vindex gnus-show-threads
6622 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
6623 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
6624 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
6625 slower and more awkward.
6627 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6628 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6629 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
6632 This can also be a predicate specifier (@pxref{Predicate Specifiers}).
6633 Available predicates are @code{gnus-article-unread-p} and
6634 @code{gnus-article-unseen-p}).
6639 (setq gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6640 '(or gnus-article-unread-p
6641 gnus-article-unseen-p))
6644 (It's a pretty nonsensical example, since all unseen articles are also
6645 unread, but you get my drift.)
6648 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
6649 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
6650 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
6651 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
6652 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
6653 threads are expunged.
6655 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
6656 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
6657 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
6660 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6661 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6662 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
6663 this variable is non-@code{nil}, which is the default, the subject
6664 change is ignored. If it is @code{nil}, a change in the subject will
6665 result in a new thread.
6667 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
6668 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
6669 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
6672 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6673 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6674 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
6675 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
6676 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
6677 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
6678 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
6679 Setting this variable to an alternate value
6680 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
6681 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
6682 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
6687 @node Low-Level Threading
6688 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
6692 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
6693 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
6694 Hook run before parsing any headers.
6696 @item gnus-alter-header-function
6697 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
6698 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
6699 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
6700 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
6701 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
6702 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
6703 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
6704 meaningful. Here's one example:
6707 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
6709 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
6710 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
6712 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
6714 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
6721 @node Thread Commands
6722 @subsection Thread Commands
6723 @cindex thread commands
6729 @kindex T k (Summary)
6730 @kindex C-M-k (Summary)
6731 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
6732 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
6733 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
6734 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
6739 @kindex T l (Summary)
6740 @kindex C-M-l (Summary)
6741 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
6742 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
6743 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
6746 @kindex T i (Summary)
6747 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
6748 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
6749 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
6752 @kindex T # (Summary)
6753 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6754 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
6755 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6758 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
6759 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6760 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
6761 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6764 @kindex T T (Summary)
6765 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
6766 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
6769 @kindex T s (Summary)
6770 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
6771 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
6772 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
6775 @kindex T h (Summary)
6776 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
6777 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
6780 @kindex T S (Summary)
6781 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
6782 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
6785 @kindex T H (Summary)
6786 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
6787 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
6790 @kindex T t (Summary)
6791 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
6792 Re-thread the current article's thread
6793 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
6794 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
6797 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
6798 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
6799 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
6800 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
6804 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
6805 understand the numeric prefix.
6810 @kindex T n (Summary)
6812 @kindex C-M-n (Summary)
6814 @kindex M-down (Summary)
6815 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
6816 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
6819 @kindex T p (Summary)
6821 @kindex C-M-p (Summary)
6823 @kindex M-up (Summary)
6824 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
6825 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
6828 @kindex T d (Summary)
6829 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
6830 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
6833 @kindex T u (Summary)
6834 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
6835 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
6838 @kindex T o (Summary)
6839 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
6840 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
6843 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
6844 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
6845 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
6846 a command like @kbd{T k} (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
6847 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
6848 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
6849 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
6850 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
6851 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
6852 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
6853 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
6854 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
6858 @node Sorting the Summary Buffer
6859 @section Sorting the Summary Buffer
6861 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
6862 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
6863 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
6864 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6865 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
6866 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6867 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-random
6868 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
6869 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-thread
6870 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
6871 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
6872 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
6873 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
6875 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
6876 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
6877 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
6878 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score},
6879 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-number},
6880 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-date},
6881 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-random} and
6882 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
6884 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
6885 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
6886 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
6888 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
6889 last function in the list. You should probably always include
6890 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
6891 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
6892 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
6893 ascending article order.
6895 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
6896 by number, you could do something like:
6899 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6900 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6901 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6902 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
6905 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
6906 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
6907 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
6908 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
6909 which the articles arrived.
6911 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
6915 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6917 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
6918 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
6921 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
6922 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
6923 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
6924 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
6927 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
6928 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
6929 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
6930 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6931 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6932 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-random
6933 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6934 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or
6935 other, you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions}
6936 variable. It is very similar to the
6937 @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that it uses slightly
6938 different functions for article comparison. Available sorting
6939 predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6940 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author},
6941 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date},
6942 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-random}, and
6943 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6945 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6949 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6950 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6951 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6956 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6957 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6958 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6959 @cindex article pre-fetch
6962 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
6963 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6964 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6965 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6966 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6968 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6969 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
6971 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
6972 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
6973 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
6974 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
6975 connection is blocked.
6977 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
6978 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
6979 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
6980 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
6982 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
6983 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
6984 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
6985 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
6988 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing@dots{} unless
6991 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
6992 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
6993 happen automatically.
6995 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
6996 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
6997 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
6998 that when you read an article in the group, the back end will pre-fetch
6999 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the back end will
7000 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
7001 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
7003 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
7004 @findex gnus-async-read-p
7005 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
7006 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p}
7007 variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This
7008 function should return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is
7009 to be pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which
7010 returns @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an
7011 article data structure as the only parameter.
7013 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter
7014 than 100 lines, you could say something like:
7017 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
7018 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
7019 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
7020 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
7023 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
7026 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
7027 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
7028 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
7030 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
7031 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
7032 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
7033 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
7037 Remove articles when they are read.
7040 Remove articles when exiting the group.
7043 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
7045 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
7046 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
7047 @c from the next group.
7050 @node Article Caching
7051 @section Article Caching
7052 @cindex article caching
7055 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
7056 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
7057 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
7058 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
7059 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
7061 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
7063 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
7064 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
7065 @vindex gnus-use-cache
7066 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
7067 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
7068 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
7069 cache is flat or hierarchical is controlled by the
7070 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
7072 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
7073 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
7074 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
7075 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
7076 as dormant, and don't worry.
7078 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
7080 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
7081 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
7082 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
7083 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
7084 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
7085 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
7086 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
7087 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
7088 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
7089 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
7091 @findex gnus-jog-cache
7092 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
7093 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
7094 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
7095 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
7096 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
7097 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
7098 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
7099 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
7100 not then be downloaded by this command.
7102 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
7103 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
7104 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
7105 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
7106 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
7107 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
7109 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
7110 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
7111 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
7112 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
7113 variables, the group is not cached.
7115 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
7116 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
7117 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
7118 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
7119 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
7120 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
7121 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
7122 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
7123 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
7126 @findex gnus-cache-move-cache
7127 @code{gnus-cache-move-cache} will move your whole
7128 @code{gnus-cache-directory} to some other location. You get asked to
7129 where, isn't that cool?
7131 @node Persistent Articles
7132 @section Persistent Articles
7133 @cindex persistent articles
7135 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
7136 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
7137 useful in my opinion.
7139 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
7140 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
7141 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
7142 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
7143 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
7144 the expiry going on at the news server.
7146 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
7147 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
7148 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
7154 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
7155 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
7158 @kindex M-* (Summary)
7159 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
7160 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
7161 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
7165 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
7167 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
7168 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
7169 interested in persistent articles:
7172 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
7176 @node Article Backlog
7177 @section Article Backlog
7179 @cindex article backlog
7181 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
7182 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
7183 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
7184 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
7185 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
7186 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
7187 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
7188 increase memory usage some.
7190 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
7191 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
7192 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
7193 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
7194 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
7195 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
7196 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
7198 The default value is 20.
7201 @node Saving Articles
7202 @section Saving Articles
7203 @cindex saving articles
7205 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
7206 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
7207 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
7208 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
7209 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
7211 For the commands listed here, the target is a file. If you want to
7212 save to a group, see the @kbd{B c} (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article})
7213 command (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
7215 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
7216 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
7217 unwanted headers before saving the article.
7219 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
7220 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
7221 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
7222 deleted before saving.
7228 @kindex O o (Summary)
7230 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
7231 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
7232 Save the current article using the default article saver
7233 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
7236 @kindex O m (Summary)
7237 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
7238 Save the current article in mail format
7239 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
7242 @kindex O r (Summary)
7243 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
7244 Save the current article in rmail format
7245 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
7248 @kindex O f (Summary)
7249 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
7250 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
7251 Save the current article in plain file format
7252 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
7255 @kindex O F (Summary)
7256 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
7257 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
7258 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
7261 @kindex O b (Summary)
7262 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
7263 Save the current article body in plain file format
7264 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
7267 @kindex O h (Summary)
7268 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
7269 Save the current article in mh folder format
7270 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
7273 @kindex O v (Summary)
7274 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
7275 Save the current article in a VM folder
7276 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
7280 @kindex O p (Summary)
7282 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
7283 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
7284 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
7285 If given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), include the
7286 complete headers in the piped output.
7289 @kindex O P (Summary)
7290 @findex gnus-summary-muttprint
7291 @vindex gnus-summary-muttprint-program
7292 Save the current article into muttprint. That is, print it using the
7293 external program Muttprint (see
7294 @uref{http://muttprint.sourceforge.net/}). The program name and
7295 options to use is controlled by the variable
7296 @code{gnus-summary-muttprint-program}. (@code{gnus-summary-muttprint}).
7300 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
7301 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
7302 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
7303 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
7304 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
7305 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
7306 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
7307 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
7308 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
7309 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
7310 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
7311 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
7315 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
7316 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
7317 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
7318 functions below, or you can create your own.
7322 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
7323 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
7324 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
7325 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7326 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
7327 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7328 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7330 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7331 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7332 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
7333 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
7334 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7335 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7337 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
7338 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
7339 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
7340 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7341 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
7342 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7343 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7345 @item gnus-summary-write-to-file
7346 @findex gnus-summary-write-to-file
7347 Write the article straight to an ordinary file. The file is
7348 overwritten if it exists. Uses the function in the
7349 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7350 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7352 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7353 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7354 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
7355 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7356 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7358 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7359 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7360 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
7361 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
7362 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
7365 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
7366 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
7367 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
7368 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
7369 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
7371 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7372 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7373 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
7374 reader to use this setting.
7377 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
7378 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
7379 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
7380 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
7383 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
7384 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
7385 available functions that generate names:
7389 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
7390 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
7391 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7393 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
7394 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7395 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7397 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
7398 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
7399 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7401 @item gnus-plain-save-name
7402 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7403 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7405 @item gnus-sender-save-name
7406 @findex gnus-sender-save-name
7407 File names like @file{~/News/larsi}.
7410 @vindex gnus-split-methods
7411 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
7412 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
7413 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
7414 related to VM in @file{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
7418 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
7419 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
7420 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
7421 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
7424 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
7425 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
7426 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
7427 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
7428 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
7429 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
7430 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
7431 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
7432 called returns a string or a list of strings.
7434 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
7435 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
7436 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
7437 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
7439 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
7440 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
7441 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
7444 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
7445 lots of mail groups called things like
7446 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
7447 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
7448 following will do just that:
7451 (defun my-save-name (group)
7452 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
7453 (substring group (match-end 0))))
7455 (setq gnus-split-methods
7456 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
7461 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
7462 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
7463 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
7464 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
7465 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
7466 all the files in the top level directory
7467 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
7468 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
7469 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
7470 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
7472 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
7473 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
7474 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
7475 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
7476 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
7479 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
7483 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
7484 (setq gnus-default-article-saver
7485 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
7488 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
7489 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
7490 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
7491 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
7494 @node Decoding Articles
7495 @section Decoding Articles
7496 @cindex decoding articles
7498 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
7499 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
7502 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
7503 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
7504 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
7505 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
7506 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
7507 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
7511 @cindex article series
7512 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
7513 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
7514 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
7515 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
7516 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
7518 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
7519 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
7520 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
7522 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
7523 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
7524 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
7526 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
7527 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
7528 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
7531 @node Uuencoded Articles
7532 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
7534 @cindex uuencoded articles
7539 @kindex X u (Summary)
7540 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
7541 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
7542 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
7545 @kindex X U (Summary)
7546 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
7547 Uudecodes and saves the current series
7548 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7551 @kindex X v u (Summary)
7552 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
7553 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
7556 @kindex X v U (Summary)
7557 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
7558 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
7559 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
7563 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
7564 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
7565 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
7566 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
7567 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7569 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
7570 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
7571 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
7572 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
7575 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
7576 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
7577 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
7578 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
7579 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
7580 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
7584 @node Shell Archives
7585 @subsection Shell Archives
7587 @cindex shell archives
7588 @cindex shared articles
7590 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
7591 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
7592 some commands to deal with these:
7597 @kindex X s (Summary)
7598 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
7599 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
7602 @kindex X S (Summary)
7603 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
7604 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
7607 @kindex X v s (Summary)
7608 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
7609 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
7612 @kindex X v S (Summary)
7613 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
7614 Unshars, views and saves the current series
7615 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
7619 @node PostScript Files
7620 @subsection PostScript Files
7626 @kindex X p (Summary)
7627 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
7628 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
7631 @kindex X P (Summary)
7632 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
7633 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
7634 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
7637 @kindex X v p (Summary)
7638 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
7639 View the current PostScript series
7640 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
7643 @kindex X v P (Summary)
7644 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
7645 View and save the current PostScript series
7646 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
7651 @subsection Other Files
7655 @kindex X o (Summary)
7656 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
7657 Save the current series
7658 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
7661 @kindex X b (Summary)
7662 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
7663 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
7664 doesn't really work yet.
7668 @node Decoding Variables
7669 @subsection Decoding Variables
7671 Adjective, not verb.
7674 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
7675 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
7676 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
7680 @node Rule Variables
7681 @subsubsection Rule Variables
7682 @cindex rule variables
7684 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
7685 variables are of the form
7688 (list '(regexp1 command2)
7695 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7696 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7698 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
7699 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @file{.au} sound file, you could
7702 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7703 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
7706 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7707 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7708 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
7709 user and default view rules.
7711 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7712 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7713 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
7718 @node Other Decode Variables
7719 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
7722 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7724 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7725 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
7726 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
7727 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
7728 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
7732 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
7733 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
7736 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
7737 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
7738 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
7741 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7742 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7743 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
7744 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
7745 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
7748 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7749 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7750 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
7752 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7753 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7754 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
7755 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
7756 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
7759 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7760 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7761 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
7763 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7764 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7765 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
7766 looking for files to display.
7768 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
7769 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
7770 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
7773 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7774 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7775 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
7778 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7779 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7780 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
7783 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7784 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7785 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
7788 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7789 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7790 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
7791 decoded articles as unread.
7793 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7794 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7795 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
7796 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
7798 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7799 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7800 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
7802 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7803 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7805 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
7806 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
7807 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
7808 @code{metamail} for viewing.
7810 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7811 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7812 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
7813 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
7814 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
7815 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
7816 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
7817 simply dropped them.
7822 @node Uuencoding and Posting
7823 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
7827 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7828 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7829 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
7830 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
7831 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
7832 for you when you post the article.
7834 @item gnus-uu-post-length
7835 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
7836 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
7837 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
7839 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
7840 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
7841 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
7842 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
7843 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
7844 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
7845 think that counts@dots{}) Default is @code{nil}.
7847 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7848 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7849 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
7850 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
7851 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
7852 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
7853 Default is @code{t}.
7859 @subsection Viewing Files
7860 @cindex viewing files
7861 @cindex pseudo-articles
7863 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
7864 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
7865 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
7866 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
7867 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
7868 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
7869 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
7871 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
7872 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
7873 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
7874 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
7876 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
7877 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
7878 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
7880 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
7881 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
7882 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
7883 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
7884 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
7886 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
7887 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
7888 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
7889 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
7890 a list of parameters to that command.
7892 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
7893 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
7894 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
7896 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
7897 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
7898 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
7901 @node Article Treatment
7902 @section Article Treatment
7904 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
7905 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
7906 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
7907 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
7908 these articles easier.
7911 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
7912 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
7913 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
7914 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
7915 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
7916 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
7917 * Article Button Levels:: Controlling appearance of buttons.
7918 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
7919 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
7920 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
7921 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
7925 @node Article Highlighting
7926 @subsection Article Highlighting
7927 @cindex highlighting
7929 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
7930 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
7935 @kindex W H a (Summary)
7936 @findex gnus-article-highlight
7937 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7938 Do much highlighting of the current article
7939 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
7940 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
7943 @kindex W H h (Summary)
7944 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
7945 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
7946 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
7947 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
7948 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
7949 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
7950 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
7951 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
7952 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
7953 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
7954 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
7957 @kindex W H c (Summary)
7958 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
7959 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
7961 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
7964 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7966 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7967 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
7968 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
7970 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7971 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
7972 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
7974 @item gnus-cite-face-list
7975 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
7976 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
7977 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
7978 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
7979 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
7981 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
7982 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
7983 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
7985 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7986 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7987 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
7989 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7990 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7991 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
7992 that it's a citation.
7994 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7995 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7996 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
7998 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7999 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
8000 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
8002 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
8003 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
8004 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
8005 cited text belonging to the attribution.
8011 @kindex W H s (Summary)
8012 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
8013 @vindex gnus-signature-face
8014 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
8015 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
8016 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
8017 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
8018 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
8023 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
8026 @node Article Fontisizing
8027 @subsection Article Fontisizing
8029 @cindex article emphasis
8031 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
8032 @kindex W e (Summary)
8033 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
8034 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
8035 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
8036 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
8038 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
8039 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
8040 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
8041 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
8042 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
8043 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
8044 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
8045 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
8049 (setq gnus-emphasis-alist
8050 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
8051 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
8060 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
8061 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
8062 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
8063 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
8064 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
8065 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
8066 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
8067 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
8068 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
8069 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
8070 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
8071 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
8072 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
8074 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
8075 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
8076 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
8080 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
8083 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
8085 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
8086 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
8087 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
8088 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
8090 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
8093 @node Article Hiding
8094 @subsection Article Hiding
8095 @cindex article hiding
8097 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
8098 too much cruft in most articles.
8103 @kindex W W a (Summary)
8104 @findex gnus-article-hide
8105 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
8106 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
8107 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
8110 @kindex W W h (Summary)
8111 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
8112 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
8116 @kindex W W b (Summary)
8117 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
8118 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
8119 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
8122 @kindex W W s (Summary)
8123 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
8124 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
8128 @kindex W W l (Summary)
8129 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
8130 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
8131 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
8132 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
8133 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
8134 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
8135 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
8139 @item gnus-list-identifiers
8140 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
8141 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
8142 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
8147 @kindex W W P (Summary)
8148 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
8149 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
8150 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
8153 @kindex W W B (Summary)
8154 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
8155 @vindex gnus-article-banner-alist
8156 @vindex gnus-article-address-banner-alist
8159 @cindex stripping advertisements
8160 @cindex advertisements
8161 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
8162 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
8163 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
8164 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
8165 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
8166 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
8167 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
8168 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
8169 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
8170 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
8173 Regardless of a group, you can hide things like advertisements only when
8174 the sender of an article has a certain mail address specified in
8175 @code{gnus-article-address-banner-alist}.
8179 @item gnus-article-address-banner-alist
8180 @vindex gnus-article-address-banner-alist
8181 Alist of mail addresses and banners. Each element has the form
8182 @code{(@var{address} . @var{banner})}, where @var{address} is a regexp
8183 matching a mail address in the From header, @var{banner} is one of a
8184 symbol @code{signature}, an item in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist},
8185 a regexp and @code{nil}. If @var{address} matches author's mail
8186 address, it will remove things like advertisements. For example, if a
8187 sender has the mail address @samp{hail@@yoo-hoo.co.jp} and there is a
8188 banner something like @samp{Do You Yoo-hoo!?} in all articles he
8189 sends, you can use the following element to remove them:
8192 ("@@yoo-hoo\\.co\\.jp\\'" . "\n_+\nDo You Yoo-hoo!\\?\n.*\n.*\n")
8198 @kindex W W c (Summary)
8199 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
8200 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
8201 customizing the hiding:
8205 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
8206 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
8207 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
8208 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
8209 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
8210 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
8211 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
8216 Starting point of the hidden text.
8218 Ending point of the hidden text.
8220 Number of characters in the hidden region.
8222 Number of lines of hidden text.
8225 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
8226 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
8227 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
8228 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
8229 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
8234 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
8235 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
8237 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
8238 following two variables:
8241 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
8242 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
8243 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
8244 50), hide the cited text.
8246 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
8247 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
8248 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
8253 @kindex W W C (Summary)
8254 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
8255 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
8256 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
8257 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
8258 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
8262 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
8263 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
8264 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
8266 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
8267 citation customization.
8269 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
8273 @node Article Washing
8274 @subsection Article Washing
8276 @cindex article washing
8278 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
8279 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
8281 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
8282 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
8285 @xref{Customizing Articles}, if you want to change how Gnus displays
8286 articles by default.
8291 This is not really washing, it's sort of the opposite of washing. If
8292 you type this, you see the article exactly as it exists on disk or on
8296 Force redisplaying of the current article
8297 (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). This is also not really washing.
8298 If you type this, you see the article without any previously applied
8299 interactive Washing functions but with all default treatments
8300 (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
8303 @kindex W l (Summary)
8304 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
8305 Remove page breaks from the current article
8306 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
8310 @kindex W r (Summary)
8311 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
8312 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
8313 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
8314 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
8315 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
8316 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
8318 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
8319 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
8320 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
8321 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
8324 @kindex W m (Summary)
8325 @findex gnus-summary-morse-message
8326 Morse decode the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-morse-message}).
8330 @kindex W t (Summary)
8332 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
8333 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
8334 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
8337 @kindex W v (Summary)
8338 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-headers
8339 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
8340 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-headers}).
8343 @kindex W o (Summary)
8344 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
8345 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
8348 @kindex W d (Summary)
8349 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
8350 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
8352 @cindex M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s
8354 Treat M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s according to
8355 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
8356 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
8357 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
8360 Sm*rtq**t*s are M****s***'s unilateral extension to the character map in
8361 an attempt to provide more quoting characters. If you see something
8362 like @code{\222} or @code{\264} where you're expecting some kind of
8363 apostrophe or quotation mark, then try this wash.
8366 @kindex W Y f (Summary)
8367 @findex gnus-article-outlook-deuglify-article
8368 @cindex Outlook Express
8369 Full deuglify of broken Outlook (Express) articles: Treat dumbquotes,
8370 unwrap lines, repair attribution and rearrange citation.
8371 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-deuglify-article}).
8374 @kindex W Y u (Summary)
8375 @findex gnus-article-outlook-unwrap-lines
8376 @vindex gnus-outlook-deuglify-unwrap-min
8377 @vindex gnus-outlook-deuglify-unwrap-max
8378 Unwrap lines that appear to be wrapped citation lines. You can control
8379 what lines will be unwrapped by frobbing
8380 @code{gnus-outlook-deuglify-unwrap-min} and
8381 @code{gnus-outlook-deuglify-unwrap-max}, indicating the miminum and
8382 maximum length of an unwrapped citation line.
8383 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-unwrap-lines}).
8386 @kindex W Y a (Summary)
8387 @findex gnus-article-outlook-repair-attribution
8388 Repair a broken attribution line.
8389 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-repair-attribution}).
8392 @kindex W Y c (Summary)
8393 @findex gnus-article-outlook-rearrange-citation
8394 Repair broken citations by rearranging the text.
8395 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-rearrange-citation}).
8398 @kindex W w (Summary)
8399 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
8400 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
8402 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
8406 @kindex W Q (Summary)
8407 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
8408 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
8411 @kindex W C (Summary)
8412 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
8413 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
8414 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
8417 @kindex W c (Summary)
8418 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
8419 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
8420 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
8421 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
8422 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
8425 @kindex W q (Summary)
8426 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
8427 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
8428 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
8429 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
8430 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
8431 readable to me. Note that this is usually done automatically by
8432 Gnus if the message in question has a @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding}
8433 header that says that this encoding has been done.
8434 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8437 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
8438 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
8439 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}).
8440 Base64 is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending non-ASCII
8441 (i. e., 8-bit) articles. Note that this is usually done
8442 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8443 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding has
8445 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8448 @kindex W Z (Summary)
8449 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
8450 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
8451 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
8452 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
8455 @kindex W u (Summary)
8456 @findex gnus-article-unsplit-urls
8457 Remove newlines from within URLs. Some mailers insert newlines into
8458 outgoing email messages to keep lines short. This reformatting can
8459 split long URLs onto multiple lines. Repair those URLs by removing
8460 the newlines (@code{gnus-article-unsplit-urls}).
8463 @kindex W h (Summary)
8464 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
8465 Treat @sc{html} (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}). Note that this is
8466 usually done automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8467 @code{Content-Type} header that says that the message is @sc{html}.
8469 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8471 @vindex gnus-article-wash-function
8472 The default is to use the function specified by
8473 @code{mm-text-html-renderer} (@pxref{Display Customization, ,Display
8474 Customization, emacs-mime, The Emacs MIME Manual}) to convert the
8475 @sc{html}, but this is controlled by the
8476 @code{gnus-article-wash-function} variable. Pre-defined functions you
8484 Use emacs-w3m (see @uref{http://emacs-w3m.namazu.org/} for more
8488 Use Links (see @uref{http://artax.karlin.mff.cuni.cz/~mikulas/links/}).
8491 Use Lynx (see @uref{http://lynx.browser.org/}).
8494 Use html2text -- a simple @sc{html} converter included with Gnus.
8499 @kindex W b (Summary)
8500 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
8501 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
8502 @xref{Article Buttons}.
8505 @kindex W B (Summary)
8506 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
8507 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
8508 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
8511 @kindex W p (Summary)
8512 @findex gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig
8513 Verify a signed control message (@code{gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig}).
8514 Control messages such as @code{newgroup} and @code{checkgroups} are
8515 usually signed by the hierarchy maintainer. You need to add the PGP
8516 public key of the maintainer to your keyring to verify the
8517 message.@footnote{PGP keys for many hierarchies are available at
8518 @uref{ftp://ftp.isc.org/pub/pgpcontrol/README.html}}
8521 @kindex W s (Summary)
8522 @findex gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt
8523 Verify a signed (PGP, @sc{pgp/mime} or @sc{s/mime}) message
8524 (@code{gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt}). @xref{Security}.
8527 @kindex W a (Summary)
8528 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-in-body
8529 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
8530 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-in-body}).
8533 @kindex W E l (Summary)
8534 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
8535 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
8536 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
8539 @kindex W E m (Summary)
8540 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
8541 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
8542 lines with a single empty line.
8543 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
8546 @kindex W E t (Summary)
8547 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
8548 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
8549 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
8552 @kindex W E a (Summary)
8553 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
8554 Do all the three commands above
8555 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
8558 @kindex W E A (Summary)
8559 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
8560 Remove all blank lines
8561 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
8564 @kindex W E s (Summary)
8565 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
8566 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
8567 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
8570 @kindex W E e (Summary)
8571 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
8572 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
8573 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
8577 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
8580 @node Article Header
8581 @subsection Article Header
8583 These commands perform various transformations of article header.
8588 @kindex W G u (Summary)
8589 @findex gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers
8590 Unfold folded header lines (@code{gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers}).
8593 @kindex W G n (Summary)
8594 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups
8595 Fold the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-To} headers
8596 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups}).
8599 @kindex W G f (Summary)
8600 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-headers
8601 Fold all the message headers
8602 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-headers}).
8606 @findex gnus-article-remove-leading-whitespace
8607 Remove excessive whitespace from all headers
8608 (@code{gnus-article-remove-leading-whitespace}).
8613 @node Article Buttons
8614 @subsection Article Buttons
8617 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
8618 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
8619 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
8620 button on these references.
8622 @vindex gnus-button-man-handler
8623 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
8624 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses, Message-IDs, Info links, man pages and
8625 Emacs or Gnus related references. This is controlled by two variables,
8626 one that handles article bodies and one that handles article heads:
8630 @item gnus-button-alist
8631 @vindex gnus-button-alist
8632 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
8635 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8641 All text that match this regular expression (case insensitive) will be
8642 considered an external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches
8643 embedded URLs: @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}. This can also be a
8644 variable containing a regexp, useful variables to use include
8645 @code{gnus-button-url-regexp} and @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-regexp}.
8648 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
8649 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
8650 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
8653 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
8654 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
8655 avoid false matches. Often variables named
8656 @code{gnus-button-@var{*}-level} are used here, @xref{Article Button
8657 Levels}, but any other form may be used too.
8659 @c @code{use-p} is @code{eval}ed only if @code{regexp} matches.
8662 This function will be called when you click on this button.
8665 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
8666 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
8670 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
8673 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
8676 @item gnus-header-button-alist
8677 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
8678 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
8679 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
8680 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
8683 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8686 @var{header} is a regular expression.
8688 @subsubheading Related variables and functions
8690 @item gnus-button-@var{*}-level
8691 @xref{Article Button Levels}.
8693 @c Stuff related to gnus-button-browse-level
8695 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
8696 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
8697 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
8698 default values of the variables above.
8700 @c Stuff related to gnus-button-man-level
8702 @item gnus-button-man-handler
8703 @vindex gnus-button-man-handler
8704 The function to use for displaying man pages. It must take at least one
8705 argument with a string naming the man page.
8707 @c Stuff related to gnus-button-message-level
8709 @item gnus-button-mid-or-mail-regexp
8710 @vindex gnus-button-mid-or-mail-regexp
8711 Regular expression that matches a message ID or a mail address.
8713 @item gnus-button-prefer-mid-or-mail
8714 @vindex gnus-button-prefer-mid-or-mail
8715 This variable determines what to do when the button on a string as
8716 @samp{foo123@@bar.invalid} is pushed. Strings like this can be either a
8717 message ID or a mail address. If it is one of the symbols @code{mid} or
8718 @code{mail}, Gnus will always assume that the string is a message ID or
8719 a mail address, respectivly. If this variable is set to the symbol
8720 @code{ask}, always query the user what do do. If it is a function, this
8721 function will be called with the string as it's only argument. The
8722 function must return @code{mid}, @code{mail}, @code{invalid} or
8723 @code{ask}. The default value is the function
8724 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic}.
8726 @item gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic
8727 @findex gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic
8728 Function that guesses whether it's argument is a message ID or a mail
8729 address. Returns @code{mid} it's a message IDs, @code{mail} if it's a
8730 mail address, @code{ask} if unsure and @code{invalid} if the string is
8733 @item gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic-alist
8734 @vindex gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic-alist
8735 An alist of @code{(RATE . REGEXP)} pairs used by the function
8736 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic}.
8738 @c Stuff related to gnus-button-tex-level
8740 @item gnus-button-ctan-handler
8741 @findex gnus-button-ctan-handler
8742 The function to use for displaying CTAN links. It must take one
8743 argument, the string naming the URL.
8746 @vindex gnus-ctan-url
8747 Top directory of a CTAN (Comprehensive TeX Archive Network) archive used
8748 by @code{gnus-button-ctan-handler}.
8752 @item gnus-article-button-face
8753 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
8754 Face used on buttons.
8756 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
8757 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
8758 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
8762 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
8765 @node Article Button Levels
8766 @subsection Article button levels
8767 @cindex button levels
8768 The higher the value of the variables @code{gnus-button-@var{*}-level},
8769 the more buttons will appear. If the level is zero, no corresponding
8770 buttons are displayed. With the default value (which is 5) you should
8771 already see quite a lot of buttons. With higher levels, you will see
8772 more buttons, but you may also get more false positives. To avoid them,
8773 you can set the variables @code{gnus-button-@var{*}-level} local to
8774 specific groups (@pxref{Group Parameters}). Here's an example for the
8775 variable @code{gnus-parameters}:
8778 ;; increase `gnus-button-*-level' in some groups:
8779 (setq gnus-parameters
8780 '(("\\<\\(emacs\\|gnus\\)\\>" (gnus-button-emacs-level 10))
8781 ("\\<unix\\>" (gnus-button-man-level 10))
8782 ("\\<tex\\>" (gnus-button-tex-level 10))))
8787 @item gnus-button-browse-level
8788 @vindex gnus-button-browse-level
8789 Controls the display of references to message IDs, mail addresses and
8790 news URLs. Related variables and functions include
8791 @code{gnus-button-url-regexp}, @code{browse-url}, and
8792 @code{browse-url-browser-function}.
8794 @item gnus-button-emacs-level
8795 @vindex gnus-button-emacs-level
8796 Controls the display of Emacs or Gnus references. Related functions are
8797 @code{gnus-button-handle-custom},
8798 @code{gnus-button-handle-describe-function},
8799 @code{gnus-button-handle-describe-variable},
8800 @code{gnus-button-handle-symbol},
8801 @code{gnus-button-handle-describe-key},
8802 @code{gnus-button-handle-apropos},
8803 @code{gnus-button-handle-apropos-command},
8804 @code{gnus-button-handle-apropos-variable},
8805 @code{gnus-button-handle-apropos-documentation}, and
8806 @code{gnus-button-handle-library}.
8808 @item gnus-button-man-level
8809 @vindex gnus-button-man-level
8810 Controls the display of references to (Unix) man pages.
8811 See @code{gnus-button-man-handler}.
8813 @item gnus-button-message-level
8814 @vindex gnus-button-message-level
8815 Controls the display of message IDs, mail addresses and news URLs.
8816 Related variables and functions include
8817 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-regexp},
8818 @code{gnus-button-prefer-mid-or-mail},
8819 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic}, and
8820 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic-alist}.
8822 @item gnus-button-tex-level
8823 @vindex gnus-button-tex-level
8824 Controls the display of references to TeX or LaTeX stuff, e.g. for CTAN
8825 URLs. See the variables @code{gnus-ctan-url},
8826 @code{gnus-button-ctan-handler},
8827 @code{gnus-button-ctan-directory-regexp}, and
8828 @code{gnus-button-handle-ctan-bogus-regexp}.
8834 @subsection Article Date
8836 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
8837 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
8838 when the article was sent.
8843 @kindex W T u (Summary)
8844 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
8845 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
8846 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
8849 @kindex W T i (Summary)
8850 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
8852 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
8853 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
8856 @kindex W T l (Summary)
8857 @findex gnus-article-date-local
8858 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
8861 @kindex W T p (Summary)
8862 @findex gnus-article-date-english
8863 Display the date in a format that's easily pronounceable in English
8864 (@code{gnus-article-date-english}).
8867 @kindex W T s (Summary)
8868 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
8869 @findex gnus-article-date-user
8870 @findex format-time-string
8871 Display the date using a user-defined format
8872 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
8873 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
8874 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
8875 for a list of possible format specs.
8878 @kindex W T e (Summary)
8879 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
8880 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
8881 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
8882 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
8883 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
8886 X-Sent: 6 weeks, 4 days, 1 hour, 3 minutes, 8 seconds ago
8889 @vindex gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header
8890 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
8891 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
8894 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
8895 into wonderful absurdities.
8897 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
8900 (gnus-start-date-timer)
8903 in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
8904 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
8908 @kindex W T o (Summary)
8909 @findex gnus-article-date-original
8910 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
8911 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
8912 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
8913 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
8914 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
8918 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
8919 preferred format automatically.
8922 @node Article Display
8923 @subsection Article Display
8928 These commands add various frivolous display gimmicks to the article
8929 buffer in Emacs versions that support them.
8931 @code{X-Face} headers are small black-and-white images supplied by the
8932 message headers (@pxref{X-Face}).
8934 Picons, on the other hand, reside on your own system, and Gnus will
8935 try to match the headers to what you have (@pxref{Picons}).
8937 Smileys are those little @samp{:-)} symbols that people like to litter
8938 their messages with (@pxref{Smileys}).
8940 All these functions are toggles--if the elements already exist,
8945 @kindex W D x (Summary)
8946 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
8947 Display an @code{X-Face} in the @code{From} header.
8948 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}).
8951 @kindex W D d (Summary)
8952 @findex gnus-article-display-face
8953 Display a @code{Face} in the @code{From} header.
8954 (@code{gnus-article-display-face}).
8957 @kindex W D s (Summary)
8958 @findex gnus-treat-smiley
8959 Display smileys (@code{gnus-treat-smiley}).
8962 @kindex W D f (Summary)
8963 @findex gnus-treat-from-picon
8964 Piconify the @code{From} header (@code{gnus-treat-from-picon}).
8967 @kindex W D m (Summary)
8968 @findex gnus-treat-mail-picon
8969 Piconify all mail headers (i. e., @code{Cc}, @code{To})
8970 (@code{gnus-treat-mail-picon}).
8973 @kindex W D n (Summary)
8974 @findex gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon
8975 Piconify all news headers (i. e., @code{Newsgroups} and
8976 @code{Followup-To}) (@code{gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon}).
8979 @kindex W D D (Summary)
8980 @findex gnus-article-remove-images
8981 Remove all images from the article buffer
8982 (@code{gnus-article-remove-images}).
8988 @node Article Signature
8989 @subsection Article Signature
8991 @cindex article signature
8993 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
8994 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
8995 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
8996 that says what is to be considered a signature is
8997 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
8998 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
8999 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
9000 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
9001 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
9004 (setq gnus-signature-separator
9005 '("^-- $" ; The standard
9006 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
9007 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
9008 ; line of dashes. Shame!
9009 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
9010 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
9011 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
9014 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
9017 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
9018 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
9019 signature when displaying articles.
9023 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
9026 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
9029 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
9030 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
9032 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
9033 in question is not a signature.
9036 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
9037 listed above. Here's an example:
9040 (setq gnus-signature-limit
9041 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
9044 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
9045 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
9046 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
9047 signature after all.
9050 @node Article Miscellania
9051 @subsection Article Miscellania
9055 @kindex A t (Summary)
9056 @findex gnus-article-babel
9057 Translate the article from one language to another
9058 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
9064 @section MIME Commands
9065 @cindex MIME decoding
9067 @cindex viewing attachments
9069 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
9070 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @sc{mime} part''.
9076 @kindex K v (Summary)
9077 View the @sc{mime} part.
9080 @kindex K o (Summary)
9081 Save the @sc{mime} part.
9084 @kindex K c (Summary)
9085 Copy the @sc{mime} part.
9088 @kindex K e (Summary)
9089 View the @sc{mime} part externally.
9092 @kindex K i (Summary)
9093 View the @sc{mime} part internally.
9096 @kindex K | (Summary)
9097 Pipe the @sc{mime} part to an external command.
9100 The rest of these @sc{mime} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
9105 @kindex K b (Summary)
9106 Make all the @sc{mime} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
9107 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
9111 @kindex K m (Summary)
9112 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
9113 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
9114 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
9115 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
9116 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
9119 @kindex X m (Summary)
9120 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
9121 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
9122 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
9123 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9126 @kindex M-t (Summary)
9127 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized
9128 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
9129 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
9132 @kindex W M w (Summary)
9133 @findex gnus-article-decode-mime-words
9134 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
9135 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
9138 @kindex W M c (Summary)
9139 @findex gnus-article-decode-charset
9140 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
9141 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
9143 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
9144 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
9145 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
9146 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not
9147 include @sc{mime} headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic
9148 parameter to the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
9151 @kindex W M v (Summary)
9152 @findex gnus-mime-view-all-parts
9153 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
9154 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
9161 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
9162 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
9163 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
9164 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
9167 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
9170 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
9174 @item gnus-article-loose-mime
9175 @vindex gnus-article-loose-mime
9176 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus won't required the @samp{MIME-Version} header
9177 before interpreting the message as a @sc{mime} message. This helps
9178 when reading messages from certain broken mail user agents. The
9179 default is @code{nil}.
9181 @item gnus-article-emulate-mime
9182 @vindex gnus-article-emulate-mime
9183 There are other, non-@sc{mime} encoding methods used. The most common
9184 is @samp{uuencode}, but yEncode is also getting to be popular. If
9185 This variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will look in message bodies to
9186 see if it finds these encodings, and if so, it'll run them through the
9187 Gnus @sc{mime} machinery. The default is @code{t}.
9189 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
9190 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
9191 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
9192 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
9193 displayed or this variable is overridden by
9194 @code{gnus-buttonized-mime-types}. The default value is
9195 @code{(".*/.*")}. This variable is only used when
9196 @code{gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing} is nil.
9198 @item gnus-buttonized-mime-types
9199 @vindex gnus-buttonized-mime-types
9200 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
9201 this list will have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
9202 displayed. This variable overrides
9203 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types}. The default value is @code{nil}.
9204 This variable is only used when @code{gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing}
9207 To see e.g. security buttons but no other buttons, you could set this
9208 variable to @code{("multipart/signed")} and leave
9209 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types} at the default value.
9211 @item gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing
9212 @vindex gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing
9213 If this is non-nil, then all @sc{mime} parts get buttons. The default
9214 value is @code{nil}.
9216 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
9217 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
9218 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
9219 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
9220 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
9221 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
9222 save all jpegs into some directory).
9224 Here's an example function the does the latter:
9227 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
9228 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
9230 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
9231 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
9232 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
9233 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
9234 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
9237 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
9238 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
9239 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
9241 @vindex mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
9242 @item mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
9243 List of functions used for rewriting file names of @sc{mime} parts.
9244 Each function takes a file name as input and returns a file name.
9246 Ready-made functions include@*
9247 @code{mm-file-name-delete-whitespace},
9248 @code{mm-file-name-trim-whitespace},
9249 @code{mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace}, and
9250 @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace}. The later uses the value of
9251 the variable @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace} to replace each
9252 whitespace character in a file name with that string; default value
9253 is @code{"_"} (a single underscore).
9254 @findex mm-file-name-delete-whitespace
9255 @findex mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
9256 @findex mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
9257 @findex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
9258 @vindex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
9260 The standard functions @code{capitalize}, @code{downcase},
9261 @code{upcase}, and @code{upcase-initials} may be useful, too.
9263 Everybody knows that whitespace characters in file names are evil,
9264 except those who don't know. If you receive lots of attachments from
9265 such unenlightened users, you can make live easier by adding
9268 (setq mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
9269 '(mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
9270 mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
9271 mm-file-name-replace-whitespace))
9275 to your @file{~/.gnus.el} file.
9284 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
9285 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
9286 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
9287 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
9288 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
9289 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
9290 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
9292 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
9293 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
9294 variable, which is an alist of regexps (use the first item to match full
9295 group names) and default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
9297 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets
9298 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
9299 aren't. These blithely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1}
9300 even if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
9301 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
9302 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be
9303 set on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
9304 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit x-unknown)},
9305 which includes values some agents insist on having in there.
9307 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
9308 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
9309 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @sc{mime}
9310 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
9311 quoted-printable header encoding.
9313 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
9314 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
9315 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
9319 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
9322 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
9323 means encode all charsets),
9325 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
9326 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
9327 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
9334 @cindex coding system aliases
9335 @cindex preferred charset
9337 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
9339 If there are several @sc{mime} charsets that encode the same Emacs
9340 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
9343 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
9344 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
9347 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
9348 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @sc{mime} charset.
9350 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
9353 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
9356 This will almost do the right thing.
9358 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
9362 (codepage-setup 1251)
9363 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
9367 @node Article Commands
9368 @section Article Commands
9375 @kindex A P (Summary)
9376 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
9377 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
9378 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
9379 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will
9380 be run just before printing the buffer. An alternative way to print
9381 article is to use Muttprint (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
9386 @node Summary Sorting
9387 @section Summary Sorting
9388 @cindex summary sorting
9390 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
9391 can't really see why you'd want that.
9396 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
9397 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
9398 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
9401 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
9402 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
9403 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
9406 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
9407 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
9408 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
9411 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
9412 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
9413 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
9416 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
9417 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
9418 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
9421 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
9422 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
9423 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
9426 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
9427 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
9428 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
9431 @kindex C-c C-s C-r (Summary)
9432 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-random
9433 Randomize (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-random}).
9436 @kindex C-c C-s C-o (Summary)
9437 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-original
9438 Sort using the default sorting method
9439 (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-original}).
9442 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
9443 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
9444 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
9445 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
9446 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
9450 @node Finding the Parent
9451 @section Finding the Parent
9452 @cindex parent articles
9453 @cindex referring articles
9458 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
9459 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
9460 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
9461 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
9462 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
9463 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
9464 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
9465 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
9466 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
9468 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
9469 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
9470 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
9471 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
9472 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
9476 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
9477 @kindex A R (Summary)
9478 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
9479 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
9482 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
9483 @kindex A T (Summary)
9484 Display the full thread where the current article appears
9485 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
9486 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
9487 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
9488 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
9489 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
9490 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
9492 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
9493 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
9494 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
9495 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
9496 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
9497 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
9500 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
9501 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
9503 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
9504 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
9505 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
9506 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
9507 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
9508 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
9509 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
9512 The current select method will be used when fetching by
9513 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
9514 by giving this command a prefix.
9516 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
9517 If the group you are reading is located on a back end that does not
9518 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
9519 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
9520 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
9521 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
9524 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
9525 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
9526 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
9529 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
9530 then ask Google if that fails:
9533 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
9535 (nnweb "google" (nnweb-type google))))
9538 Most of the mail back ends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but
9539 do not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox},
9540 @code{nnbabyl}, and @code{nnmaildir} are able to locate articles from
9541 any groups, while @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, and @code{nnimap} are
9542 only able to locate articles that have been posted to the current group.
9543 (Anything else would be too time consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not
9544 support this at all.
9547 @node Alternative Approaches
9548 @section Alternative Approaches
9550 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
9551 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
9554 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
9555 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
9560 @subsection Pick and Read
9561 @cindex pick and read
9563 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
9564 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
9565 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
9566 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
9568 @findex gnus-pick-mode
9569 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
9570 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
9571 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
9572 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
9573 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
9575 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
9580 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
9581 Pick the article or thread on the current line
9582 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9583 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
9584 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
9585 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
9586 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
9587 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
9590 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
9591 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
9592 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
9593 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
9597 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
9598 Unpick the thread or article
9599 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9600 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
9601 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
9602 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
9603 the thread or article at that line.
9607 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
9608 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
9609 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
9610 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
9611 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
9612 will still be visible when you are reading.
9616 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
9617 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
9618 which is mapped to the same function
9619 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
9621 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
9624 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
9627 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
9628 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
9630 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
9631 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
9632 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
9634 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
9635 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
9636 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
9637 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
9638 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
9639 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
9640 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
9644 @subsection Binary Groups
9645 @cindex binary groups
9647 @findex gnus-binary-mode
9648 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
9649 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
9650 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
9651 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
9652 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
9653 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
9656 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
9657 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
9658 command, when you have turned on this mode
9659 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
9661 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
9662 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
9666 @section Tree Display
9669 @vindex gnus-use-trees
9670 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
9671 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
9672 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
9675 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
9678 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
9679 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
9680 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
9682 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9683 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9684 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
9685 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
9686 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
9688 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
9689 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
9690 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
9691 default is @code{modeline}.
9693 @item gnus-tree-line-format
9694 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
9695 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
9696 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
9697 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
9698 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
9699 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
9705 The name of the poster.
9707 The @code{From} header.
9709 The number of the article.
9711 The opening bracket.
9713 The closing bracket.
9718 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
9720 Variables related to the display are:
9723 @item gnus-tree-brackets
9724 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
9725 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
9726 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
9727 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
9728 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
9730 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9731 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9732 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
9733 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
9737 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
9738 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
9739 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
9740 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
9741 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
9742 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
9743 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
9744 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
9745 other windows displayed next to it.
9747 You may also wish to add the following hook to keep the window minimized
9751 (add-hook 'gnus-configure-windows-hook
9752 'gnus-tree-perhaps-minimize)
9755 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
9756 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
9757 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9758 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
9759 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
9760 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
9761 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
9765 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
9768 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
9778 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
9782 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
9783 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
9785 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
9787 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
9792 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
9793 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
9794 following to your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
9797 (setq gnus-use-trees t
9798 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9799 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
9800 (gnus-add-configuration
9804 (summary 0.75 point)
9809 @xref{Window Layout}.
9812 @node Mail Group Commands
9813 @section Mail Group Commands
9814 @cindex mail group commands
9816 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
9817 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
9819 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
9820 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9825 @kindex B e (Summary)
9826 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
9827 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
9828 process (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}). That is, delete all
9829 expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
9830 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
9833 @kindex B C-M-e (Summary)
9834 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
9835 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
9836 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
9837 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
9838 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
9841 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
9842 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
9843 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
9844 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
9845 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
9846 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
9849 @kindex B m (Summary)
9851 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
9852 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
9853 Move the article from one mail group to another
9854 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9855 @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9858 @kindex B c (Summary)
9860 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
9861 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
9862 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
9863 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9864 @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9867 @kindex B B (Summary)
9868 @cindex crosspost mail
9869 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
9870 Crosspost the current article to some other group
9871 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
9872 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
9873 be properly updated.
9876 @kindex B i (Summary)
9877 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
9878 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
9879 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
9880 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9883 @kindex B I (Summary)
9884 @findex gnus-summary-create-article
9885 Create an empty article in the current mail newsgroups
9886 (@code{gnus-summary-create-article}). You will be prompted for a
9887 @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9890 @kindex B r (Summary)
9891 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
9892 @vindex gnus-summary-respool-default-method
9893 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
9894 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
9895 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
9896 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
9897 Marks will be preserved if @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
9898 (which is the default).
9902 @kindex B w (Summary)
9904 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
9905 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
9906 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article-done
9907 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
9908 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
9909 (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
9910 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
9913 @kindex B q (Summary)
9914 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
9915 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
9916 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
9917 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
9920 @kindex B t (Summary)
9921 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
9922 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
9923 when respooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
9926 @kindex B p (Summary)
9927 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
9928 Some people have a tendency to send you ``courtesy'' copies when they
9929 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
9930 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
9931 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
9932 article from your news server (or rather, from
9933 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
9934 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
9935 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
9936 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
9937 just not have arrived yet.
9940 @kindex K E (Summary)
9941 @findex gnus-article-encrypt-body
9942 @vindex gnus-article-encrypt-protocol
9943 Encrypt the body of an article (@code{gnus-article-encrypt-body}).
9944 The body is encrypted with the encryption protocol specified by the
9945 variable @code{gnus-article-encrypt-protocol}.
9949 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
9950 @cindex moving articles
9951 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
9952 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
9953 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
9954 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
9955 suggestions you find reasonable. (Note that
9956 @code{gnus-move-split-methods} uses group names where
9957 @code{gnus-split-methods} uses file names.)
9960 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
9961 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
9962 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
9963 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
9967 @node Various Summary Stuff
9968 @section Various Summary Stuff
9971 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
9972 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
9973 * Summary Generation Commands::
9974 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
9978 @vindex gnus-summary-display-while-building
9979 @item gnus-summary-display-while-building
9980 If non-@code{nil}, show and update the summary buffer as it's being
9981 built. If @code{t}, update the buffer after every line is inserted.
9982 If the value is an integer, @var{n}, update the display every @var{n}
9983 lines. The default is @code{nil}.
9985 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
9986 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
9987 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
9989 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
9990 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
9991 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
9992 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
9993 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
9994 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
9997 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9998 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9999 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
10000 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
10001 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
10003 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
10004 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
10005 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
10008 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
10009 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
10010 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
10011 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
10012 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
10013 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
10014 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
10015 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
10016 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
10017 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
10019 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
10020 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
10021 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
10022 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
10023 list of articles to be selected.
10025 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
10026 the list in one particular group:
10029 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
10030 (if (string= group "some.group")
10031 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
10035 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-variables
10036 @item gnus-newsgroup-variables
10037 A list of newsgroup (summary buffer) local variables, or cons of
10038 variables and their default values (when the default values are not
10039 nil), that should be made global while the summary buffer is active.
10040 These variables can be used to set variables in the group parameters
10041 while still allowing them to affect operations done in other
10042 buffers. For example:
10045 (setq gnus-newsgroup-variables
10046 '(message-use-followup-to
10047 (gnus-visible-headers .
10048 "^From:\\|^Newsgroups:\\|^Subject:\\|^Date:\\|^To:")))
10054 @node Summary Group Information
10055 @subsection Summary Group Information
10060 @kindex H f (Summary)
10061 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
10062 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
10063 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
10064 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
10065 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
10066 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
10067 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
10068 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
10069 be used for fetching the file.
10072 @kindex H d (Summary)
10073 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
10074 Give a brief description of the current group
10075 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
10076 rereading the description from the server.
10079 @kindex H h (Summary)
10080 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
10081 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
10082 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
10085 @kindex H i (Summary)
10086 @findex gnus-info-find-node
10087 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
10091 @node Searching for Articles
10092 @subsection Searching for Articles
10097 @kindex M-s (Summary)
10098 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
10099 Search through all subsequent (raw) articles for a regexp
10100 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
10103 @kindex M-r (Summary)
10104 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
10105 Search through all previous (raw) articles for a regexp
10106 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
10109 @kindex & (Summary)
10110 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
10111 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
10112 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
10113 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
10114 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
10115 search backward instead.
10117 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
10118 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
10121 @kindex M-& (Summary)
10122 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
10123 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
10124 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
10127 @node Summary Generation Commands
10128 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
10133 @kindex Y g (Summary)
10134 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
10135 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
10138 @kindex Y c (Summary)
10139 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
10140 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
10141 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
10144 @kindex Y d (Summary)
10145 @findex gnus-summary-insert-dormant-articles
10146 Pull all dormant articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
10147 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-dormant-articles}).
10152 @node Really Various Summary Commands
10153 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
10159 @kindex C-d (Summary)
10160 @kindex A D (Summary)
10161 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
10162 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
10163 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
10164 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
10165 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
10166 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
10167 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
10168 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
10172 @kindex C-M-d (Summary)
10173 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
10174 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
10175 several documents into one biiig group
10176 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
10177 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
10178 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
10179 command understands the process/prefix convention
10180 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
10183 @kindex C-t (Summary)
10184 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
10185 Toggle truncation of summary lines
10186 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
10187 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
10188 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
10191 @kindex = (Summary)
10192 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
10193 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
10194 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
10197 @kindex C-M-e (Summary)
10198 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
10199 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
10200 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
10203 @kindex C-M-a (Summary)
10204 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
10205 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
10206 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
10211 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
10212 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
10213 @cindex summary exit
10214 @cindex exiting groups
10216 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
10217 group and return you to the group buffer.
10223 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
10224 @kindex q (Summary)
10225 @findex gnus-summary-exit
10226 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
10227 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
10228 @vindex gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook
10229 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
10230 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
10231 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
10232 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
10233 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
10234 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
10235 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
10236 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
10240 @kindex Z E (Summary)
10241 @kindex Q (Summary)
10242 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
10243 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
10244 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
10248 @kindex Z c (Summary)
10249 @kindex c (Summary)
10250 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
10251 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
10252 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
10253 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
10256 @kindex Z C (Summary)
10257 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
10258 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
10259 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
10262 @kindex Z n (Summary)
10263 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
10264 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
10265 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
10268 @kindex Z R (Summary)
10269 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
10270 Exit this group, and then enter it again
10271 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
10272 all articles, both read and unread.
10276 @kindex Z G (Summary)
10277 @kindex M-g (Summary)
10278 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
10279 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
10280 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
10281 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
10282 articles, both read and unread.
10285 @kindex Z N (Summary)
10286 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
10287 Exit the group and go to the next group
10288 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
10291 @kindex Z P (Summary)
10292 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
10293 Exit the group and go to the previous group
10294 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
10297 @kindex Z s (Summary)
10298 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
10299 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
10300 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
10301 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
10302 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
10305 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
10306 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
10307 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
10308 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
10310 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
10311 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
10312 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
10313 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
10314 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
10315 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
10316 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
10317 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
10318 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
10319 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
10320 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
10321 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
10323 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
10325 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
10326 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
10327 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
10328 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
10329 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
10330 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
10331 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
10332 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
10333 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
10336 @node Crosspost Handling
10337 @section Crosspost Handling
10341 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
10342 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
10343 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
10344 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
10345 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
10346 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
10349 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
10350 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
10351 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
10352 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
10353 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
10355 @cindex cross-posting
10358 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
10359 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
10360 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
10361 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
10362 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
10363 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
10364 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
10365 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
10366 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
10367 the cross reference mechanism.
10369 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
10370 @cindex overview.fmt
10371 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
10372 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
10373 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
10374 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
10375 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
10376 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
10379 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
10380 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
10381 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
10386 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
10389 @node Duplicate Suppression
10390 @section Duplicate Suppression
10392 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
10393 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
10394 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
10395 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
10400 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
10401 is evil and not very common.
10404 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
10405 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
10408 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
10409 different @sc{nntp} servers.
10412 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
10415 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
10416 well, but these four are the most common situations.
10418 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
10419 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
10420 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
10421 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
10422 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
10423 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
10424 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
10427 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
10428 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
10429 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
10430 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
10431 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
10432 saw the article in.
10435 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
10436 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
10437 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
10439 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
10440 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
10441 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
10442 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
10443 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
10444 session are suppressed.
10446 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
10447 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
10448 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
10449 suppression list. The default is 10000.
10451 @item gnus-duplicate-file
10452 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
10453 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
10454 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
10457 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
10458 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
10459 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
10460 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
10461 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
10462 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
10463 to you to figure out, I think.
10468 Gnus is able to verify signed messages or decrypt encrypted messages.
10469 The formats that are supported are PGP, @sc{pgp/mime} and @sc{s/mime},
10470 however you need some external programs to get things to work:
10474 To handle PGP and PGP/MIME messages, you have to install an OpenPGP
10475 implementation such as GnuPG. The lisp interface to GnuPG included
10476 with Gnus is called PGG (@pxref{Top, ,PGG, pgg, PGG Manual}), but
10477 Mailcrypt and gpg.el are also supported.
10480 To handle @sc{s/mime} message, you need to install OpenSSL. OpenSSL 0.9.6
10481 or newer is recommended.
10485 More information on how to set things up can be found in the message
10486 manual (@pxref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}).
10489 @item mm-verify-option
10490 @vindex mm-verify-option
10491 Option of verifying signed parts. @code{never}, not verify;
10492 @code{always}, always verify; @code{known}, only verify known
10493 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
10495 @item mm-decrypt-option
10496 @vindex mm-decrypt-option
10497 Option of decrypting encrypted parts. @code{never}, no decryption;
10498 @code{always}, always decrypt; @code{known}, only decrypt known
10499 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
10502 @vindex mml1991-use
10503 Symbol indicating elisp interface to OpenPGP implementation for PGP
10504 messages. The default is @code{pgg}, but @code{mailcrypt} and
10505 @code{gpg} are also supported although deprecated.
10508 @vindex mml2015-use
10509 Symbol indicating elisp interface to OpenPGP implementation for
10510 PGP/MIME messages. The default is @code{pgg}, but @code{mailcrypt}
10511 and @code{gpg} are also supported although deprecated.
10515 @cindex snarfing keys
10516 @cindex importing PGP keys
10517 @cindex PGP key ring import
10518 Snarfing OpenPGP keys (i.e., importing keys from articles into your
10519 key ring) is not supported explicitly through a menu item or command,
10520 rather Gnus do detect and label keys as @samp{application/pgp-keys},
10521 allowing you to specify whatever action you think is appropriate
10522 through the usual MIME infrastructure. You can use a
10523 @file{~/.mailcap} entry (@pxref{mailcap, , mailcap, emacs-mime, The
10524 Emacs MIME Manual}) such as the following to import keys using GNU
10525 Privacy Guard when you click on the MIME button (@pxref{Using MIME}).
10528 application/pgp-keys; gpg --import --interactive --verbose; needsterminal
10531 This happens to also be the default action defined in
10532 @var{mailcap-mime-data}.
10535 @section Mailing List
10537 @kindex A M (summary)
10538 @findex gnus-mailing-list-insinuate
10539 Gnus understands some mailing list fields of RFC 2369. To enable it,
10540 add a @code{to-list} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}),
10541 possibly using @kbd{A M} (@code{gnus-mailing-list-insinuate}) in the
10544 That enables the following commands to the summary buffer:
10549 @kindex C-c C-n h (Summary)
10550 @findex gnus-mailing-list-help
10551 Send a message to fetch mailing list help, if List-Help field exists.
10554 @kindex C-c C-n s (Summary)
10555 @findex gnus-mailing-list-subscribe
10556 Send a message to subscribe the mailing list, if List-Subscribe field exists.
10559 @kindex C-c C-n u (Summary)
10560 @findex gnus-mailing-list-unsubscribe
10561 Send a message to unsubscribe the mailing list, if List-Unsubscribe
10565 @kindex C-c C-n p (Summary)
10566 @findex gnus-mailing-list-post
10567 Post to the mailing list, if List-Post field exists.
10570 @kindex C-c C-n o (Summary)
10571 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
10572 Send a message to the mailing list owner, if List-Owner field exists.
10575 @kindex C-c C-n a (Summary)
10576 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
10577 Browse the mailing list archive, if List-Archive field exists.
10582 @node Article Buffer
10583 @chapter Article Buffer
10584 @cindex article buffer
10586 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
10587 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
10588 tell Gnus otherwise.
10591 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
10592 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
10593 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
10594 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
10595 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
10599 @node Hiding Headers
10600 @section Hiding Headers
10601 @cindex hiding headers
10602 @cindex deleting headers
10604 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
10605 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
10607 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
10608 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
10609 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
10610 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
10611 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
10612 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
10613 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
10614 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
10615 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
10617 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
10621 @item gnus-visible-headers
10622 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
10623 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
10624 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
10625 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
10627 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
10628 the article and the subject, you'd say:
10631 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
10634 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
10637 @item gnus-ignored-headers
10638 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
10639 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
10640 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
10641 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
10642 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
10644 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
10645 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
10648 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
10651 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
10654 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
10655 variable will have no effect.
10659 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
10660 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
10661 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
10662 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
10663 the headers are to be displayed.
10665 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
10666 and then the subject, you might say something like:
10669 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
10672 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
10673 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
10675 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
10676 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
10677 You can hide further boring headers by setting
10678 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
10679 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
10680 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
10681 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
10684 These conditions are:
10687 Remove all empty headers.
10689 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
10690 @code{Newsgroups} header.
10692 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
10693 @code{From} header, or if the @code{broken-reply-to} group parameter is
10696 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
10699 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
10700 the current groups's @code{to-address} parameter.
10702 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
10703 the current groups's @code{to-list} parameter.
10705 Remove the @code{CC} header if it only contains the address identical to
10706 the current groups's @code{to-list} parameter.
10708 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
10711 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
10713 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
10716 To include these three elements, you could say something like:
10719 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
10720 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
10723 This is also the default value for this variable.
10727 @section Using MIME
10730 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
10731 while people stand around yawning.
10733 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
10734 while all newsreaders die of fear.
10736 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
10737 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
10738 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
10740 @vindex gnus-display-mime-function
10741 @findex gnus-display-mime
10742 Gnus pushes @sc{mime} articles through @code{gnus-display-mime-function}
10743 to display the @sc{mime} parts. This is @code{gnus-display-mime} by
10744 default, which creates a bundle of clickable buttons that can be used to
10745 display, save and manipulate the @sc{mime} objects.
10747 The following commands are available when you have placed point over a
10751 @findex gnus-article-press-button
10752 @item RET (Article)
10753 @kindex RET (Article)
10754 @itemx BUTTON-2 (Article)
10755 Toggle displaying of the @sc{mime} object
10756 (@code{gnus-article-press-button}). If builtin viewers can not display
10757 the object, Gnus resorts to external viewers in the @file{mailcap}
10758 files. If a viewer has the @samp{copiousoutput} specification, the
10759 object is displayed inline.
10761 @findex gnus-mime-view-part
10762 @item M-RET (Article)
10763 @kindex M-RET (Article)
10765 Prompt for a method, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
10766 method (@code{gnus-mime-view-part}).
10768 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-type
10770 @kindex t (Article)
10771 View the @sc{mime} object as if it were a different @sc{mime} media type
10772 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-type}).
10774 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset
10776 @kindex C (Article)
10777 Prompt for a charset, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
10778 charset (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset}).
10780 @findex gnus-mime-save-part
10782 @kindex o (Article)
10783 Prompt for a file name, and then save the @sc{mime} object
10784 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part}).
10786 @findex gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip
10787 @item C-o (Article)
10788 @kindex C-o (Article)
10789 Prompt for a file name, then save the @sc{mime} object and strip it from
10790 the article. Then proceed to article editing, where a reasonable
10791 suggestion is being made on how the altered article should look
10792 like. The stripped @sc{mime} object will be referred via the
10793 message/external-body @sc{mime} type.
10794 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip}).
10796 @findex gnus-mime-delete-part
10798 @kindex d (Article)
10799 Delete the @sc{mime} object from the article and replace it with some
10800 information about the removed @sc{mime} object
10801 (@code{gnus-mime-delete-part}).
10803 @findex gnus-mime-copy-part
10805 @kindex c (Article)
10806 Copy the @sc{mime} object to a fresh buffer and display this buffer
10807 (@code{gnus-mime-copy-part}). Compressed files like @file{.gz} and
10808 @file{.bz2} are automatically decompressed if
10809 @code{auto-compression-mode} is enabled (@pxref{Compressed Files,,
10810 Accessing Compressed Files, emacs, The Emacs Editor}).
10812 @findex gnus-mime-print-part
10814 @kindex p (Article)
10815 Print the @sc{mime} object (@code{gnus-mime-print-part}). This
10816 command respects the @samp{print=} specifications in the
10817 @file{.mailcap} file.
10819 @findex gnus-mime-inline-part
10821 @kindex i (Article)
10822 Insert the contents of the @sc{mime} object into the buffer
10823 (@code{gnus-mime-inline-part}) as text/plain. If given a prefix, insert
10824 the raw contents without decoding. If given a numerical prefix, you can
10825 do semi-manual charset stuff (see
10826 @code{gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist} in @pxref{Paging the
10829 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-internally
10831 @kindex E (Article)
10832 View the @sc{mime} object with an internal viewer. If no internal
10833 viewer is available, use an external viewer
10834 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-internally}).
10836 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-externally
10838 @kindex e (Article)
10839 View the @sc{mime} object with an external viewer.
10840 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-externally}).
10842 @findex gnus-mime-pipe-part
10844 @kindex | (Article)
10845 Output the @sc{mime} object to a process (@code{gnus-mime-pipe-part}).
10847 @findex gnus-mime-action-on-part
10849 @kindex . (Article)
10850 Interactively run an action on the @sc{mime} object
10851 (@code{gnus-mime-action-on-part}).
10855 Gnus will display some @sc{mime} objects automatically. The way Gnus
10856 determines which parts to do this with is described in the Emacs
10859 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the article
10860 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
10861 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
10862 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
10863 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume button,
10864 because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you, and you
10865 try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the program
10866 to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly decides
10867 to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
10869 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
10871 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
10874 @node Customizing Articles
10875 @section Customizing Articles
10876 @cindex article customization
10878 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
10879 exist. You can call these functions interactively
10880 (@pxref{Article Washing}), or you can have them
10881 called automatically when you select the articles.
10883 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
10884 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
10885 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
10886 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
10888 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
10889 for sensible values.
10893 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
10896 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
10899 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
10902 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
10905 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
10909 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
10910 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
10911 regexps in the list.
10914 A list where the first element is not a string:
10916 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
10917 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
10918 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
10922 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
10927 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
10928 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
10929 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
10930 considered to contain just a single part.
10932 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
10933 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
10934 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
10935 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
10936 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
10937 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
10938 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
10940 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
10941 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
10942 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
10943 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
10946 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
10947 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
10949 @xref{Article Buttons}.
10951 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
10952 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
10953 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
10954 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
10955 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
10956 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
10957 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
10958 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
10959 @item gnus-treat-unsplit-urls (t, integer)
10960 @item gnus-treat-wash-html (t, integer)
10962 @xref{Article Washing}.
10964 @item gnus-treat-date-english (head)
10965 @item gnus-treat-date-iso8601 (head)
10966 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
10967 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
10968 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
10969 @item gnus-treat-date-user-defined (head)
10970 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
10972 @xref{Article Date}.
10974 @item gnus-treat-from-picon (head)
10975 @item gnus-treat-mail-picon (head)
10976 @item gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon (head)
10980 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
10982 @item gnus-treat-body-boundary (head)
10984 @vindex gnus-body-boundary-delimiter
10985 Adds a delimiter between header and body, the string used as delimiter
10986 is controlled by @code{gnus-body-boundary-delimiter}.
10990 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
10994 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
10995 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
10996 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
10997 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
10998 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
10999 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation-maybe (t, integer)
11000 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
11001 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
11002 @item gnus-treat-strip-banner (t, last)
11003 @item gnus-treat-strip-list-identifiers (head)
11005 @xref{Article Hiding}.
11007 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
11008 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
11009 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
11011 @xref{Article Highlighting}.
11013 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
11014 @item gnus-treat-translate
11015 @item gnus-treat-x-pgp-sig (head)
11017 @item gnus-treat-unfold-headers (head)
11018 @item gnus-treat-fold-headers (head)
11019 @item gnus-treat-fold-newsgroups (head)
11020 @item gnus-treat-leading-whitespace (head)
11022 @xref{Article Header}.
11027 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
11028 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
11029 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
11030 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
11031 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
11035 @node Article Keymap
11036 @section Article Keymap
11038 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
11039 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
11040 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
11041 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
11044 A few additional keystrokes are available:
11049 @kindex SPACE (Article)
11050 @findex gnus-article-next-page
11051 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
11052 This is exactly the same as @kbd{h SPACE h}.
11055 @kindex DEL (Article)
11056 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
11057 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
11058 This is exactly the same as @kbd{h DEL h}.
11061 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
11062 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
11063 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
11064 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
11065 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
11068 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
11069 @findex gnus-article-mail
11070 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
11071 given a prefix, include the mail.
11074 @kindex s (Article)
11075 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
11076 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
11077 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
11080 @kindex ? (Article)
11081 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
11082 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
11083 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
11086 @kindex TAB (Article)
11087 @findex gnus-article-next-button
11088 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
11089 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
11092 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
11093 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
11094 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
11097 @kindex R (Article)
11098 @findex gnus-article-reply-with-original
11099 Send a reply to the current article and yank the current article
11100 (@code{gnus-article-reply-with-original}). If given a prefix, make a
11101 wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
11105 @kindex F (Article)
11106 @findex gnus-article-followup-with-original
11107 Send a followup to the current article and yank the current article
11108 (@code{gnus-article-followup-with-original}). If given a prefix, make
11109 a wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
11117 @section Misc Article
11121 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
11122 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
11123 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
11124 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
11127 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
11128 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
11130 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
11131 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
11133 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
11134 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
11135 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
11136 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
11137 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
11138 the contents of the article buffer.
11140 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
11141 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
11142 Hook called in article mode buffers.
11144 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
11145 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
11146 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
11147 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
11149 @vindex gnus-article-over-scroll
11150 @item gnus-article-over-scroll
11151 If non-@code{nil}, allow scrolling the article buffer even when there
11152 no more new text to scroll in. The default is @code{nil}.
11154 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
11155 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
11156 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
11157 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
11158 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
11164 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
11165 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
11166 performed. The characters and their meaning:
11171 Displayed when cited text may be hidden in the article buffer.
11174 Displayed when headers are hidden in the article buffer.
11177 Displayed when article is digitally signed or encrypted, and Gnus has
11178 hidden the security headers. (N.B. does not tell anything about
11179 security status, i.e. good or bad signature.)
11182 Displayed when the signature has been hidden in the Article buffer.
11185 Displayed when Gnus has treated overstrike characters in the article buffer.
11188 Displayed when Gnus has treated emphasised strings in the article buffer.
11193 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
11197 @vindex gnus-break-pages
11199 @item gnus-break-pages
11200 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
11201 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
11202 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
11203 paging will not be done.
11205 @item gnus-page-delimiter
11206 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
11207 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
11211 @cindex internationalized domain names
11212 @vindex gnus-use-idna
11213 @item gnus-use-idna
11214 This variable controls whether Gnus performs IDNA decoding of
11215 internationalized domain names inside @sc{From:}, @sc{To:} and
11216 @sc{Cc:} headers. This requires GNU Libidn
11217 (@url{http://www.gnu.org/software/libidn/}, and this variable is only
11218 enabled if you have installed it.
11223 @node Composing Messages
11224 @chapter Composing Messages
11225 @cindex composing messages
11228 @cindex sending mail
11233 @cindex using s/mime
11234 @cindex using smime
11236 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
11237 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
11238 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
11239 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Overview, message,
11240 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
11241 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
11244 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
11245 * Posting Server:: What server should you post and mail via?
11246 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
11247 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
11248 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
11249 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
11250 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
11251 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
11254 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
11255 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
11261 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
11264 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
11265 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
11266 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
11267 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched. If
11268 @code{nil} include all headers.
11270 @item gnus-add-to-list
11271 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
11272 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
11273 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
11275 @item gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news
11276 @vindex gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news
11277 This can also be a function receiving the group name as the only
11278 parameter which should return non-@code{nil} if a confirmation is
11279 needed, or a regular expression matching group names, where
11280 confirmation is should be asked for.
11282 If you find yourself never wanting to reply to mail, but occasionally
11283 press R anyway, this variable might be for you.
11285 @item gnus-confirm-treat-mail-like-news
11286 @vindex gnus-confirm-treat-mail-like-news
11287 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus also requests confirmation according to
11288 @code{gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news} when replying to mail. This is
11289 useful for treating mailing lists like newsgroups.
11294 @node Posting Server
11295 @section Posting Server
11297 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
11298 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
11300 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
11302 It can be quite complicated.
11304 @vindex gnus-post-method
11305 When posting news, Message usually invokes @code{message-send-news}
11306 (@pxref{News Variables, , News Variables, message, Message Manual}).
11307 Normally, Gnus will post using the same select method as you're
11308 reading from (which might be convenient if you're reading lots of
11309 groups from different private servers). However. If the server
11310 you're reading from doesn't allow posting, just reading, you probably
11311 want to use some other server to post your (extremely intelligent and
11312 fabulously interesting) articles. You can then set the
11313 @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
11316 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
11319 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
11320 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
11321 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
11322 the ``current'' server, to get back the default behavior, for posting.
11324 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
11325 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
11327 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
11328 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
11331 Finally, if you want to always post using the native select method,
11332 you can set this variable to @code{native}.
11334 When sending mail, Message invokes @code{message-send-mail-function}.
11335 The default function, @code{message-send-mail-with-sendmail}, pipes
11336 your article to the @code{sendmail} binary for further queuing and
11337 sending. When your local system is not configured for sending mail
11338 using @code{sendmail}, and you have access to a remote @sc{smtp}
11339 server, you can set @code{message-send-mail-function} to
11340 @code{smtpmail-send-it} and make sure to setup the @code{smtpmail}
11341 package correctly. An example:
11344 (setq message-send-mail-function 'smtpmail-send-it
11345 smtpmail-default-smtp-server "YOUR SMTP HOST")
11348 To the thing similar to this, there is @code{message-smtpmail-send-it}.
11349 It is useful if your ISP requires the POP-before-SMTP authentication.
11350 See the documentation for the function @code{mail-source-touch-pop}.
11352 Other possible choices for @code{message-send-mail-function} includes
11353 @code{message-send-mail-with-mh}, @code{message-send-mail-with-qmail},
11354 and @code{feedmail-send-it}.
11356 @node Mail and Post
11357 @section Mail and Post
11359 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
11363 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
11364 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
11365 @cindex mailing lists
11367 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
11368 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
11369 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
11370 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
11371 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
11372 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
11373 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
11374 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
11375 still a pain, though.
11377 @item gnus-user-agent
11378 @vindex gnus-user-agent
11381 This variable controls which information should be exposed in the
11382 User-Agent header. It can be one of the symbols @code{gnus} (show only
11383 Gnus version), @code{emacs-gnus} (show only Emacs and Gnus versions),
11384 @code{emacs-gnus-config} (same as @code{emacs-gnus} plus system
11385 configuration), @code{emacs-gnus-type} (same as @code{emacs-gnus} plus
11386 system type) or a custom string. If you set it to a string, be sure to
11387 use a valid format, see RFC 2616."
11391 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
11392 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
11393 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
11396 @findex ispell-message
11398 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
11401 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
11402 you're in, you could say something like the following:
11405 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
11409 "^de\\." (gnus-group-real-name gnus-newsgroup-name))
11410 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
11412 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
11415 Modify to suit your needs.
11418 @node Archived Messages
11419 @section Archived Messages
11420 @cindex archived messages
11421 @cindex sent messages
11423 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
11424 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
11425 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
11426 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
11429 For archiving interesting messages in a group you read, see the
11430 @kbd{B c} (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}) command (@pxref{Mail
11433 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
11434 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
11435 use to store sent messages. The default is:
11438 (nnfolder "archive"
11439 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
11440 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
11441 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
11442 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
11445 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
11446 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likable select method
11447 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
11448 directory chosen, you could say something like:
11451 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
11452 '(nnfolder "archive"
11453 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
11454 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
11455 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
11458 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
11460 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
11461 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
11462 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
11464 This variable can be used to do the following:
11469 Messages will be saved in that group.
11471 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
11472 message will not be stored in the select method given by
11473 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
11474 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
11475 has the default value shown above. Then setting
11476 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
11477 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
11478 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
11482 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
11484 an alist of regexps, functions and forms
11485 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
11488 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
11493 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
11495 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
11498 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
11500 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
11503 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
11505 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
11506 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
11507 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
11508 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
11511 More complex stuff:
11513 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
11514 '((if (message-news-p)
11519 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
11520 messages in one file per month:
11523 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
11524 '((if (message-news-p)
11526 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
11529 @c (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
11530 @c use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
11532 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
11533 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
11534 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
11535 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
11536 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
11537 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
11538 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
11539 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
11540 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
11541 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
11543 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
11544 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
11545 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
11546 this will disable archiving.
11549 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
11550 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
11551 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
11552 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
11553 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
11556 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
11557 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
11558 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
11561 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
11562 but the latter is the preferred method.
11564 @item gnus-gcc-mark-as-read
11565 @vindex gnus-gcc-mark-as-read
11566 If non-@code{nil}, automatically mark @code{Gcc} articles as read.
11568 @item gnus-gcc-externalize-attachments
11569 @vindex gnus-gcc-externalize-attachments
11570 If @code{nil}, attach files as normal parts in Gcc copies; if a regexp
11571 and matches the Gcc group name, attach files as external parts; if it is
11572 @code{all}, attach local files as external parts; if it is other
11573 non-@code{nil}, the behavior is the same as @code{all}, but it may be
11574 changed in the future.
11579 @node Posting Styles
11580 @section Posting Styles
11581 @cindex posting styles
11584 All them variables, they make my head swim.
11586 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
11587 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
11588 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
11591 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
11592 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
11593 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
11594 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
11595 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
11600 (signature "Peace and happiness")
11601 (organization "What me?"))
11603 (signature "Death to everybody"))
11604 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
11605 (organization "Emacs is it")))
11608 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
11609 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
11610 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
11611 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
11612 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
11613 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
11614 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
11615 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
11617 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
11618 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
11619 If it is the form @code{(header @var{match} @var{regexp})}, then Gnus
11620 will look in the original article for a header whose name is
11621 @var{match} and compare that @var{regexp}. @var{match} and
11622 @var{regexp} are strings. (There original article is the one you are
11623 replying or following up to. If you are not composing a reply or a
11624 followup, then there is nothing to match against.) If the
11625 @code{match} is a function symbol, that function will be called with
11626 no arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
11627 referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
11628 any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is
11629 said to @dfn{match}.
11631 Each style may contain an arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
11632 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} @var{value})} pair. The
11633 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
11634 @code{x-face-file}, @code{address} (overriding
11635 @code{user-mail-address}), @code{name} (overriding
11636 @code{(user-full-name)}) or @code{body}. The attribute name can also
11637 be a string or a symbol. In that case, this will be used as a header
11638 name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the article; if
11639 the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed. If the
11640 attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the result
11643 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
11644 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
11645 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
11646 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
11647 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
11648 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable, which
11649 is a vector of the following headers: number subject from date id
11650 references chars lines xref extra.
11652 @vindex message-reply-headers
11654 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
11655 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
11656 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
11658 @findex message-mail-p
11659 @findex message-news-p
11661 So here's a new example:
11664 (setq gnus-posting-styles
11666 (signature-file "~/.signature")
11668 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
11669 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
11671 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
11672 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly") ;; A form
11673 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
11674 (message-news-p ;; A function symbol
11675 (signature my-news-signature))
11676 (window-system ;; A value symbol
11677 ("X-Window-System" (format "%s" window-system)))
11678 ;; If I'm replying to Larsi, set the Organization header.
11679 ((header "from" "larsi.*org")
11680 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
11681 ((posting-from-work-p) ;; A user defined function
11682 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
11683 (address "user@@bar.foo")
11684 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
11685 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
11687 (From (save-excursion
11688 (set-buffer gnus-article-buffer)
11689 (message-fetch-field "to"))))
11691 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
11694 The @samp{nnml:.*} rule means that you use the @code{To} address as the
11695 @code{From} address in all your outgoing replies, which might be handy
11696 if you fill many roles.
11703 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
11704 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
11705 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
11706 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
11707 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
11709 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
11710 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
11711 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
11712 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
11713 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
11717 @vindex nndraft-directory
11718 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
11719 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
11720 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
11721 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
11722 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
11723 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
11725 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
11726 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
11727 unsubscribe it. The special properties of the draft group comes from
11728 a group property (@pxref{Group Parameters}), and if lost the group
11729 behaves like any other group. This means the commands below will not
11730 be available. To restore the special properties of the group, the
11731 simplest way is to kill the group, using @kbd{C-k}, and restart
11732 Gnus. The group is automatically created again with the
11733 correct parameters. The content of the group is not lost.
11735 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
11736 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
11737 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
11738 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
11739 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
11740 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
11741 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
11742 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
11743 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
11744 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
11745 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
11746 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
11747 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
11748 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
11750 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
11751 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
11752 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
11754 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
11755 @kindex D e (Draft)
11756 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
11757 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
11758 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
11760 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
11763 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
11764 @kindex D s (Draft)
11765 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
11766 @kindex D S (Draft)
11767 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
11768 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
11769 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
11770 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
11771 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
11774 @findex gnus-draft-toggle-sending
11775 @kindex D t (Draft)
11776 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
11777 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
11778 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
11781 @node Rejected Articles
11782 @section Rejected Articles
11783 @cindex rejected articles
11785 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
11786 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
11787 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
11788 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
11790 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
11791 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
11792 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
11793 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
11794 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
11796 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
11797 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
11798 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
11800 @node Signing and encrypting
11801 @section Signing and encrypting
11803 @cindex using s/mime
11804 @cindex using smime
11806 Gnus can digitally sign and encrypt your messages, using vanilla PGP
11807 format or @sc{pgp/mime} or @sc{s/mime}. For decoding such messages,
11808 see the @code{mm-verify-option} and @code{mm-decrypt-option} options
11809 (@pxref{Security}).
11811 @vindex gnus-message-replysign
11812 @vindex gnus-message-replyencrypt
11813 @vindex gnus-message-replysignencrypted
11814 Often, you would like to sign replies to people who send you signed
11815 messages. Even more often, you might want to encrypt messages which
11816 are in reply to encrypted messages. Gnus offers
11817 @code{gnus-message-replysign} to enable the former, and
11818 @code{gnus-message-replyencrypt} for the latter. In addition, setting
11819 @code{gnus-message-replysignencrypted} (on by default) will sign
11820 automatically encrypted messages.
11822 Instructing MML to perform security operations on a @sc{mime} part is
11823 done using the @kbd{C-c C-m s} key map for signing and the @kbd{C-c
11824 C-m c} key map for encryption, as follows.
11829 @kindex C-c C-m s s
11830 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-smime
11832 Digitally sign current message using @sc{s/mime}.
11835 @kindex C-c C-m s o
11836 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
11838 Digitally sign current message using PGP.
11841 @kindex C-c C-m s p
11842 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
11844 Digitally sign current message using @sc{pgp/mime}.
11847 @kindex C-c C-m c s
11848 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-smime
11850 Digitally encrypt current message using @sc{s/mime}.
11853 @kindex C-c C-m c o
11854 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgp
11856 Digitally encrypt current message using PGP.
11859 @kindex C-c C-m c p
11860 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgpmime
11862 Digitally encrypt current message using @sc{pgp/mime}.
11865 @kindex C-c C-m C-n
11866 @findex mml-unsecure-message
11867 Remove security related MML tags from message.
11871 @xref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}, for more information.
11873 @node Select Methods
11874 @chapter Select Methods
11875 @cindex foreign groups
11876 @cindex select methods
11878 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
11879 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
11880 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
11881 personal mail group.
11883 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
11884 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
11885 list where the first element says what back end to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
11886 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
11887 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
11888 value may have special meaning for the back end in question.
11890 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
11891 we do just that (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
11893 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the back end will recognize the
11896 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
11897 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
11898 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
11899 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
11900 back end just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
11902 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
11905 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
11906 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
11907 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
11908 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
11909 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
11910 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
11911 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
11912 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
11916 @node Server Buffer
11917 @section Server Buffer
11919 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
11920 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
11921 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
11922 one back end or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
11923 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
11924 back end represents a virtual server.
11926 For instance, the @code{nntp} back end may be used to connect to several
11927 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
11928 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which back end to
11929 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
11931 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
11932 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
11933 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
11934 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
11935 Anyway, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
11936 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
11937 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
11939 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
11940 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
11943 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
11944 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
11945 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
11946 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
11947 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
11948 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
11949 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
11952 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
11953 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
11956 @node Server Buffer Format
11957 @subsection Server Buffer Format
11958 @cindex server buffer format
11960 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
11961 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
11962 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
11963 variable, with some simple extensions:
11968 How the news is fetched---the back end name.
11971 The name of this server.
11974 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
11977 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
11980 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
11981 The mode line can also be customized by using the
11982 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
11983 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
11993 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
11996 @node Server Commands
11997 @subsection Server Commands
11998 @cindex server commands
12004 @findex gnus-server-add-server
12005 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
12009 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
12010 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
12013 @kindex SPACE (Server)
12014 @findex gnus-server-read-server
12015 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
12019 @findex gnus-server-exit
12020 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
12024 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
12025 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
12029 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
12030 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
12034 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
12035 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
12039 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
12040 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
12044 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
12045 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
12046 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
12051 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
12052 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
12053 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
12054 a mail back end that has gotten out of sync.
12059 @node Example Methods
12060 @subsection Example Methods
12062 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
12065 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
12068 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
12074 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
12075 back end, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
12078 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
12079 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
12081 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
12082 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
12086 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
12089 You should read the documentation to each back end to find out what
12090 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
12092 @code{nnmh} is a mail back end that reads a spool-like structure. Say
12093 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
12094 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
12098 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
12101 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
12104 Here's the method for a public spool:
12108 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
12109 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
12115 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
12116 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
12117 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
12118 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
12119 should probably look something like this:
12123 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet)
12124 (nntp-via-address "the.firewall.machine")
12125 (nntp-address "the.real.nntp.host")
12126 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
12129 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
12130 compressed connection over the modem line, you could add the following
12131 configuration to the example above:
12134 (nntp-via-rlogin-command "ssh")
12137 See also @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches}.
12139 If you're behind a firewall, but have direct access to the outside world
12140 through a wrapper command like "runsocks", you could open a socksified
12141 telnet connection to the news server as follows:
12145 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
12146 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-telnet)
12147 (nntp-address "the.news.server")
12148 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
12151 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
12152 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
12153 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
12154 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
12157 @node Creating a Virtual Server
12158 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
12160 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
12161 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
12163 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
12164 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
12165 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
12167 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
12169 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
12170 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
12171 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
12172 will contain the following:
12182 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
12183 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
12184 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
12187 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
12188 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
12189 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
12192 @node Server Variables
12193 @subsection Server Variables
12195 One sticky point when defining variables (both on back ends and in Emacs
12196 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
12197 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
12198 change the ``base'' variable after the variables have been loaded, you
12199 won't change the ``derived'' variables.
12201 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
12202 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
12203 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
12204 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
12205 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
12206 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
12207 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
12208 variables for each back end, see each back end's section later in this
12209 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
12213 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
12214 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
12215 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
12219 @node Servers and Methods
12220 @subsection Servers and Methods
12222 Wherever you would normally use a select method
12223 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
12224 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
12225 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
12229 @node Unavailable Servers
12230 @subsection Unavailable Servers
12232 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
12233 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
12234 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
12235 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
12236 actually the case or not.
12238 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
12239 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
12240 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
12241 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
12242 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
12243 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
12244 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
12245 it will regard that server as ``down''.
12247 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
12248 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
12250 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{Server Buffer}) and poke it
12251 with the following commands:
12257 @findex gnus-server-open-server
12258 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
12259 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
12263 @findex gnus-server-close-server
12264 Close the connection (if any) to the server
12265 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
12269 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
12270 Mark the current server as unreachable
12271 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
12274 @kindex M-o (Server)
12275 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
12276 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
12277 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
12280 @kindex M-c (Server)
12281 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
12282 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
12283 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
12287 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
12288 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
12289 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
12293 @findex gnus-server-offline-server
12294 Set server status to offline (@code{gnus-server-offline-server}).
12300 @section Getting News
12301 @cindex reading news
12302 @cindex news back ends
12304 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
12305 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
12306 or it can read from a local spool.
12309 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
12310 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
12318 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
12319 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
12320 server as the, uhm, address.
12322 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
12323 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
12324 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
12325 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
12327 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
12328 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
12329 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
12331 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
12336 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
12337 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
12338 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
12340 @cindex authentification
12341 @cindex nntp authentification
12342 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
12343 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
12344 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
12345 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
12346 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
12347 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
12348 present in this hook.
12350 @item nntp-authinfo-function
12351 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
12352 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
12353 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
12354 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
12355 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
12356 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
12357 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
12358 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
12359 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
12360 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
12361 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
12365 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
12368 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
12370 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
12371 @samp{default}. In addition Gnus introduces two new tokens, not present
12372 in the original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
12373 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
12374 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
12375 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to and
12376 @samp{force} is explained below.
12380 Here's an example file:
12383 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
12384 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
12387 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
12388 have to be first, for instance.
12390 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
12391 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
12392 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
12393 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
12394 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
12395 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
12396 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
12398 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
12399 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
12405 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
12406 previously mentioned.
12408 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
12410 @item nntp-server-action-alist
12411 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
12412 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
12413 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
12414 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
12417 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
12418 '(("innd" (ding))))
12421 You probably don't want to do that, though.
12423 The default value is
12426 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
12427 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook
12428 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
12431 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
12432 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
12434 @item nntp-maximum-request
12435 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
12436 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this back end
12437 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
12438 speed things up, the back end sends lots of these commands without
12439 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
12440 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
12441 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
12443 @item nntp-connection-timeout
12444 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
12445 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
12446 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
12447 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
12448 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
12449 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
12450 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} back end should wait for a
12451 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
12452 no timeouts are done.
12454 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
12455 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
12456 @c @cindex PPP connections
12457 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
12458 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
12459 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
12460 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
12461 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
12462 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
12463 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
12464 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
12465 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
12466 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
12468 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
12469 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
12470 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
12471 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
12472 @c described above.
12474 @item nntp-server-hook
12475 @vindex nntp-server-hook
12476 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
12479 @item nntp-buggy-select
12480 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
12481 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
12483 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
12484 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
12485 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
12486 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
12489 @item nntp-xover-commands
12490 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
12493 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
12494 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
12498 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
12499 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
12500 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
12501 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
12502 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
12503 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
12504 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
12505 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
12506 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
12507 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
12508 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
12510 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
12511 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
12512 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
12514 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
12515 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
12516 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
12517 server closes connection.
12519 @item nntp-record-commands
12520 @vindex nntp-record-commands
12521 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
12522 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestamp) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
12523 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
12524 that doesn't seem to work.
12526 @item nntp-open-connection-function
12527 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
12528 It is possible to customize how the connection to the nntp server will
12529 be opened. If you specify an @code{nntp-open-connection-function}
12530 parameter, Gnus will use that function to establish the connection.
12531 Five pre-made functions are supplied. These functions can be grouped in
12532 two categories: direct connection functions (three pre-made), and
12533 indirect ones (two pre-made).
12535 @item nntp-prepare-post-hook
12536 @vindex nntp-prepare-post-hook
12537 A hook run just before posting an article. If there is no
12538 @code{Message-ID} header in the article and the news server provides the
12539 recommended ID, it will be added to the article before running this
12540 hook. It is useful to make @code{Cancel-Lock} headers even if you
12541 inhibit Gnus to add a @code{Message-ID} header, you could say:
12544 (add-hook 'nntp-prepare-post-hook 'canlock-insert-header)
12547 Note that not all servers support the recommended ID. This works for
12548 INN versions 2.3.0 and later, for instance.
12550 @item nntp-read-timeout
12551 @vindex nntp-read-timeout
12552 How long nntp should wait between checking for the end of output.
12553 Shorter values mean quicker response, but is more CPU intensive. The
12554 default is 0.1 seconds. If you have a slow line to the server (and
12555 don't like to see Emacs eat your available CPU power), you might set
12561 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
12562 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
12563 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
12567 @node Direct Functions
12568 @subsubsection Direct Functions
12569 @cindex direct connection functions
12571 These functions are called direct because they open a direct connection
12572 between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server. The behavior of these
12573 functions is also affected by commonly understood variables
12574 (@pxref{Common Variables}).
12577 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
12578 @item nntp-open-network-stream
12579 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
12582 @findex nntp-open-tls-stream
12583 @item nntp-open-tls-stream
12584 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use
12585 this you must have GNUTLS installed (see
12586 @uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/gnutls/}). You then define a server
12590 ;; "nntps" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
12591 ;; however, gnutls-cli -p doesn't like named ports.
12593 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
12594 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-tls-stream)
12595 (nntp-port-number )
12596 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
12599 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
12600 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
12601 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
12602 you must have OpenSSL (@uref{http://www.openssl.org}) or SSLeay
12603 installed (@uref{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}. You then
12604 define a server as follows:
12607 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
12608 ;; however, openssl s_client -port doesn't like named ports.
12610 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
12611 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
12612 (nntp-port-number 563)
12613 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
12616 @findex nntp-open-telnet-stream
12617 @item nntp-open-telnet-stream
12618 Opens a connection to an @sc{nntp} server by simply @samp{telnet}'ing
12619 it. You might wonder why this function exists, since we have the
12620 default @code{nntp-open-network-stream} which would do the job. (One
12621 of) the reason(s) is that if you are behind a firewall but have direct
12622 connections to the outside world thanks to a command wrapper like
12623 @code{runsocks}, you can use it like this:
12627 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
12628 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-telnet-stream)
12629 (nntp-address "the.news.server"))
12632 With the default method, you would need to wrap your whole Emacs
12633 session, which is not a good idea.
12637 @node Indirect Functions
12638 @subsubsection Indirect Functions
12639 @cindex indirect connection functions
12641 These functions are called indirect because they connect to an
12642 intermediate host before actually connecting to the @sc{nntp} server.
12643 All of these functions and related variables are also said to belong to
12644 the ``via'' family of connection: they're all prefixed with ``via'' to make
12645 things cleaner. The behavior of these functions is also affected by
12646 commonly understood variables (@pxref{Common Variables}).
12649 @item nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
12650 @findex nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
12651 Does an @samp{rlogin} on a remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet}
12652 to the real @sc{nntp} server from there. This is useful for instance if
12653 you need to connect to a firewall machine first.
12655 @code{nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet}-specific variables:
12658 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command
12659 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command
12660 Command used to log in on the intermediate host. The default is
12661 @samp{rsh}, but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
12663 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches
12664 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches
12665 List of strings to be used as the switches to
12666 @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command}. The default is @code{nil}. If you use
12667 @samp{ssh} for @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command}, you may set this to
12668 @samp{("-C")} in order to compress all data connections, otherwise set
12669 this to @samp{("-t" "-e" "none")} or @samp{("-C" "-t" "-e" "none")} if
12670 the telnet command requires a pseudo-tty allocation on an intermediate
12674 @item nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
12675 @findex nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
12676 Does essentially the same, but uses @samp{telnet} instead of
12677 @samp{rlogin} to connect to the intermediate host.
12679 @code{nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet}-specific variables:
12682 @item nntp-via-telnet-command
12683 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-command
12684 Command used to @code{telnet} the intermediate host. The default is
12687 @item nntp-via-telnet-switches
12688 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-switches
12689 List of strings to be used as the switches to the
12690 @code{nntp-via-telnet-command} command. The default is @samp{("-8")}.
12692 @item nntp-via-user-password
12693 @vindex nntp-via-user-password
12694 Password to use when logging in on the intermediate host.
12696 @item nntp-via-envuser
12697 @vindex nntp-via-envuser
12698 If non-@code{nil}, the intermediate @code{telnet} session (client and
12699 server both) will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for
12700 login name. This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
12702 @item nntp-via-shell-prompt
12703 @vindex nntp-via-shell-prompt
12704 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the intermediate host. The default
12705 is @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
12712 Here are some additional variables that are understood by all the above
12717 @item nntp-via-user-name
12718 @vindex nntp-via-user-name
12719 User name to use when connecting to the intermediate host.
12721 @item nntp-via-address
12722 @vindex nntp-via-address
12723 Address of the intermediate host to connect to.
12728 @node Common Variables
12729 @subsubsection Common Variables
12731 The following variables affect the behavior of all, or several of the
12732 pre-made connection functions. When not specified, all functions are
12737 @item nntp-pre-command
12738 @vindex nntp-pre-command
12739 A command wrapper to use when connecting through a non native
12740 connection function (all except @code{nntp-open-network-stream},
12741 @code{nntp-open-tls-stream}, and @code{nntp-open-ssl-stream}. This is
12742 where you would put a @samp{SOCKS} wrapper for instance.
12745 @vindex nntp-address
12746 The address of the @sc{nntp} server.
12748 @item nntp-port-number
12749 @vindex nntp-port-number
12750 Port number to connect to the @sc{nntp} server. The default is
12751 @samp{nntp}. If you use @sc{nntp} over @sc{tls}/@sc{ssl}, you may
12752 want to use integer ports rather than named ports (i.e, use @samp{563}
12753 instead of @samp{snews} or @samp{nntps}), because external TLS/SSL
12754 tools may not work with named ports.
12756 @item nntp-end-of-line
12757 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
12758 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
12759 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
12760 using a non native connection function.
12762 @item nntp-telnet-command
12763 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
12764 Command to use when connecting to the @sc{nntp} server through
12765 @samp{telnet}. This is NOT for an intermediate host. This is just for
12766 the real @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{telnet}.
12768 @item nntp-telnet-switches
12769 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
12770 A list of switches to pass to @code{nntp-telnet-command}. The default
12777 @subsection News Spool
12781 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
12782 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
12783 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
12786 Anyway, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
12787 anything else) as the address.
12789 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
12790 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
12791 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
12792 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
12796 @item nnspool-inews-program
12797 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
12798 Program used to post an article.
12800 @item nnspool-inews-switches
12801 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
12802 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
12804 @item nnspool-spool-directory
12805 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
12806 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
12807 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
12809 @item nnspool-nov-directory
12810 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
12811 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
12812 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
12814 @item nnspool-lib-dir
12815 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
12816 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
12818 @item nnspool-active-file
12819 @vindex nnspool-active-file
12820 The name of the active file.
12822 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
12823 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
12824 The name of the group descriptions file.
12826 @item nnspool-history-file
12827 @vindex nnspool-history-file
12828 The name of the news history file.
12830 @item nnspool-active-times-file
12831 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
12832 The name of the active date file.
12834 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
12835 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
12836 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
12839 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
12840 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
12842 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
12843 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
12844 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
12850 @section Getting Mail
12851 @cindex reading mail
12854 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
12858 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
12859 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
12860 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
12861 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
12862 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
12863 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
12864 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
12865 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
12866 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
12867 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
12868 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
12869 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
12870 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
12874 @node Mail in a Newsreader
12875 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
12877 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
12878 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
12879 of a culture shock.
12881 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
12882 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
12884 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
12885 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
12886 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
12887 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
12889 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
12891 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
12892 deleted? How awful!
12894 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
12895 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
12896 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
12897 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
12900 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
12901 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
12902 they want to treat a message.
12904 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
12905 via @sc{smtp}, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
12906 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
12907 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
12908 archived somewhere else.
12910 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
12911 These are transported via @sc{nntp}, and are therefore news. But we may need
12912 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
12913 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
12914 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
12916 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
12917 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
12918 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
12920 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
12921 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
12924 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
12925 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
12926 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
12927 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
12928 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
12930 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
12931 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
12932 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
12933 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
12934 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
12935 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
12939 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
12940 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
12942 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
12943 mail back end of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
12944 and things will happen automatically.
12946 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a ``one file per
12947 mail'' back end), you could put the following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
12950 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
12953 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this back end will be queried for new
12954 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
12955 directory, which is @file{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
12956 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
12957 like any other group.
12959 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
12962 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12963 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12964 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12968 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
12969 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
12970 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
12973 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
12974 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
12975 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Back End} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
12978 @node Splitting Mail
12979 @subsection Splitting Mail
12980 @cindex splitting mail
12981 @cindex mail splitting
12983 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
12984 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
12985 to be split into groups.
12988 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12989 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12990 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12991 ("mail.other" "")))
12994 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
12995 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
12996 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
12997 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
12998 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
12999 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
13000 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
13003 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
13006 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
13007 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
13008 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
13009 mail belongs in that group.
13011 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
13012 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{*} so that it matches any mails
13013 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
13014 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
13015 rule to make a match will ``win'', unless you have crossposting enabled.
13016 In that case, all matching rules will ``win''.)
13018 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
13019 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
13020 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
13021 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
13022 thinks should carry this mail message.
13024 Note that the mail back ends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
13025 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
13026 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
13027 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
13029 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
13030 The mail back ends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
13031 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
13032 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
13033 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{*}) group.
13035 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
13038 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
13039 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
13040 links. If that's the case for you, set
13041 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
13042 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
13044 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
13045 @kindex nnmail-split-history
13046 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
13047 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
13048 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
13049 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
13052 @vindex nnmail-split-header-length-limit
13053 Header lines longer than the value of
13054 @code{nnmail-split-header-length-limit} are excluded from the split
13057 @vindex nnmail-mail-splitting-charset
13058 @vindex nnmail-mail-splitting-decodes
13059 By default the splitting codes @sc{mime} decodes headers so you can match
13060 on non-ASCII strings. The @code{nnmail-mail-splitting-charset}
13061 variable specifies the default charset for decoding. The behaviour
13062 can be turned off completely by binding
13063 @code{nnmail-mail-splitting-decodes} to nil, which is useful if you
13064 want to match articles based on the raw header data.
13066 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
13067 By default, splitting is performed on all incoming messages. If
13068 you specify a @code{directory} entry for the variable
13069 @code{mail-sources} @pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}, however, then
13070 splitting does @emph{not} happen by default. You can set the variable
13071 @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming} to a non-nil value to make splitting
13072 happen even in this case. (This variable has no effect on other kinds
13075 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
13076 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
13077 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
13078 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
13079 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
13080 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
13081 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
13082 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
13083 month's rent money.
13087 @subsection Mail Sources
13089 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
13090 POP mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a maildir, for
13094 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
13095 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
13096 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
13100 @node Mail Source Specifiers
13101 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
13103 @cindex mail server
13106 @cindex mail source
13108 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
13109 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
13114 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
13117 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
13118 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
13119 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
13122 The following mail source types are available:
13126 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
13132 The file name. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
13133 environment variable or the value of @code{rmail-spool-directory}
13134 (usually something like @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}).
13138 Script run before/after fetching mail.
13141 An example file mail source:
13144 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
13147 Or using the default file name:
13153 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best to
13154 use POP or @sc{imap} or the like to fetch the mail. You can not use ange-ftp
13155 file names here---it has no way to lock the mail spool while moving the
13158 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
13162 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
13165 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
13169 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
13172 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
13174 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
13177 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
13181 @vindex nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once
13182 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used when
13183 you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files. That is,
13184 there is a one-to-one correspondence between files in that directory and
13185 groups, so that mail from the file @file{foo.bar.spool} will be put in
13186 the group @code{foo.bar}. (You can change the suffix to be used instead
13187 of @code{.spool}.) Setting
13188 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-nil forces Gnus to
13189 scan the mail source only once. This is particularly useful if you want
13190 to scan mail groups at a specified level.
13192 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
13193 There is also the variable @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming}, if you set
13194 that to a non-nil value, then the normal splitting process is applied
13195 to all the files from the directory, @ref{Splitting Mail}.
13201 The name of the directory where the files are. There is no default
13205 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
13209 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
13210 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
13211 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
13212 predicate are considered.
13216 Script run before/after fetching mail.
13220 An example directory mail source:
13223 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
13228 Get mail from a POP server.
13234 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
13235 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
13238 The port number of the POP server. This can be a number (eg,
13239 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
13240 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
13241 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}. On some systems you might
13242 need to specify it as @samp{"pop-3"} instead.
13245 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
13249 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
13253 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This should be
13254 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
13257 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
13260 The valid format specifier characters are:
13264 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
13265 included in this string.
13268 The name of the server.
13271 The port number of the server.
13274 The user name to use.
13277 The password to use.
13280 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
13281 corresponding keywords.
13284 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
13285 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
13288 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
13289 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
13292 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
13293 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
13296 @item :authentication
13297 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
13298 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
13303 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
13304 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
13306 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
13307 default user name, and default fetcher:
13313 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
13316 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
13317 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
13320 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
13323 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
13327 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
13328 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
13329 contains exactly one mail.
13335 The name of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
13336 taken from the @code{MAILDIR} environment variable or
13339 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
13340 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
13342 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
13343 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
13344 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
13347 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
13348 from locking problems).
13352 Two example maildir mail sources:
13355 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/"
13356 :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
13360 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/"
13365 Get mail from a @sc{imap} server. If you don't want to use @sc{imap}
13366 as intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie with nnimap), for
13367 some reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar to a POP server
13368 and fetches articles from a given @sc{imap} mailbox. @xref{IMAP}, for
13371 Note that for the Kerberos, GSSAPI, TLS/SSL and STARTTLS support you
13372 may need external programs and libraries, @xref{IMAP}.
13378 The name of the @sc{imap} server. The default is taken from the
13379 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
13382 The port number of the @sc{imap} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
13383 @samp{993} for TLS/SSL connections.
13386 The user name to give to the @sc{imap} server. The default is the login
13390 The password to give to the @sc{imap} server. If not specified, the user is
13394 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
13395 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
13396 @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{starttls}, @samp{tls},
13397 @samp{ssl}, @samp{shell} or the default @samp{network}.
13399 @item :authentication
13400 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is
13401 one of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now,
13402 this means @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{digest-md5},
13403 @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default @samp{login}.
13406 When using the `shell' :stream, the contents of this variable is
13407 mapped into the @code{imap-shell-program} variable. This should be a
13408 @code{format}-like string (or list of strings). Here's an example:
13414 The valid format specifier characters are:
13418 The name of the server.
13421 User name from @code{imap-default-user}.
13424 The port number of the server.
13427 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
13428 corresponding keywords.
13431 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
13432 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
13435 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
13436 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
13437 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @sc{imap} client and mark some
13438 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{1:*}.
13439 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
13440 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 section 6.4.4.
13443 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
13444 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
13445 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
13446 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 section 2.3.2.
13449 If non-nil, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the mailbox
13450 after finishing the fetch.
13454 An example @sc{imap} mail source:
13457 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com"
13459 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
13463 Get mail from a webmail server, such as @uref{www.hotmail.com},
13464 @uref{webmail.netscape.com}, @uref{www.netaddress.com},
13465 @uref{mail.yahoo..com}.
13467 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
13468 required for url "4.0pre.46".
13470 WARNING: Mails may be lost. NO WARRANTY.
13476 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
13477 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
13480 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
13484 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
13488 If non-nil, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to trash
13489 folder after finishing the fetch.
13493 An example webmail source:
13496 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail
13498 :password "secret")
13503 @item Common Keywords
13504 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
13510 If non-nil, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you use
13511 directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this example:
13515 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
13520 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
13521 useful when you use local mail and news.
13526 @subsubsection Function Interface
13528 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
13529 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
13530 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
13531 consider the following mail-source setting:
13534 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
13535 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
13538 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
13539 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
13540 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
13541 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
13542 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
13544 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
13547 @node Mail Source Customization
13548 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
13550 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
13551 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
13555 @item mail-source-crash-box
13556 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
13557 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
13558 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
13560 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
13561 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
13562 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them. If
13563 @code{t}, delete the files immediately, if @code{nil}, never delete any
13564 files. If a positive number, delete files older than number of days
13565 (This will only happen, when reveiving new mail). You may also set
13566 @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} to @code{nil} and call
13567 @code{mail-source-delete-old-incoming} from a hook or interactively.
13569 @item mail-source-delete-old-incoming-confirm
13570 @vindex mail-source-delete-old-incoming-confirm
13571 If @code{non-nil}, ask for for confirmation before deleting old incoming
13572 files. This variable only applies when
13573 @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is a positive number.
13575 @item mail-source-ignore-errors
13576 @vindex mail-source-ignore-errors
13577 If non-@code{nil}, ignore errors when reading mail from a mail source.
13579 @item mail-source-directory
13580 @vindex mail-source-directory
13581 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
13582 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
13583 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
13586 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
13587 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
13588 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
13589 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
13590 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
13591 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
13593 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
13594 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
13595 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
13597 @item mail-source-movemail-program
13598 @vindex mail-source-movemail-program
13599 If non-nil, name of program for fetching new mail. If nil,
13600 @code{movemail} in @var{exec-directory}.
13605 @node Fetching Mail
13606 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
13608 @vindex mail-sources
13609 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
13610 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
13611 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
13612 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
13614 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
13615 @code{nil}, the mail back ends will never attempt to fetch mail by
13618 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
13619 mail server, you'd say something like:
13624 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
13625 :password "secret")))
13628 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
13632 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
13633 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
13636 :password "secret")))
13640 When you use a mail back end, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
13641 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
13642 mail if you're not using a mail back end---you have to do a lot of magic
13643 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
13644 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
13645 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
13649 @node Mail Back End Variables
13650 @subsection Mail Back End Variables
13652 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
13656 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
13657 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
13658 The mail back ends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
13659 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
13661 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
13662 @item nnmail-split-hook
13663 @findex gnus-article-decode-encoded-words
13664 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
13665 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
13666 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
13667 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
13668 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
13669 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
13670 in the buffer will show up in any files.
13671 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
13674 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13675 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13676 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13677 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13678 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
13679 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
13680 starting to handle the new mail) and
13681 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
13682 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
13683 default file modes the new mail files get:
13686 (add-hook 'nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13687 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
13689 (add-hook 'nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13690 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
13693 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
13694 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
13695 If non-@code{nil}, the mail back ends will use long file and directory
13696 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
13697 (assuming use of @code{nnml} back end) or files (assuming use of
13698 @code{nnfolder} back end) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
13699 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
13701 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
13702 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
13703 @findex delete-file
13704 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
13706 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13707 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13708 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
13709 the back end (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
13710 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
13712 @item nnmail-cache-ignore-groups
13713 @vindex nnmail-cache-ignore-groups
13714 This can be a regular expression or a list of regular expressions.
13715 Group names that match any of the regular expressions will never be
13716 recorded in the @code{Message-ID} cache.
13718 This can be useful, for example, when using Fancy Splitting
13719 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}) together with the function
13720 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent}.
13725 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
13726 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
13727 @cindex mail splitting
13728 @cindex fancy mail splitting
13730 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
13731 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
13732 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
13733 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
13734 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
13735 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
13737 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
13740 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
13741 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
13742 ;; from real errors.
13743 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
13745 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
13746 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
13747 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
13748 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
13749 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
13750 ;; Other mailing lists...
13751 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
13752 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
13753 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
13754 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
13755 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
13756 ;; message was really cross-posted.
13757 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
13758 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
13760 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
13761 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
13765 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
13766 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
13767 the five possible split syntaxes:
13772 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
13773 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
13777 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
13778 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
13779 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
13780 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
13781 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
13782 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
13783 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
13784 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
13787 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13788 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
13789 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
13790 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
13793 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13794 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
13797 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
13798 (i.e., delete) this message. Use with extreme caution.
13801 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
13802 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
13803 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
13804 function should return a @var{split}.
13807 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
13808 body of the messages:
13811 (defun split-on-body ()
13813 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
13814 (goto-char (point-min))
13815 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
13819 The @samp{" *nnmail incoming*"} is narrowed to the message in question
13820 when the @code{:} function is run.
13823 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the
13824 first element is @code{!}, then @var{split} will be processed, and
13825 @var{func} will be called as a function with the result of @var{split}
13826 as argument. @var{func} should return a split.
13829 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
13833 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
13834 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
13835 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
13836 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
13837 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
13839 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
13840 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
13841 are expanded as specified by the variable
13842 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
13843 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
13846 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
13847 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
13848 when all this splitting is performed.
13850 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
13851 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
13852 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
13855 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
13858 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
13859 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
13861 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
13862 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
13863 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
13864 groupings 1 through 9.
13866 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
13867 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
13868 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
13869 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
13870 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
13871 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
13872 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
13873 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
13874 it once per thread.
13876 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} and
13877 @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} to a non-nil value. And then
13878 you can include @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} using the colon
13881 (setq nnmail-treat-duplicates 'warn ; or 'delete
13882 nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids t
13884 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
13885 ;; other splits go here
13889 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
13890 non-nil, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees in the
13891 file specified by the variable @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file},
13892 together with the group it is in (the group is omitted for non-mail
13893 messages). When mail splitting is invoked, the function
13894 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks at the References (and
13895 In-Reply-To) header of each message to split and searches the file
13896 specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file} for the message ids.
13897 When it has found a parent, it returns the corresponding group name
13898 unless the group name matches the regexp
13899 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent-ignore-groups}. It is recommended
13900 that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a somewhat higher
13901 number than the default so that the message ids are still in the cache.
13902 (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some 300 kBytes in size.)
13903 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13904 When @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus
13905 also records the message ids of moved articles, so that the followup
13906 messages goes into the new group.
13908 Also see the variable @code{nnmail-cache-ignore-groups} if you don't
13909 want certain groups to be recorded in the cache. For example, if all
13910 outgoing messages are written to an `outgoing' group, you could set
13911 @code{nnmail-cache-ignore-groups} to match that group name.
13912 Otherwise, answers to all your messages would end up in the
13916 @node Group Mail Splitting
13917 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
13918 @cindex mail splitting
13919 @cindex group mail splitting
13921 @findex gnus-group-split
13922 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
13923 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
13924 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
13925 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
13926 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
13927 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
13928 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
13929 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
13931 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
13932 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
13933 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
13934 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
13936 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
13937 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
13938 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
13939 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
13940 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
13941 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
13942 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
13944 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
13945 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
13946 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
13947 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
13948 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
13949 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
13950 @code{gnus-group-split}.
13952 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
13953 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
13954 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
13955 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
13956 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
13957 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
13958 that group is used as the catch-all group. Even though this variable is
13959 often used just to name a group, it may also be set to an arbitrarily
13960 complex fancy split (after all, a group name is a fancy split), and this
13961 may be useful to split mail that doesn't go to any mailing list to
13962 personal mail folders. Note that this fancy split is added as the last
13963 element of a @code{|} split list that also contains a @code{&} split
13964 with the rules extracted from group parameters.
13966 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
13971 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
13972 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
13974 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
13975 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
13976 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
13977 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
13979 ((split-spec . catch-all))
13982 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
13983 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
13984 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
13987 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
13988 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
13989 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
13993 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
13994 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
13995 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
13999 (: gnus-group-split-fancy GROUPS NO-CROSSPOST CATCH-ALL)
14002 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
14003 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
14004 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
14005 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} is the fallback
14006 fancy split, used like @var{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}.
14007 If @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
14008 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
14009 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
14010 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
14012 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
14013 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
14014 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
14015 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
14016 used to enable @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
14017 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
14018 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
14019 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
14020 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
14022 @findex gnus-group-split-update
14023 However, if you change group parameters, you'd have to update
14024 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
14025 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
14026 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
14027 you. For example, add to your @file{~/.gnus.el}:
14030 (gnus-group-split-setup AUTO-UPDATE CATCH-ALL)
14033 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
14034 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
14035 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
14036 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional, equivalent to @code{nil}),
14037 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
14040 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
14041 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
14042 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
14043 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
14045 @node Incorporating Old Mail
14046 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
14047 @cindex incorporating old mail
14048 @cindex import old mail
14050 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
14051 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
14052 back ends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
14055 Doing so can be quite easy.
14057 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
14058 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
14059 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
14060 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
14061 your @code{nnml} groups.
14067 Go to the group buffer.
14070 Type @kbd{G f} and give the file name to the mbox file when prompted to create an
14071 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
14074 Type @kbd{SPACE} to enter the newly created group.
14077 Type @kbd{M P b} to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
14078 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
14081 Type @kbd{B r} to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
14082 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
14085 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
14086 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
14087 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
14088 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
14089 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
14091 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
14092 back end to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
14093 using the new mail back end.
14096 @node Expiring Mail
14097 @subsection Expiring Mail
14098 @cindex article expiry
14100 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
14101 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
14102 different approach to mail reading.
14104 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
14105 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
14106 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
14107 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
14108 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
14109 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
14112 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
14113 articles as @dfn{expirable}. (With the default keybindings, this means
14114 that you have to type @kbd{E}.) This does not mean that the articles
14115 will disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
14116 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
14117 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
14118 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
14119 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
14120 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
14122 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Gnus provides
14123 two features, called `auto-expire' and `total-expire', that can help you
14124 with this. In a nutshell, `auto-expire' means that Gnus hits @kbd{E}
14125 for you when you select an article. And `total-expire' means that Gnus
14126 considers all articles as expirable that are read. So, in addition to
14127 the articles marked @samp{E}, also the articles marked @samp{r},
14128 @samp{R}, @samp{O}, @samp{K}, @samp{Y} and so on are considered
14131 When should either auto-expire or total-expire be used? Most people
14132 who are subscribed to mailing lists split each list into its own group
14133 and then turn on auto-expire or total-expire for those groups.
14134 (@xref{Splitting Mail}, for more information on splitting each list
14135 into its own group.)
14137 Which one is better, auto-expire or total-expire? It's not easy to
14138 answer. Generally speaking, auto-expire is probably faster. Another
14139 advantage of auto-expire is that you get more marks to work with: for
14140 the articles that are supposed to stick around, you can still choose
14141 between tick and dormant and read marks. But with total-expire, you
14142 only have dormant and ticked to choose from. The advantage of
14143 total-expire is that it works well with adaptive scoring @pxref{Adaptive
14144 Scoring}. Auto-expire works with normal scoring but not with adaptive
14147 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
14148 Groups that match the regular expression
14149 @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will have all articles that you
14150 read marked as expirable automatically. All articles marked as
14151 expirable have an @samp{E} in the first column in the summary buffer.
14153 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
14154 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
14155 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
14156 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
14157 @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
14159 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
14161 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
14162 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
14163 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
14166 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
14167 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
14168 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
14169 articles expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
14170 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
14172 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
14173 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
14176 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
14177 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
14180 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
14181 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
14183 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
14184 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
14185 don't really mix very well.
14187 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
14188 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
14189 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
14190 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
14193 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
14194 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
14195 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
14196 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
14199 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
14201 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
14203 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
14205 ((string= group "mail.junk")
14207 ((string= group "important")
14213 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
14214 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
14216 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
14217 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
14218 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
14221 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
14222 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
14224 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
14225 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
14226 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them
14227 to other groups instead of deleting them. The variable
14228 @code{nnmail-expiry-target} (and the @code{expiry-target} group
14229 parameter) controls this. The variable supplies a default value for
14230 all groups, which can be overridden for specific groups by the group
14231 parameter. default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a
14232 string (which should be the name of the group the message should be
14233 moved to), or a function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to
14234 the message in question, and with the name of the group being moved
14235 from as its parameter) which should return a target -- either a group
14236 name or @code{delete}.
14238 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
14240 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
14243 @findex nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
14244 @vindex nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
14245 Gnus provides a function @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-target} which will
14246 expire mail to groups according to the variable
14247 @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets}. Here's an example:
14250 (setq nnmail-expiry-target 'nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
14251 nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
14252 '((to-from "boss" "nnfolder:Work")
14253 ("subject" "IMPORTANT" "nnfolder:IMPORTANT.%Y.%b")
14254 ("from" ".*" "nnfolder:Archive-%Y")))
14257 With this setup, any mail that has @code{IMPORTANT} in its Subject
14258 header and was sent in the year @code{YYYY} and month @code{MMM}, will
14259 get expired to the group @code{nnfolder:IMPORTANT.YYYY.MMM}. If its
14260 From or To header contains the string @code{boss}, it will get expired
14261 to @code{nnfolder:Work}. All other mail will get expired to
14262 @code{nnfolder:Archive-YYYY}.
14264 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
14265 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
14266 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
14267 easier for procmail users.
14269 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
14270 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
14271 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
14272 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
14273 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
14274 caution. Even more dangerous is the
14275 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
14276 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
14277 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
14278 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
14279 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
14280 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
14281 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
14284 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
14286 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
14287 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
14288 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
14289 auto-expire turned on.
14293 @subsection Washing Mail
14294 @cindex mail washing
14295 @cindex list server brain damage
14296 @cindex incoming mail treatment
14298 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
14299 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
14300 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
14301 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
14302 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
14303 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
14305 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
14306 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
14307 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
14310 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
14311 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
14312 storing the mail to disk. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
14313 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
14316 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
14317 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
14318 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
14319 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
14320 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
14323 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
14324 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
14325 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
14326 Emacs running on MS machines.
14330 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
14331 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
14332 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
14333 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
14336 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
14337 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
14338 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
14339 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
14341 (Note that this function works on both the header on the body of all
14342 messages, so it is a potentially dangerous function to use (if a body
14343 of a message contains something that looks like a header line). So
14344 rather than fix the bug, it is of course the right solution to make it
14345 into a feature by documenting it.)
14347 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
14348 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
14349 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
14350 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
14351 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
14352 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
14353 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
14356 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
14357 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
14360 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
14361 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
14364 This can also be done non-destructively with
14365 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
14367 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
14368 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
14369 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
14371 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
14372 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
14374 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
14375 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
14376 @code{References} headers.
14380 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
14381 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
14382 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
14386 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
14387 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
14388 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
14395 @subsection Duplicates
14397 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
14398 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
14399 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
14400 @cindex duplicate mails
14401 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
14402 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
14403 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
14404 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
14405 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
14406 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
14407 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
14408 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
14409 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
14410 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
14411 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
14412 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
14413 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
14415 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
14416 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
14417 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
14418 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
14420 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
14423 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
14424 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
14428 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
14429 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
14430 ("gnus-warning" "duplicat\\(e\\|ion\\) of message" "duplicate")
14431 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
14432 (any mail "mail.misc")
14439 (setq nnmail-split-methods
14440 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:.*duplicate")
14445 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
14446 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
14447 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
14448 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
14449 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
14452 @node Not Reading Mail
14453 @subsection Not Reading Mail
14455 If you start using any of the mail back ends, they have the annoying
14456 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
14457 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
14459 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
14460 @code{nil}, none of the back ends will ever attempt to read incoming
14461 mail, which should help.
14463 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
14464 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
14465 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
14466 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
14467 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
14468 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
14469 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
14470 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All back ends have
14471 variables called back-end-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
14472 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
14473 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
14475 All the mail back ends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
14476 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
14480 @node Choosing a Mail Back End
14481 @subsection Choosing a Mail Back End
14483 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
14484 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
14485 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
14487 There are six different mail back ends in the standard Gnus, and more
14488 back ends are available separately. The mail back end most people use
14489 (because it is possibly the fastest) is @code{nnml} (@pxref{Mail
14493 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
14494 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
14495 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
14496 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
14497 * Maildir:: Another one-file-per-message format.
14498 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
14499 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
14503 @node Unix Mail Box
14504 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
14506 @cindex unix mail box
14508 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
14509 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
14510 The @dfn{nnmbox} back end will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
14511 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
14512 which group it belongs in.
14514 Virtual server settings:
14517 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
14518 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
14519 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory. Default is
14522 @item nnmbox-active-file
14523 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
14524 The name of the active file for the mail box. Default is
14525 @file{~/.mbox-active}.
14527 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
14528 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
14529 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
14530 into groups. Default is @code{t}.
14535 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
14539 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
14540 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
14541 The @dfn{nnbabyl} back end will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
14542 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
14543 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
14545 Virtual server settings:
14548 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
14549 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
14550 The name of the rmail mbox file. The default is @file{~/RMAIL}
14552 @item nnbabyl-active-file
14553 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
14554 The name of the active file for the rmail box. The default is
14555 @file{~/.rmail-active}
14557 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
14558 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
14559 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail. Default is
14565 @subsubsection Mail Spool
14567 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
14569 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
14570 format. It should be used with some caution.
14572 @vindex nnml-directory
14573 If you use this back end, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
14574 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
14575 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
14576 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
14578 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
14581 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
14582 in your account, you should not use this back end. As each mail gets its
14583 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
14584 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
14585 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
14586 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
14587 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
14588 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
14590 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest back end when it comes to article
14591 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
14592 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it possibly the
14593 fastest back end when it comes to reading mail.
14595 @cindex self contained nnml servers
14597 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnml}
14598 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
14599 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
14600 proper @code{nnml} server) and have all your marks be preserved. Marks
14601 for a group is usually stored in the @code{.marks} file (but see
14602 @code{nnml-marks-file-name}) within each @code{nnml} group's directory.
14603 Individual @code{nnml} groups are also possible to backup, use @kbd{G m}
14604 to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the nnml
14607 If for some reason you believe your @file{.marks} files are screwed
14608 up, you can just delete them all. Gnus will then correctly regenerate
14609 them next time it starts.
14611 Virtual server settings:
14614 @item nnml-directory
14615 @vindex nnml-directory
14616 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory. The
14617 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default value
14620 @item nnml-active-file
14621 @vindex nnml-active-file
14622 The active file for the @code{nnml} server. The default is
14623 @file{~/Mail/active}.
14625 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
14626 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
14627 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
14628 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups}.
14630 @item nnml-get-new-mail
14631 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
14632 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail. The default is
14635 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
14636 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
14637 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
14638 default is @code{nil}.
14640 @item nnml-nov-file-name
14641 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
14642 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
14644 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
14645 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
14646 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
14648 @item nnml-marks-is-evil
14649 @vindex nnml-marks-is-evil
14650 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
14651 default is @code{nil}.
14653 @item nnml-marks-file-name
14654 @vindex nnml-marks-file-name
14655 The name of the @dfn{marks} files. The default is @file{.marks}.
14657 @item nnml-use-compressed-files
14658 @vindex nnml-use-compressed-files
14659 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will allow using compressed message
14664 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
14665 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
14666 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
14667 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
14668 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
14669 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
14670 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
14675 @subsubsection MH Spool
14677 @cindex mh-e mail spool
14679 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
14680 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file or marks file.
14681 This makes @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower back end than @code{nnml},
14682 but it also makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
14684 Virtual server settings:
14687 @item nnmh-directory
14688 @vindex nnmh-directory
14689 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory. The
14690 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
14693 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
14694 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
14695 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail. The default is
14699 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
14700 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
14701 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
14702 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
14703 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
14704 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
14705 to set this variable to @code{t}. The default is @code{nil}.
14710 @subsubsection Maildir
14714 @code{nnmaildir} stores mail in the maildir format, with each maildir
14715 corresponding to a group in Gnus. This format is documented here:
14716 @uref{http://cr.yp.to/proto/maildir.html} and here:
14717 @uref{http://www.qmail.org/man/man5/maildir.html}. nnmaildir also
14718 stores extra information in the @file{.nnmaildir/} directory within a
14721 Maildir format was designed to allow concurrent deliveries and
14722 reading, without needing locks. With other backends, you would have
14723 your mail delivered to a spool of some kind, and then you would
14724 configure Gnus to split mail from that spool into your groups. You
14725 can still do that with nnmaildir, but the more common configuration is
14726 to have your mail delivered directly to the maildirs that appear as
14729 nnmaildir is designed to be perfectly reliable: @kbd{C-g} will never
14730 corrupt its data in memory, and @code{SIGKILL} will never corrupt its
14731 data in the filesystem.
14733 nnmaildir stores article marks and NOV data in each maildir. So you
14734 can copy a whole maildir from one Gnus setup to another, and you will
14737 Virtual server settings:
14741 For each of your nnmaildir servers (it's very unlikely that you'd need
14742 more than one), you need to create a directory and populate it with
14743 maildirs or symlinks to maildirs (and nothing else; do not choose a
14744 directory already used for other purposes). Each maildir will be
14745 represented in Gnus as a newsgroup on that server; the filename of the
14746 symlink will be the name of the group. Any filenames in the directory
14747 starting with `.' are ignored. The directory is scanned when you
14748 first start Gnus, and each time you type @kbd{g} in the group buffer;
14749 if any maildirs have been removed or added, nnmaildir notices at these
14752 The value of the @code{directory} parameter should be a Lisp form
14753 which is processed by @code{eval} and @code{expand-file-name} to get
14754 the path of the directory for this server. The form is @code{eval}ed
14755 only when the server is opened; the resulting string is used until the
14756 server is closed. (If you don't know about forms and @code{eval},
14757 don't worry - a simple string will work.) This parameter is not
14758 optional; you must specify it. I don't recommend using
14759 @code{"~/Mail"} or a subdirectory of it; several other parts of Gnus
14760 use that directory by default for various things, and may get confused
14761 if nnmaildir uses it too. @code{"~/.nnmaildir"} is a typical value.
14763 @item target-prefix
14764 This should be a Lisp form which is processed by @code{eval} and
14765 @code{expand-file-name}. The form is @code{eval}ed only when the
14766 server is opened; the resulting string is used until the server is
14769 When you create a group on an nnmaildir server, the maildir is created
14770 with @code{target-prefix} prepended to its name, and a symlink
14771 pointing to that maildir is created, named with the plain group name.
14772 So if @code{directory} is @code{"~/.nnmaildir"} and
14773 @code{target-prefix} is @code{"../maildirs/"}, then when you create
14774 the group @code{foo}, nnmaildir will create
14775 @file{~/.nnmaildir/../maildirs/foo} as a maildir, and will create
14776 @file{~/.nnmaildir/foo} as a symlink pointing to
14777 @file{../maildirs/foo}.
14779 You can set @code{target-prefix} to a string without any slashes to
14780 create both maildirs and symlinks in the same @code{directory}; in
14781 this case, any maildirs found in @code{directory} whose names start
14782 with @code{target-prefix} will not be listed as groups (but the
14783 symlinks pointing to them will be).
14785 As a special case, if @code{target-prefix} is @code{""} (the default),
14786 then when you create a group, the maildir will be created in
14787 @code{directory} without a corresponding symlink. Beware that you
14788 cannot use @code{gnus-group-delete-group} on such groups without the
14789 @code{force} argument.
14791 @item directory-files
14792 This should be a function with the same interface as
14793 @code{directory-files} (such as @code{directory-files} itself). It is
14794 used to scan the server's @code{directory} for maildirs. This
14795 parameter is optional; the default is
14796 @code{nnheader-directory-files-safe} if
14797 @code{nnheader-directory-files-is-safe} is @code{nil}, and
14798 @code{directory-files} otherwise.
14799 (@code{nnheader-directory-files-is-safe} is checked only once when the
14800 server is opened; if you want to check it each time the directory is
14801 scanned, you'll have to provide your own function that does that.)
14804 If non-@code{nil}, then after scanning for new mail in the group
14805 maildirs themselves as usual, this server will also incorporate mail
14806 the conventional Gnus way, from @code{mail-sources} according to
14807 @code{nnmail-split-methods} or @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. The default
14808 value is @code{nil}.
14810 Do @emph{not} use the same maildir both in @code{mail-sources} and as
14811 an nnmaildir group. The results might happen to be useful, but that
14812 would be by chance, not by design, and the results might be different
14813 in the future. If your split rules create new groups, remember to
14814 supply a @code{create-directory} server parameter.
14817 @subsubsection Group parameters
14819 nnmaildir uses several group parameters. It's safe to ignore all
14820 this; the default behavior for nnmaildir is the same as the default
14821 behavior for other mail backends: articles are deleted after one week,
14822 etc. Except for the expiry parameters, all this functionality is
14823 unique to nnmaildir, so you can ignore it if you're just trying to
14824 duplicate the behavior you already have with another backend.
14826 If the value of any of these parameters is a vector, the first element
14827 is evaluated as a Lisp form and the result is used, rather than the
14828 original value. If the value is not a vector, the value itself is
14829 evaluated as a Lisp form. (This is why these parameters use names
14830 different from those of other, similar parameters supported by other
14831 backends: they have different, though similar, meanings.) (For
14832 numbers, strings, @code{nil}, and @code{t}, you can ignore the
14833 @code{eval} business again; for other values, remember to use an extra
14834 quote and wrap the value in a vector when appropriate.)
14838 An integer specifying the minimum age, in seconds, of an article before
14839 it will be expired, or the symbol @code{never} to specify that
14840 articles should never be expired. If this parameter is not set,
14841 nnmaildir falls back to the usual
14842 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait}(@code{-function}) variables (overridable by
14843 the @code{expiry-wait}(@code{-function}) group parameters. If you
14844 wanted a value of 3 days, you could use something like @code{[(* 3 24
14845 60 60)]}; nnmaildir will evaluate the form and use the result. An
14846 article's age is measured starting from the article file's
14847 modification time. Normally, this is the same as the article's
14848 delivery time, but editing an article makes it younger. Moving an
14849 article (other than via expiry) may also make an article younger.
14852 If this is set to a string (a full Gnus group name, like
14853 @code{"backend+server.address.string:group.name"}), and if it is not
14854 the name of the same group that the parameter belongs to, then
14855 articles will be moved to the specified group during expiry before
14856 being deleted. @emph{If this is set to an nnmaildir group, the
14857 article will be just as old in the destination group as it was in the
14858 source group.} So be careful with @code{expire-age} in the
14859 destination group. If this is set to the name of the same group that
14860 the parameter belongs to, then the article is not expired at all. If
14861 you use the vector form, the first element is evaluated once for each
14862 article. So that form can refer to
14863 @code{nnmaildir-article-file-name}, etc., to decide where to put the
14864 article. @emph{If this parameter is not set, nnmaildir does not fall
14865 back to the @code{expiry-target} group parameter or the
14866 @code{nnmail-expiry-target} variable.}
14869 If this is set to @code{t}, nnmaildir will treat the articles in this
14870 maildir as read-only. This means: articles are not renamed from
14871 @file{new/} into @file{cur/}; articles are only found in @file{new/},
14872 not @file{cur/}; articles are never deleted; articles cannot be
14873 edited. @file{new/} is expected to be a symlink to the @file{new/}
14874 directory of another maildir - e.g., a system-wide mailbox containing
14875 a mailing list of common interest. Everything in the maildir outside
14876 @file{new/} is @emph{not} treated as read-only, so for a shared
14877 mailbox, you do still need to set up your own maildir (or have write
14878 permission to the shared mailbox); your maildir just won't contain
14879 extra copies of the articles.
14881 @item directory-files
14882 A function with the same interface as @code{directory-files}. It is
14883 used to scan the directories in the maildir corresponding to this
14884 group to find articles. The default is the function specified by the
14885 server's @code{directory-files} parameter.
14887 @item distrust-Lines:
14888 If non-@code{nil}, nnmaildir will always count the lines of an
14889 article, rather than use the @code{Lines:} header field. If
14890 @code{nil}, the header field will be used if present.
14893 A list of mark symbols, such as
14894 @code{['(read expire)]}. Whenever Gnus asks nnmaildir for
14895 article marks, nnmaildir will say that all articles have these
14896 marks, regardless of whether the marks stored in the filesystem
14897 say so. This is a proof-of-concept feature that will probably be
14898 removed eventually; it ought to be done in Gnus proper, or
14899 abandoned if it's not worthwhile.
14902 A list of mark symbols, such as @code{['(tick expire)]}. Whenever
14903 Gnus asks nnmaildir for article marks, nnmaildir will say that no
14904 articles have these marks, regardless of whether the marks stored in
14905 the filesystem say so. @code{never-marks} overrides
14906 @code{always-marks}. This is a proof-of-concept feature that will
14907 probably be removed eventually; it ought to be done in Gnus proper, or
14908 abandoned if it's not worthwhile.
14910 @item nov-cache-size
14911 An integer specifying the size of the NOV memory cache. To speed
14912 things up, nnmaildir keeps NOV data in memory for a limited number of
14913 articles in each group. (This is probably not worthwhile, and will
14914 probably be removed in the future.) This parameter's value is noticed
14915 only the first time a group is seen after the server is opened - i.e.,
14916 when you first start Gnus, typically. The NOV cache is never resized
14917 until the server is closed and reopened. The default is an estimate
14918 of the number of articles that would be displayed in the summary
14919 buffer: a count of articles that are either marked with @code{tick} or
14920 not marked with @code{read}, plus a little extra.
14923 @subsubsection Article identification
14924 Articles are stored in the @file{cur/} subdirectory of each maildir.
14925 Each article file is named like @code{uniq:info}, where @code{uniq}
14926 contains no colons. nnmaildir ignores, but preserves, the
14927 @code{:info} part. (Other maildir readers typically use this part of
14928 the filename to store marks.) The @code{uniq} part uniquely
14929 identifies the article, and is used in various places in the
14930 @file{.nnmaildir/} subdirectory of the maildir to store information
14931 about the corresponding article. The full pathname of an article is
14932 available in the variable @code{nnmaildir-article-file-name} after you
14933 request the article in the summary buffer.
14935 @subsubsection NOV data
14936 An article identified by @code{uniq} has its NOV data (used to
14937 generate lines in the summary buffer) stored in
14938 @code{.nnmaildir/nov/uniq}. There is no
14939 @code{nnmaildir-generate-nov-databases} function. (There isn't much
14940 need for it - an article's NOV data is updated automatically when the
14941 article or @code{nnmail-extra-headers} has changed.) You can force
14942 nnmaildir to regenerate the NOV data for a single article simply by
14943 deleting the corresponding NOV file, but @emph{beware}: this will also
14944 cause nnmaildir to assign a new article number for this article, which
14945 may cause trouble with @code{seen} marks, the Agent, and the cache.
14947 @subsubsection Article marks
14948 An article identified by @code{uniq} is considered to have the mark
14949 @code{flag} when the file @file{.nnmaildir/marks/flag/uniq} exists.
14950 When Gnus asks nnmaildir for a group's marks, nnmaildir looks for such
14951 files and reports the set of marks it finds. When Gnus asks nnmaildir
14952 to store a new set of marks, nnmaildir creates and deletes the
14953 corresponding files as needed. (Actually, rather than create a new
14954 file for each mark, it just creates hard links to
14955 @file{.nnmaildir/markfile}, to save inodes.)
14957 You can invent new marks by creating a new directory in
14958 @file{.nnmaildir/marks/}. You can tar up a maildir and remove it from
14959 your server, untar it later, and keep your marks. You can add and
14960 remove marks yourself by creating and deleting mark files. If you do
14961 this while Gnus is running and your nnmaildir server is open, it's
14962 best to exit all summary buffers for nnmaildir groups and type @kbd{s}
14963 in the group buffer first, and to type @kbd{g} or @kbd{M-g} in the
14964 group buffer afterwards. Otherwise, Gnus might not pick up the
14965 changes, and might undo them.
14969 @subsubsection Mail Folders
14971 @cindex mbox folders
14972 @cindex mail folders
14974 @code{nnfolder} is a back end for storing each mail group in a separate
14975 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
14976 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
14979 @cindex self contained nnfolder servers
14981 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnfolder}
14982 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
14983 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
14984 proper @code{nnfolder} server) and have all your marks be preserved.
14985 Marks for a group is usually stored in a file named as the mbox file
14986 with @code{.mrk} concatenated to it (but see
14987 @code{nnfolder-marks-file-suffix}) within the @code{nnfolder} directory.
14988 Individual @code{nnfolder} groups are also possible to backup, use
14989 @kbd{G m} to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the
14990 @code{nnfolder} directory).
14992 Virtual server settings:
14995 @item nnfolder-directory
14996 @vindex nnfolder-directory
14997 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
14998 The default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
15001 @item nnfolder-active-file
15002 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
15003 The name of the active file. The default is @file{~/Mail/active}.
15005 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
15006 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
15007 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
15008 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups}
15010 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
15011 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
15012 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail. The default
15015 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
15016 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
15017 @cindex backup files
15018 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
15019 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
15020 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
15021 your @file{.emacs} file:
15024 (defun turn-off-backup ()
15025 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
15027 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
15030 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
15031 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
15032 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
15033 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
15034 extract some information from it before removing it.
15036 @item nnfolder-nov-is-evil
15037 @vindex nnfolder-nov-is-evil
15038 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
15039 default is @code{nil}.
15041 @item nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
15042 @vindex nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
15043 The extension for @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.nov}.
15045 @item nnfolder-nov-directory
15046 @vindex nnfolder-nov-directory
15047 The directory where the @sc{nov} files should be stored. If nil,
15048 @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
15050 @item nnfolder-marks-is-evil
15051 @vindex nnfolder-marks-is-evil
15052 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
15053 default is @code{nil}.
15055 @item nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
15056 @vindex nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
15057 The extension for @sc{marks} files. The default is @file{.mrk}.
15059 @item nnfolder-marks-directory
15060 @vindex nnfolder-marks-directory
15061 The directory where the @sc{marks} files should be stored. If nil,
15062 @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
15067 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
15068 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
15069 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
15070 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
15071 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
15072 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
15075 @node Comparing Mail Back Ends
15076 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Back Ends
15078 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{back end} is the common word for a
15079 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
15080 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
15081 and so selection of a suitable back end is required in order to get that
15082 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
15084 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
15085 typically done by @sc{nntp} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
15086 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
15087 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @sc{nntp} server), and
15088 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
15089 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
15090 @code{nnspool} back ends, to select between these methods, if one happens
15091 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
15094 The goal in selecting a mail back end is to pick one which
15095 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
15096 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
15097 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
15102 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
15103 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
15104 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
15105 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
15106 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
15107 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
15108 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
15109 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
15110 this back end, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
15111 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
15112 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
15113 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
15114 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
15119 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
15120 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
15121 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
15122 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
15123 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
15124 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
15125 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
15126 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
15127 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
15128 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
15129 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
15130 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
15131 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
15132 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
15134 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
15135 file system, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
15140 @code{nnml} is the back end which smells the most as though you were
15141 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
15142 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
15143 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
15144 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
15145 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
15146 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
15147 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
15148 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
15149 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
15150 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
15151 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
15152 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
15153 provided by the active file and overviews.
15155 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
15156 resource which defines available places in the file system to put new
15157 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
15158 tight, shared file systems. But if you live on a personal machine where
15159 the file system is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
15162 It is also problematic using this back end if you are living in a
15163 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
15168 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
15169 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
15170 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
15171 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
15172 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
15173 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
15174 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
15178 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
15179 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
15180 itself puts @emph{all} one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
15181 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
15182 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
15183 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
15184 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
15185 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
15186 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
15188 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
15189 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
15190 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
15191 friendly mail back end all over.
15195 For configuring expiry and other things, @code{nnmaildir} uses
15196 incompatible group parameters, slightly different from those of other
15199 @code{nnmaildir} is largely similar to @code{nnml}, with some notable
15200 differences. Each message is stored in a separate file, but the
15201 filename is unrelated to the article number in Gnus. @code{nnmaildir}
15202 also stores the equivalent of @code{nnml}'s overview files in one file
15203 per article, so it uses about twice as many inodes as @code{nnml}. (Use
15204 @code{df -i} to see how plentiful your inode supply is.) If this slows
15205 you down or takes up very much space, consider switching to ReiserFS
15206 (@uref{http://www.namesys.com/}) or another non-block-structured
15209 Since maildirs don't require locking for delivery, the maildirs you use
15210 as groups can also be the maildirs your mail is directly delivered to.
15211 This means you can skip Gnus's mail splitting if your mail is already
15212 organized into different mailboxes during delivery. A @code{directory}
15213 entry in @code{mail-sources} would have a similar effect, but would
15214 require one set of mailboxes for spooling deliveries (in mbox format,
15215 thus damaging message bodies), and another set to be used as groups (in
15216 whatever format you like). A maildir has a built-in spool, in the
15217 @code{new/} subdirectory. Beware that currently, mail moved from
15218 @code{new/} to @code{cur/} instead of via mail splitting will not
15219 undergo treatment such as duplicate checking.
15221 @code{nnmaildir} stores article marks for a given group in the
15222 corresponding maildir, in a way designed so that it's easy to manipulate
15223 them from outside Gnus. You can tar up a maildir, unpack it somewhere
15224 else, and still have your marks. @code{nnml} also stores marks, but
15225 it's not as easy to work with them from outside Gnus as with
15228 @code{nnmaildir} uses a significant amount of memory to speed things up.
15229 (It keeps in memory some of the things that @code{nnml} stores in files
15230 and that @code{nnmh} repeatedly parses out of message files.) If this
15231 is a problem for you, you can set the @code{nov-cache-size} group
15232 parameter to something small (0 would probably not work, but 1 probably
15233 would) to make it use less memory. This caching will probably be
15234 removed in the future.
15236 Startup is likely to be slower with @code{nnmaildir} than with other
15237 back ends. Everything else is likely to be faster, depending in part
15238 on your file system.
15240 @code{nnmaildir} does not use @code{nnoo}, so you cannot use @code{nnoo}
15241 to write an @code{nnmaildir}-derived back end.
15246 @node Browsing the Web
15247 @section Browsing the Web
15249 @cindex browsing the web
15253 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
15254 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
15255 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
15256 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
15257 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
15258 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
15259 even know what a news group is.
15261 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
15262 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
15263 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
15264 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
15265 you mad in the end.
15267 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
15270 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of back ends for providing
15271 interfaces to these sources.
15275 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
15276 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
15277 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
15278 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
15279 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
15280 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
15283 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
15285 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
15286 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @sc{html} data
15287 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus back end
15288 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these back ends,
15289 though, you should be ok.
15291 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
15292 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
15293 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
15294 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
15295 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
15297 @node Archiving Mail
15298 @subsection Archiving Mail
15299 @cindex archiving mail
15300 @cindex backup of mail
15302 Some of the back ends, notably @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, and
15303 @code{nnmaildir}, now actually store the article marks with each group.
15304 For these servers, archiving and restoring a group while preserving
15305 marks is fairly simple.
15307 (Preserving the group level and group parameters as well still
15308 requires ritual dancing and sacrifices to the @file{.newsrc.eld} deity
15311 To archive an entire @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, or @code{nnmaildir}
15312 server, take a recursive copy of the server directory. There is no need
15313 to shut down Gnus, so archiving may be invoked by @code{cron} or
15314 similar. You restore the data by restoring the directory tree, and
15315 adding a server definition pointing to that directory in Gnus. The
15316 @ref{Article Backlog}, @ref{Asynchronous Fetching} and other things
15317 might interfere with overwriting data, so you may want to shut down Gnus
15318 before you restore the data.
15320 It is also possible to archive individual @code{nnml},
15321 @code{nnfolder}, or @code{nnmaildir} groups, while preserving marks.
15322 For @code{nnml} or @code{nnmaildir}, you copy all files in the group's
15323 directory. For @code{nnfolder} you need to copy both the base folder
15324 file itself (@file{FOO}, say), and the marks file (@file{FOO.mrk} in
15325 this example). Restoring the group is done with @kbd{G m} from the Group
15326 buffer. The last step makes Gnus notice the new directory.
15327 @code{nnmaildir} notices the new directory automatically, so @kbd{G m}
15328 is unnecessary in that case.
15331 @subsection Web Searches
15336 @cindex Usenet searches
15337 @cindex searching the Usenet
15339 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
15340 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
15341 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
15342 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
15343 searches without having to use a browser.
15345 The @code{nnweb} back end allows an easy interface to the mighty search
15346 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
15347 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
15348 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
15349 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
15351 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
15352 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
15353 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
15354 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
15355 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
15356 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
15357 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
15358 engines (Google, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
15359 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
15360 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
15363 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
15364 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
15365 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
15366 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
15367 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
15368 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
15370 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
15371 to use @code{nnweb}.
15373 Virtual server variables:
15378 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
15379 are @code{google}, @code{dejanews}, and @code{gmane}. Note that
15380 @code{dejanews} is an alias to @code{google}.
15383 @vindex nnweb-search
15384 The search string to feed to the search engine.
15386 @item nnweb-max-hits
15387 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
15388 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
15391 @item nnweb-type-definition
15392 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
15393 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
15394 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
15399 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
15403 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
15406 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
15409 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
15413 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
15420 @subsection Slashdot
15424 Slashdot (@uref{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
15425 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
15426 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
15428 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
15429 following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
15432 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
15433 '((nnslashdot "")))
15436 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} back end for new comments
15437 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
15438 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
15439 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
15440 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
15443 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
15444 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
15446 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
15447 comments), some light @sc{html}izations will be performed. In
15448 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
15449 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
15450 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @sc{html}
15451 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
15454 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
15457 @item nnslashdot-threaded
15458 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
15459 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
15460 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
15461 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
15462 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
15463 but much, much slower than unthreaded.
15465 @item nnslashdot-login-name
15466 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
15467 The login name to use when posting.
15469 @item nnslashdot-password
15470 @vindex nnslashdot-password
15471 The password to use when posting.
15473 @item nnslashdot-directory
15474 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
15475 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default is
15476 @file{~/News/slashdot/}.
15478 @item nnslashdot-active-url
15479 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
15480 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
15481 news articles and comments. The default is
15482 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
15484 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
15485 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
15486 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
15488 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
15490 @item nnslashdot-article-url
15491 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
15492 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
15494 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
15496 @item nnslashdot-threshold
15497 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
15498 The score threshold. The default is -1.
15500 @item nnslashdot-group-number
15501 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
15502 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
15503 updated. The default is 0.
15510 @subsection Ultimate
15512 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
15514 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@uref{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
15515 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
15516 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
15517 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
15519 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
15520 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
15521 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
15522 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
15523 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
15524 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
15525 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
15527 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
15530 @item nnultimate-directory
15531 @vindex nnultimate-directory
15532 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
15533 @file{~/News/ultimate/}.
15538 @subsection Web Archive
15540 @cindex Web Archive
15542 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
15543 @uref{http://www.egroups.com/} and
15544 @uref{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
15545 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
15548 @findex gnus-group-make-warchive-group
15549 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
15550 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
15551 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET an_egroup RET egroups RET
15552 www.egroups.com RET your@@email.address RET}. (Substitute the
15553 @sc{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
15554 @sc{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
15555 back end by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
15557 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
15560 @item nnwarchive-directory
15561 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
15562 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
15563 @file{~/News/warchive/}.
15565 @item nnwarchive-login
15566 @vindex nnwarchive-login
15567 The account name on the web server.
15569 @item nnwarchive-passwd
15570 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
15571 The password for your account on the web server.
15579 Some sites have RDF site summary (RSS)
15580 @uref{http://purl.org/rss/1.0/spec}. It has a quite regular and nice
15581 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
15584 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something
15585 like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET RET}, then
15588 The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:
15591 @item nnrss-directory
15592 @vindex nnrss-directory
15593 The directory where @code{nnrss} stores its files. The default is
15594 @file{~/News/rss/}.
15598 The following code may be helpful, if you want to show the description in
15599 the summary buffer.
15602 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-description-field)
15603 (setq gnus-summary-line-format "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-15,15f%]%) %s%uX\n")
15605 (defun gnus-user-format-function-X (header)
15607 (assq nnrss-description-field (mail-header-extra header))))
15608 (if descr (concat "\n\t" (cdr descr)) "")))
15611 The following code may be useful to open an nnrss url directly from the
15614 (require 'browse-url)
15616 (defun browse-nnrss-url( arg )
15618 (let ((url (assq nnrss-url-field
15621 (assq (gnus-summary-article-number)
15622 gnus-newsgroup-data))))))
15625 (browse-url (cdr url))
15626 (gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward 1))
15627 (gnus-summary-scroll-up arg))))
15629 (eval-after-load "gnus"
15630 #'(define-key gnus-summary-mode-map
15631 (kbd "<RET>") 'browse-nnrss-url))
15632 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-url-field)
15635 @node Customizing w3
15636 @subsection Customizing w3
15642 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
15643 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
15644 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
15646 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
15647 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
15648 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
15651 (eval-after-load "w3"
15653 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
15654 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
15655 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
15656 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
15658 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
15661 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
15662 @sc{html} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
15671 @sc{imap} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or @dots{}),
15672 think of it as a modernized @sc{nntp}. Connecting to a @sc{imap}
15673 server is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just
15674 specify the network address of the server.
15676 @sc{imap} has two properties. First, @sc{imap} can do everything that
15677 POP can, it can hence be viewed as a POP++. Secondly, @sc{imap} is a
15678 mail storage protocol, similar to @sc{nntp} being a news storage
15679 protocol -- however, @sc{imap} offers more features than @sc{nntp}
15680 because news is more or less read-only whereas mail is read-write.
15682 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a POP++, use an imap entry in
15683 @code{mail-sources}. With this, Gnus will fetch mails from the
15684 @sc{imap} server and store them on the local disk. This is not the
15685 usage described in this section--@xref{Mail Sources}.
15687 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a mail storage protocol, use an nnimap
15688 entry in @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods}. With this, Gnus will
15689 manipulate mails stored on the @sc{imap} server. This is the kind of
15690 usage explained in this section.
15692 A server configuration in @file{~/.gnus.el} with a few @sc{imap} servers
15693 might look something like the following. (Note that for TLS/SSL, you
15694 need external programs and libraries, see below.)
15697 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
15698 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; no special configuration
15699 ; perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:
15701 (nnimap-address "localhost")
15702 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
15703 ; a UW server running on localhost
15705 (nnimap-server-port 143)
15706 (nnimap-address "localhost")
15707 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
15708 ; anonymous public cyrus server:
15709 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
15710 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
15711 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
15712 (nnimap-stream network))
15713 ; a ssl server on a non-standard port:
15715 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
15716 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
15717 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
15720 After defining the new server, you can subscribe to groups on the
15721 server using normal Gnus commands such as @kbd{U} in the Group Buffer
15722 (@pxref{Subscription Commands}) or via the Server Buffer
15723 (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
15725 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
15730 @item nnimap-address
15731 @vindex nnimap-address
15733 The address of the remote @sc{imap} server. Defaults to the virtual
15734 server name if not specified.
15736 @item nnimap-server-port
15737 @vindex nnimap-server-port
15738 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for TLS/SSL.
15740 Note that this should be an integer, example server specification:
15743 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15744 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
15747 @item nnimap-list-pattern
15748 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
15749 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
15750 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
15751 interested in a few -- some servers export your home directory via
15752 @sc{imap}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
15753 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
15755 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
15756 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
15757 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
15760 Example server specification:
15763 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15764 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
15765 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
15768 @item nnimap-stream
15769 @vindex nnimap-stream
15770 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
15771 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
15772 of TLS/SSL. (@sc{imap} over TLS/SSL is being replaced by STARTTLS, which
15773 can be automatically detected, but it's not widely deployed yet.)
15775 Example server specification:
15778 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15779 (nnimap-stream ssl))
15782 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
15786 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually Kerberos 5). Requires the
15787 @samp{gsasl} or @samp{imtest} program.
15789 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with Kerberos 4. Requires the @samp{imtest} program.
15791 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
15792 TLS/SSL). Requires the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
15795 @dfn{tls:} Connect through TLS. Requires GNUTLS (the program
15796 @samp{gnutls-cli}).
15798 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL. Requires OpenSSL (the program
15799 @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}).
15801 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start @sc{imap} connection.
15803 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
15806 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
15807 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD. If you're
15808 using @samp{imtest} from Cyrus IMAPD < 2.0.14 (which includes version
15809 1.5.x and 1.6.x) you need to frob @code{imap-process-connection-type}
15810 to make @code{imap.el} use a pty instead of a pipe when communicating
15811 with @samp{imtest}. You will then suffer from a line length
15812 restrictions on @sc{imap} commands, which might make Gnus seem to hang
15813 indefinitely if you have many articles in a mailbox. The variable
15814 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
15817 For TLS connection, the @code{gnutls-cli} program from GNUTLS is
15818 needed. It is available from
15819 @uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/gnutls/}.
15821 @vindex imap-gssapi-program
15822 This parameter specifies a list of command lines that invoke a GSSAPI
15823 authenticated IMAP stream in a subshell. They are tried sequentially
15824 until a connection is made, or the list has been exhausted. By
15825 default, @samp{gsasl} from GNU SASL, available from
15826 @uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/gsasl/}, and the @samp{imtest}
15827 program from Cyrus IMAPD (see @code{imap-kerberos4-program}), are
15830 @vindex imap-ssl-program
15831 For SSL connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
15832 @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
15833 and nnimap support it too - although the most recent versions of
15834 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
15835 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
15836 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
15839 @vindex imap-shell-program
15840 @vindex imap-shell-host
15841 For @sc{imap} connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
15842 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
15844 @item nnimap-authenticator
15845 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
15847 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
15848 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
15850 Example server specification:
15853 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15854 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
15857 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
15861 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Requires
15862 external program @code{gsasl} or @code{imtest}.
15864 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos 4 authentication. Requires external program
15867 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Requires
15868 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
15870 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
15872 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
15874 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your email address as password.
15877 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
15879 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
15880 Unlike Parmenides the @sc{imap} designers has decided that things that
15881 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @sc{imap} has
15882 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
15883 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
15884 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{B DEL} or
15887 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
15888 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
15889 running in circles yet?
15891 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
15892 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
15895 The possible options are:
15900 The default behavior, delete all articles marked as ``Deleted'' when
15903 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
15904 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @sc{imap} clients
15905 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
15906 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
15908 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
15913 @item nnimap-importantize-dormant
15914 @vindex nnimap-importantize-dormant
15916 If non-nil (the default), marks dormant articles as ticked (as well),
15917 for other @sc{imap} clients. Within Gnus, dormant articles will
15918 naturally still (only) be marked as dormant. This is to make dormant
15919 articles stand out, just like ticked articles, in other @sc{imap}
15920 clients. (In other words, Gnus has two ``Tick'' marks and @sc{imap}
15923 Probably the only reason for frobing this would be if you're trying
15924 enable per-user persistant dormant flags, using something like:
15927 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-flag-alist)
15928 (format "gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
15929 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-predicate-alist)
15930 (format "KEYWORD gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
15933 In this case, you would not want the per-user dormant flag showing up
15934 as ticked for other users.
15936 @item nnimap-expunge-search-string
15938 @vindex nnimap-expunge-search-string
15940 This variable contain the @sc{imap} search command sent to server when
15941 searching for articles eligible for expiring. The default is
15942 @code{"UID %s NOT SINCE %s"}, where the first @code{%s} is replaced by
15943 UID set and the second @code{%s} is replaced by a date.
15945 Probably the only useful value to change this to is
15946 @code{"UID %s NOT SENTSINCE %s"}, which makes nnimap use the Date: in
15947 messages instead of the internal article date. See section 6.4.4 of
15948 RFC 2060 for more information on valid strings.
15950 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
15951 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
15953 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
15954 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
15955 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
15961 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
15962 * Expiring in IMAP:: Expiring mail with nnimap.
15963 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
15964 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a ``compress mailbox'' button.
15965 * A note on namespaces:: How to (not) use IMAP namespace in Gnus.
15970 @node Splitting in IMAP
15971 @subsection Splitting in IMAP
15972 @cindex splitting imap mail
15974 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
15975 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
15976 @sc{imap} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
15977 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @sc{imap}
15978 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
15982 Here are the variables of interest:
15986 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
15987 @cindex splitting, crosspost
15989 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
15991 If non-nil, do crossposting if several split methods match the mail. If
15992 nil, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule} found will be used.
15994 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
15996 @item nnimap-split-inbox
15997 @cindex splitting, inbox
15999 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
16001 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @sc{imap}
16002 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to nil, which means that splitting is
16006 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
16007 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
16010 No nnmail equivalent.
16012 @item nnimap-split-rule
16013 @cindex Splitting, rules
16014 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
16016 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
16019 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
16020 sublist gives the name of the @sc{imap} mailbox to move articles
16021 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
16022 Neither did I, we need examples.
16025 (setq nnimap-split-rule
16027 "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
16028 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
16029 ("INBOX.private" "")))
16032 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
16033 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
16034 into INBOX.junk and everything else in INBOX.private.
16036 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
16037 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
16041 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
16044 The first element can also be the symbol @code{junk} to indicate that
16045 matching messages should simply be deleted. Use with care.
16047 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
16048 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
16049 containing the headers of the article. It should return a non-nil value
16050 if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
16052 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
16053 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
16054 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
16055 of your inbox. (This might affect performance if you keep lots of
16056 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
16057 them every time you fetch new mail.)
16059 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
16060 end. The first rule to make a match will ``win'', unless you have
16061 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will ``win''.
16063 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
16064 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
16065 thinks the article should be split to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
16067 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it needs to.
16069 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
16070 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
16071 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
16074 (setq nnimap-split-rule
16075 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
16076 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
16077 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
16078 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
16079 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
16082 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
16083 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
16084 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
16085 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
16086 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
16087 group/function elements.
16089 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
16091 @item nnimap-split-predicate
16093 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
16095 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
16096 split, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
16098 This might be useful if you use another @sc{imap} client to read mail in
16099 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
16100 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
16103 @item nnimap-split-fancy
16104 @cindex splitting, fancy
16105 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
16106 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
16108 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
16109 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
16110 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
16112 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
16113 nnimap back ends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
16114 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
16115 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
16120 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
16121 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
16124 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
16126 @item nnimap-split-download-body
16127 @findex nnimap-split-download-body
16128 @vindex nnimap-split-download-body
16130 Set to non-nil to download entire articles during splitting. This is
16131 generally not required, and will slow things down considerably. You
16132 may need it if you want to use an advanced splitting function that
16133 analyses the body to split the article.
16137 @node Expiring in IMAP
16138 @subsection Expiring in IMAP
16139 @cindex expiring imap mail
16141 Even though @code{nnimap} is not a proper @code{nnmail} derived back
16142 end, it supports most features in regular expiring (@pxref{Expiring
16143 Mail}). Unlike splitting in IMAP (@pxref{Splitting in IMAP}) it do
16144 not clone the @code{nnmail} variables (i.e., creating
16145 @var{nnimap-expiry-wait}) but reuse the @code{nnmail} variables. What
16146 follows below are the variables used by the @code{nnimap} expiry
16149 A note on how the expire mark is stored on the @sc{imap} server is
16150 appropriate here as well. The expire mark is translated into a
16151 @code{imap} client specific mark, @code{gnus-expire}, and stored on the
16152 message. This means that likely only Gnus will understand and treat
16153 the @code{gnus-expire} mark properly, although other clients may allow
16154 you to view client specific flags on the message. It also means that
16155 your server must support permanent storage of client specific flags on
16156 messages. Most do, fortunately.
16160 @item nnmail-expiry-wait
16161 @item nnmail-expiry-wait-function
16163 These variables are fully supported. The expire value can be a
16164 number, the symbol @code{immediate} or @code{never}.
16166 @item nnmail-expiry-target
16168 This variable is supported, and internally implemented by calling the
16169 @code{nnmail} functions that handle this. It contains an optimization
16170 that if the destination is a IMAP group on the same server, the
16171 article is copied instead of appended (that is, uploaded again).
16175 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
16176 @subsection Editing IMAP ACLs
16177 @cindex editing imap acls
16178 @cindex Access Control Lists
16179 @cindex Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
16181 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
16183 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @sc{imap} for
16184 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
16185 @sc{imap} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
16188 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
16189 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
16190 editing window with detailed instructions.
16192 Some possible uses:
16196 Giving ``anyone'' the ``lrs'' rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
16197 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
16198 follow the list without subscribing to it.
16200 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
16201 ``anyone'' posting ("p") capabilities to have ``plussing'' work (that is,
16202 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @sc{imap} mailbox
16206 @node Expunging mailboxes
16207 @subsection Expunging mailboxes
16211 @cindex Manual expunging
16213 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
16215 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-on-close},
16216 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
16217 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
16219 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
16222 @node A note on namespaces
16223 @subsection A note on namespaces
16224 @cindex IMAP namespace
16227 The IMAP protocol has a concept called namespaces, described by the
16228 following text in the RFC:
16231 5.1.2. Mailbox Namespace Naming Convention
16233 By convention, the first hierarchical element of any mailbox name
16234 which begins with "#" identifies the "namespace" of the remainder of
16235 the name. This makes it possible to disambiguate between different
16236 types of mailbox stores, each of which have their own namespaces.
16238 For example, implementations which offer access to USENET
16239 newsgroups MAY use the "#news" namespace to partition the USENET
16240 newsgroup namespace from that of other mailboxes. Thus, the
16241 comp.mail.misc newsgroup would have an mailbox name of
16242 "#news.comp.mail.misc", and the name "comp.mail.misc" could refer
16243 to a different object (e.g. a user's private mailbox).
16246 While there is nothing in this text that warrants concern for the IMAP
16247 implementation in Gnus, some servers use namespace prefixes in a way
16248 that does not work with how Gnus uses mailbox names.
16250 Specifically, University of Washington's IMAP server uses mailbox
16251 names like @code{#driver.mbx/read-mail} which are valid only in the
16252 @sc{create} and @sc{append} commands. After the mailbox is created
16253 (or a messages is appended to a mailbox), it must be accessed without
16254 the namespace prefix, i.e. @code{read-mail}. Since Gnus do not make it
16255 possible for the user to guarantee that user entered mailbox names
16256 will only be used with the CREATE and APPEND commands, you should
16257 simply not use the namespace prefixed mailbox names in Gnus.
16259 See the UoW @sc{imapd} documentation for the @code{#driver.*/} prefix
16260 for more information on how to use the prefixes. They are a power
16261 tool and should be used only if you are sure what the effects are.
16263 @node Other Sources
16264 @section Other Sources
16266 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
16267 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
16271 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
16272 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
16273 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
16274 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
16275 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
16279 @node Directory Groups
16280 @subsection Directory Groups
16282 @cindex directory groups
16284 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
16285 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
16288 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
16289 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
16290 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
16291 back end to read directories. Big deal.
16293 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
16294 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
16295 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
16296 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
16297 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
16299 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
16301 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' back end---you can't delete or expire
16302 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
16303 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
16304 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
16307 @node Anything Groups
16308 @subsection Anything Groups
16311 From the @code{nndir} back end (which reads a single spool-like
16312 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
16313 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
16316 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
16317 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
16318 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
16319 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
16320 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
16321 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
16322 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
16323 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
16324 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
16325 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
16328 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
16329 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
16330 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
16331 in the article buffer, just as usual.
16333 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
16334 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
16335 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
16336 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
16338 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
16339 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
16340 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
16341 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
16342 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
16343 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
16344 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
16345 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
16350 @item nneething-map-file-directory
16351 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
16352 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
16353 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
16355 @item nneething-exclude-files
16356 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
16357 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
16358 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
16360 @item nneething-include-files
16361 @vindex nneething-include-files
16362 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
16363 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
16365 @item nneething-map-file
16366 @vindex nneething-map-file
16367 Name of the map files.
16371 @node Document Groups
16372 @subsection Document Groups
16374 @cindex documentation group
16377 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
16378 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
16385 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
16390 The standard Unix mbox file.
16392 @cindex MMDF mail box
16394 The MMDF mail box format.
16397 Several news articles appended into a file.
16400 @cindex rnews batch files
16401 The rnews batch transport format.
16402 @cindex forwarded messages
16405 Forwarded articles.
16408 Netscape mail boxes.
16411 @sc{mime} multipart messages.
16413 @item standard-digest
16414 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
16417 A @sc{mime} digest of messages.
16419 @item lanl-gov-announce
16420 Announcement messages from LANL Gov Announce.
16422 @item rfc822-forward
16423 A message forwarded according to RFC822.
16426 The Outlook mail box.
16429 The Outlook Express dbx mail box.
16432 A bounce message from the Exim MTA.
16435 A message forwarded according to informal rules.
16438 An RFC934-forwarded message.
16444 A digest of Clarinet brief news items.
16447 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
16453 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
16454 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
16455 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
16458 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
16459 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
16460 group. And that's it.
16462 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
16463 new & spiffy Gnus mail back end, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
16464 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
16465 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
16466 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
16467 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
16468 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
16469 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
16470 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
16471 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
16473 Virtual server variables:
16476 @item nndoc-article-type
16477 @vindex nndoc-article-type
16478 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
16479 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
16480 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
16481 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook},
16482 @code{oe-dbx}, @code{mailman}, and @code{mail-in-mail} or @code{guess}.
16484 @item nndoc-post-type
16485 @vindex nndoc-post-type
16486 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
16487 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
16492 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
16496 @node Document Server Internals
16497 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
16499 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
16500 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
16501 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
16502 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
16504 First, here's an example document type definition:
16508 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
16509 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
16512 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
16513 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
16514 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
16515 types can be defined with very few settings:
16518 @item first-article
16519 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
16520 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
16523 @item article-begin
16524 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
16525 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
16527 @item head-begin-function
16528 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
16531 @item nndoc-head-begin
16532 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
16535 @item nndoc-head-end
16536 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
16537 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
16539 @item body-begin-function
16540 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
16544 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
16547 @item body-end-function
16548 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
16552 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
16555 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
16556 regexp will be totally ignored.
16560 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
16561 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
16562 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
16563 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
16564 something that's palatable for Gnus:
16567 @item prepare-body-function
16568 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
16569 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
16570 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
16572 @item article-transform-function
16573 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
16574 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
16575 body of the article.
16577 @item generate-head-function
16578 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
16579 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
16580 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
16581 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
16585 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
16590 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
16591 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
16592 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
16593 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
16594 (head-end . "^ ?$")
16595 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
16596 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
16597 (subtype digest guess))
16600 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
16601 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
16602 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
16603 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
16604 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
16606 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
16607 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first
16608 is the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says
16609 where in the document type definition alist to put this definition.
16610 The alist is traversed sequentially, and @code{nndoc-TYPE-type-p} is
16611 called for a given type @code{TYPE}. So @code{nndoc-mmdf-type-p} is
16612 called to see whether a document is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on.
16613 These type predicates should return @code{nil} if the document is not
16614 of the correct type; @code{t} if it is of the correct type; and a
16615 number if the document might be of the correct type. A high number
16616 means high probability; a low number means low probability with
16617 @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
16625 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
16626 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
16627 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
16629 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
16630 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
16631 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
16634 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
16635 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
16636 that interested in doing things properly.
16638 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
16639 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
16642 First some terminology:
16647 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
16648 get news and/or mail from.
16651 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
16652 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
16655 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
16659 @item message packets
16660 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
16661 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
16662 default, where @var{x} is a number.
16664 @item response packets
16665 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
16666 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
16667 default, where @var{x} is a number.
16677 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
16678 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
16679 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
16680 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
16683 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
16686 You put the packet in your home directory.
16689 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} back end as
16690 the native or secondary server.
16693 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
16694 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
16697 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
16701 You transfer this packet to the server.
16704 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
16707 You then repeat until you die.
16711 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
16712 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
16715 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
16716 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
16717 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
16721 @node SOUP Commands
16722 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
16724 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
16728 @kindex G s b (Group)
16729 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
16730 Pack all unread articles in the current group
16731 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
16732 process/prefix convention.
16735 @kindex G s w (Group)
16736 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
16737 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
16740 @kindex G s s (Group)
16741 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
16742 Send all replies from the replies packet
16743 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
16746 @kindex G s p (Group)
16747 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
16748 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
16751 @kindex G s r (Group)
16752 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
16753 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
16756 @kindex O s (Summary)
16757 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
16758 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
16759 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
16760 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16765 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
16770 @item gnus-soup-directory
16771 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
16772 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
16773 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
16775 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
16776 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
16777 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
16778 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
16780 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
16781 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
16782 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
16783 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
16785 @item gnus-soup-packer
16786 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
16787 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
16788 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
16790 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
16791 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
16792 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
16793 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
16795 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
16796 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
16797 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
16799 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
16800 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
16801 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
16802 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
16808 @subsubsection SOUP Groups
16811 @code{nnsoup} is the back end for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
16812 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
16813 you can read them at leisure.
16815 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
16819 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
16820 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
16821 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
16822 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
16824 @item nnsoup-directory
16825 @vindex nnsoup-directory
16826 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
16827 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
16829 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
16830 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
16831 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
16832 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/}.
16834 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
16835 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
16836 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
16837 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
16838 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
16840 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
16841 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
16842 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
16843 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
16845 @item nnsoup-active-file
16846 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
16847 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
16848 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
16849 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
16850 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
16852 @item nnsoup-packer
16853 @vindex nnsoup-packer
16854 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
16855 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
16857 @item nnsoup-unpacker
16858 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
16859 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
16860 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
16862 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
16863 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
16864 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
16867 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
16868 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
16869 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
16872 @item nnsoup-always-save
16873 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
16874 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
16880 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
16882 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
16883 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
16884 more for that to happen.
16886 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
16887 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
16888 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
16891 In specific, this is what it does:
16894 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
16895 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
16898 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
16899 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
16900 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
16903 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
16904 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
16905 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
16908 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
16909 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
16910 The @code{nngateway} back end provides the interface.
16912 Note that you can't read anything from this back end---it can only be
16918 @item nngateway-address
16919 @vindex nngateway-address
16920 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
16922 @item nngateway-header-transformation
16923 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
16924 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
16925 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
16926 transformation should be called, and defaults to
16927 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
16928 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
16931 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
16932 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
16933 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
16936 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
16939 will get this @code{To} header inserted:
16942 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
16945 The following pre-defined functions exist:
16947 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
16950 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
16951 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
16952 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
16954 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
16956 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
16957 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
16958 @code{nngateway-address}.
16963 (setq gnus-post-method
16965 "mail2news@@replay.com"
16966 (nngateway-header-transformation
16967 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
16975 So, to use this, simply say something like:
16978 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
16983 @node Combined Groups
16984 @section Combined Groups
16986 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
16990 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
16991 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
16995 @node Virtual Groups
16996 @subsection Virtual Groups
16998 @cindex virtual groups
16999 @cindex merging groups
17001 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
17004 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
17005 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
17006 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
17008 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
17009 regexp to match component groups.
17011 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
17012 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
17013 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it
17014 came. (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be
17015 shown in the virtual group.). To create an empty virtual group, run
17016 @kbd{G V} (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}) in the group buffer
17017 and edit the method regexp with @kbd{M-e}
17018 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method})
17020 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
17021 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
17024 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
17027 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
17028 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
17030 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
17031 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
17032 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
17033 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
17036 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
17039 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
17040 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
17041 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
17043 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
17044 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
17045 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
17046 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
17047 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
17049 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
17050 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
17051 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
17053 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
17054 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
17055 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
17056 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
17057 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
17058 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
17059 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
17060 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
17061 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
17062 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
17063 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
17065 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
17066 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
17067 has to ask the back end of the component group the article comes from
17068 whether it is a news or mail back end. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
17069 there is typically no sure way for the component back end to know this,
17070 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
17071 not-news back end. (Just to be on the safe side.)
17073 @kbd{C-c C-n} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
17074 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
17076 @code{nnvirtual} groups do not inherit anything but articles and marks
17077 from component groups---group parameters, for instance, are not
17081 @node Kibozed Groups
17082 @subsection Kibozed Groups
17086 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
17087 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a back end that will do this for
17088 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
17089 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
17091 @kindex G k (Group)
17092 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
17095 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
17096 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
17097 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
17098 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
17100 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
17101 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
17102 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
17104 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
17105 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
17106 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
17107 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
17108 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
17109 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
17110 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
17111 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
17113 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
17114 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
17115 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
17116 Stranger things have happened.
17118 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
17119 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
17121 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
17122 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
17123 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
17124 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
17125 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
17126 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
17128 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
17129 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
17132 @node Gnus Unplugged
17133 @section Gnus Unplugged
17138 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
17140 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
17141 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
17142 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
17143 read news. Believe it or not.
17145 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
17146 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
17147 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
17148 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
17149 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
17151 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
17152 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
17153 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
17154 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
17155 reading news on a machine.
17157 Setting up Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple. In
17158 fact, you don't even have to configure anything.
17160 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
17163 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
17164 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
17165 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
17166 * Agent as Cache:: The Agent is a big cache too.
17167 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
17168 * Agent Regeneration:: How to recover from lost connections and other accidents.
17169 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
17170 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
17171 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
17172 * Example Setup:: An example @file{~/.gnus.el} file for offline people.
17173 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
17174 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
17179 @subsection Agent Basics
17181 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
17183 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
17184 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
17185 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
17186 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
17188 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
17189 connected to the net continuously.
17191 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
17192 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
17194 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
17199 @findex gnus-unplugged
17200 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
17201 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
17202 already fetched while in this mode.
17205 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
17206 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
17207 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
17208 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
17209 Source Specifiers}).
17212 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
17213 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
17214 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
17215 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
17216 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
17219 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
17220 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
17221 then you read the news offline.
17224 And then you go to step 2.
17227 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
17233 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
17234 back end, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
17235 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
17236 @kbd{J a} on the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
17237 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}), or @kbd{J r} on automatically
17238 added servers you do not wish to have covered by the Agent. By default,
17239 all @code{nntp} and @code{nnimap} groups in @code{gnus-select-method} and
17240 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} are agentized.
17244 Decide on download policy. It's fairly simple once you decide whether
17245 you are going to use agent categories, topic parameters, and/or group
17246 parameters to implement your policy. If you're new to gnus, it
17247 is probably best to start with a category @xref{Agent Categories}.
17249 Both topic parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}) and agent categories
17250 (@pxref{Agent Categories}) provide for setting a policy that applies
17251 to multiple groups. Which you use is entirely up to you. Topic
17252 parameters do override categories so, if you mix the two, you'll have
17253 to take that into account. If you have a few groups that deviate from
17254 your policy, you can use grou parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to
17258 Uhm@dots{} that's it.
17262 @node Agent Categories
17263 @subsection Agent Categories
17265 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
17266 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
17267 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
17268 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
17269 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
17270 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
17271 you're interested in the articles anyway.
17273 One of the more effective methods for controlling what is to be
17274 downloaded is to create a @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all)
17275 groups to this category. Groups that do not belong in any other
17276 category belong to the @code{default} category. Gnus has its own
17277 buffer for creating and managing categories.
17279 If you prefer, you can also use group parameters (@pxref{Group
17280 Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}) for an
17281 alternative approach to controlling the agent. The only real
17282 difference is that categories are specific to the agent (so there is
17283 less to learn) while group and topic parameters include the kitchen
17286 Since you can set agent parameters in several different places we have
17287 a rule to decide which source to believe. This rule specifies that
17288 the parameter sources are checked in the following order: group
17289 parameters, topic parameters, agent category, and finally customizable
17290 variables. So you can mix all of these sources to produce a wide range
17291 of behavior, just don't blame me if you don't remember where you put
17295 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
17296 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
17297 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
17301 @node Category Syntax
17302 @subsubsection Category Syntax
17304 A category consists of a name, the list of groups belonging to the
17305 category, and a number of optional parameters that override the
17306 customizable variables. The complete list of agent parameters are
17310 @item gnus-agent-cat-name
17311 The name of the category.
17313 @item gnus-agent-cat-groups
17314 The list of groups that are in this category.
17316 @item gnus-agent-cat-predicate
17317 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
17318 are eligible for downloading; and
17320 @item gnus-agent-cat-score-file
17321 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
17322 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
17323 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
17325 @item gnus-agent-cat-enable-expiration
17326 a boolean indicating whether the agent should expire old articles in
17327 this group. Most groups should be expired to conserve disk space. In
17328 fact, its probably safe to say that the gnus.* hierarchy contains the
17329 only groups that should not be expired.
17331 @item gnus-agent-cat-days-until-old
17332 an integer indicating the number of days that the agent should wait
17333 before deciding that a read article is safe to expire.
17335 @item gnus-agent-cat-low-score
17336 an integer that overrides the value of @code{gnus-agent-low-score}.
17338 @item gnus-agent-cat-high-score
17339 an integer that overrides the value of @code{gnus-agent-high-score}.
17341 @item gnus-agent-cat-length-when-short
17342 an integer that overrides the value of
17343 @code{gnus-agent-short-article}.
17345 @item gnus-agent-cat-length-when-long
17346 an integer that overrides the value of @code{gnus-agent-long-article}.
17349 The name of a category can not be changed once the category has been
17352 Each category maintains a list of groups that are exclusive members of
17353 that category. The exclusivity rule is automatically enforced, add a
17354 group to a new category and it is automatically removed from its old
17357 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
17358 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
17359 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
17360 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
17362 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
17363 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
17364 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as described below.
17366 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
17367 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
17368 operators sprinkled in between.
17370 Perhaps some examples are in order.
17372 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
17373 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
17379 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
17380 short (for some value of ``short'').
17382 Here's a more complex predicate:
17391 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
17392 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
17395 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
17396 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
17397 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
17399 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
17400 you want to do, you can write your own.
17402 When evaluating each of these predicates, the named constant will be
17403 bound to the value determined by calling
17404 @code{gnus-agent-find-parameter} on the appropriate parameter. For
17405 example, gnus-agent-short-article will be bound to
17406 @code{(gnus-agent-find-parameter group 'agent-short-article)}. This
17407 means that you can specify a predicate in your category then tune that
17408 predicate to individual groups.
17412 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
17413 lines; default 100.
17416 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
17417 lines; default 200.
17420 True iff the article has a download score less than
17421 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
17424 True iff the article has a download score greater than
17425 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
17428 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
17429 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
17430 checksum and sees whether articles match.
17439 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
17440 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
17441 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
17444 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
17445 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
17446 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
17447 something along the lines of the following:
17450 (defun my-article-old-p ()
17451 "Say whether an article is old."
17452 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
17453 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
17456 with the predicate then defined as:
17459 (not my-article-old-p)
17462 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
17463 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
17467 (require 'gnus-agent)
17468 (setq gnus-category-predicate-alist
17469 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
17470 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
17473 and simply specify your predicate as:
17479 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
17480 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
17481 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
17482 just don't give a damn.
17484 The above predicates apply to @emph{all} the groups which belong to the
17485 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
17486 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
17487 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
17488 parameters like so:
17491 (agent-predicate . short)
17494 This is the group/topic parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
17495 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
17496 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
17498 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
17501 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
17504 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
17505 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
17506 predicate is assumed to be a list.
17509 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
17510 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
17511 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
17512 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
17513 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
17514 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
17516 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
17517 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
17518 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
17519 if it's to be specific to that group.
17521 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
17528 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
17529 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
17535 Category specification
17539 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
17545 Group/Topic Parameter specification
17548 (agent-score ("from"
17549 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
17554 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
17560 These score files must @emph{only} contain the permitted scoring
17561 keywords stated above.
17567 Category specification
17570 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
17576 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
17580 Group Parameter specification
17583 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
17586 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
17591 Use @code{normal} score files
17593 If you don't want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
17594 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
17595 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
17596 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
17598 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
17599 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
17600 files for a group, @emph{filtering out} those sections that do not
17601 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
17605 Category Specification
17612 Group Parameter specification
17615 (agent-score . file)
17620 @node Category Buffer
17621 @subsubsection Category Buffer
17623 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
17624 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
17625 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
17627 The following commands are available in this buffer:
17631 @kindex q (Category)
17632 @findex gnus-category-exit
17633 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
17636 @kindex e (Category)
17637 @findex gnus-category-customize-category
17638 Use a customization buffer to set all of the selected category's
17639 parameters at one time (@code{gnus-category-customize-category}).
17642 @kindex k (Category)
17643 @findex gnus-category-kill
17644 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
17647 @kindex c (Category)
17648 @findex gnus-category-copy
17649 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
17652 @kindex a (Category)
17653 @findex gnus-category-add
17654 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
17657 @kindex p (Category)
17658 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
17659 Edit the predicate of the current category
17660 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
17663 @kindex g (Category)
17664 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
17665 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
17666 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
17669 @kindex s (Category)
17670 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
17671 Edit the download score rule of the current category
17672 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
17675 @kindex l (Category)
17676 @findex gnus-category-list
17677 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
17681 @node Category Variables
17682 @subsubsection Category Variables
17685 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
17686 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
17687 Hook run in category buffers.
17689 @item gnus-category-line-format
17690 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
17691 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
17692 Variables}). Valid elements are:
17696 The name of the category.
17699 The number of groups in the category.
17702 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
17703 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
17704 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
17706 @item gnus-agent-short-article
17707 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
17708 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
17710 @item gnus-agent-long-article
17711 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
17712 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
17714 @item gnus-agent-low-score
17715 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
17716 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
17719 @item gnus-agent-high-score
17720 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
17721 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
17724 @item gnus-agent-expire-days
17725 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
17726 The number of days that a @samp{read} article must stay in the agent's
17727 local disk before becoming eligible for expiration (While the name is
17728 the same, this doesn't mean expiring the article on the server. It
17729 just means deleting the local copy of the article). What is also
17730 important to understand is that the counter starts with the time the
17731 article was written to the local disk and not the time the article was
17735 @item gnus-agent-enable-expiration
17736 @vindex gnus-agent-enable-expiration
17737 Determines whether articles in a group are, by default, expired or
17738 retained indefinitely. The default is @code{ENABLE} which means that
17739 you'll have to disable expiration when desired. On the other hand,
17740 you could set this to @code{DISABLE}. In that case, you would then
17741 have to enable expiration in selected groups.
17746 @node Agent Commands
17747 @subsection Agent Commands
17748 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-plugged
17749 @kindex J j (Agent)
17751 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
17752 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged}) command works in all modes, and
17753 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
17757 * Group Agent Commands:: Configure groups and fetch their contents.
17758 * Summary Agent Commands:: Manually select then fetch specific articles.
17759 * Server Agent Commands:: Select the servers that are supported by the agent.
17765 @node Group Agent Commands
17766 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
17770 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
17771 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
17772 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
17773 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
17776 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
17777 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
17778 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
17781 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
17782 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
17783 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
17784 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
17787 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
17788 @findex gnus-group-send-queue
17789 Send all sendable messages in the queue group
17790 (@code{gnus-group-send-queue}). @xref{Drafts}.
17793 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
17794 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
17795 Add the current group to an Agent category
17796 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
17797 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
17800 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
17801 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
17802 Remove the current group from its category, if any
17803 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
17804 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
17807 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
17808 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
17809 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
17815 @node Summary Agent Commands
17816 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
17820 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
17821 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
17822 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
17825 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
17826 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
17827 Remove the downloading mark from the article
17828 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
17832 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
17833 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
17834 Toggle whether to download the article
17835 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}). The dowload mark is @samp{%} by
17839 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
17840 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
17841 Mark all articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}) that are neither cached, downloaded, nor downloadable.
17844 @kindex J S (Agent Summary)
17845 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-group
17846 Download all eligible (See @pxref{Agent Categories}) articles in this group.
17847 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-group}).
17850 @kindex J s (Agent Summary)
17851 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-series
17852 Download all processable articles in this group.
17853 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-series}).
17856 @kindex J u (Agent Summary)
17857 @findex gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group
17858 Download all downloadable articles in the current group
17859 (@code{gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group}).
17864 @node Server Agent Commands
17865 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
17869 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
17870 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
17871 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
17872 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
17875 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
17876 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
17877 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
17878 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
17883 @node Agent as Cache
17884 @subsection Agent as Cache
17886 When Gnus is plugged, it is not efficient to download headers or
17887 articles from the server again, if they are already stored in the
17888 Agent. So, Gnus normally only downloads headers once, and stores them
17889 in the Agent. These headers are later used when generating the summary
17890 buffer, regardless of whether you are plugged or unplugged. Articles
17891 are not cached in the Agent by default though (that would potentially
17892 consume lots of disk space), but if you have already downloaded an
17893 article into the Agent, Gnus will not download the article from the
17894 server again but use the locally stored copy instead.
17896 If you so desire, you can configure the agent (see @code{gnus-agent-cache}
17897 @pxref{Agent Variables}) to always download headers and articles while
17898 plugged. Gnus will almost certainly be slower, but it will be kept
17899 synchronized with the server. That last point probably won't make any
17900 sense if you are using a nntp or nnimap backend.
17903 @subsection Agent Expiry
17905 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
17906 @findex gnus-agent-expire
17907 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
17908 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire-group
17909 @findex gnus-agent-expire-group
17910 @cindex Agent expiry
17911 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
17914 The Agent backend, @code{nnagent}, doesn't handle expiry. Well, at
17915 least it doesn't handle it like other backends. Instead, there are
17916 special @code{gnus-agent-expire} and @code{gnus-agent-expire-group}
17917 commands that will expire all read articles that are older than
17918 @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. They can be run whenever you feel
17919 that you're running out of space. Neither are particularly fast or
17920 efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to interrupt them (with
17921 @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started one of them.
17923 Note that other functions, e.g. @code{gnus-request-expire-articles},
17924 might run @code{gnus-agent-expire} for you to keep the agent
17925 synchronized with the group.
17927 The agent parameter @code{agent-enable-expiration} may be used to
17928 prevent expiration in selected groups.
17930 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
17931 If @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, the agent
17932 expiration commands will expire all articles---unread, read, ticked
17933 and dormant. If @code{nil} (which is the default), only read articles
17934 are eligible for expiry, and unread, ticked and dormant articles will
17935 be kept indefinitely.
17937 If you find that some articles eligible for expiry are never expired,
17938 perhaps some Gnus Agent files are corrupted. There's are special
17939 commands, @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} and
17940 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group}, to fix possible problems.
17942 @node Agent Regeneration
17943 @subsection Agent Regeneration
17945 @cindex Agent Regeneration
17946 @cindex Gnus Agent Regeneration
17947 @cindex regeneration
17949 The local data structures used by @code{nnagent} may become corrupted
17950 due to certain exceptional conditions. When this happens,
17951 @code{nnagent} functionality may degrade or even fail. The solution
17952 to this problem is to repair the local data structures by removing all
17953 internal inconsistencies.
17955 For example, if your connection to your server is lost while
17956 downloaded articles into the agent, the local data structures will not
17957 know about articles successfully downloaded prior to the connection
17958 failure. Running @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} or
17959 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group} will update the data structures
17960 such that you don't need to download these articles a second time.
17962 @findex gnus-agent-regenerate
17963 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-regenerate
17964 The command @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} will perform
17965 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group} on every agentized group. While
17966 you can run @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} in any buffer, it is strongly
17967 recommended that you first close all summary buffers.
17969 @findex gnus-agent-regenerate-group
17970 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-regenerate-group
17971 The command @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group} uses the local copies
17972 of individual articles to repair the local NOV(header) database. It
17973 then updates the internal data structures that document which articles
17974 are stored locally. An optional argument will mark articles in the
17977 @node Agent and IMAP
17978 @subsection Agent and IMAP
17980 The Agent works with any Gnus back end, including nnimap. However,
17981 since there are some conceptual differences between @sc{nntp} and
17982 @sc{imap}, this section (should) provide you with some information to
17983 make Gnus Agent work smoother as a @sc{imap} Disconnected Mode client.
17985 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
17986 are kept on the @sc{imap} server, rather than in @file{.newsrc} as is the
17987 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
17988 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
17990 Gnus keeps track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
17991 Agent. When you plug back in, Gnus will check if you have any changed
17992 any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize these with the server.
17993 The behavior is customizable by @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
17995 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
17996 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
17997 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, which is
17998 the default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so
17999 ask if you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has
18000 any other value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
18002 If you do not wish to synchronize flags automatically when you
18003 re-connect, you can do it manually with the
18004 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
18005 in the group buffer.
18007 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
18008 expect from a disconnected @sc{imap} client, including:
18013 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
18016 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
18020 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by ``pushing''
18021 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
18022 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
18023 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
18024 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
18025 removed from the server when you ``synchronize''. The queued flag
18026 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
18027 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
18030 @node Outgoing Messages
18031 @subsection Outgoing Messages
18033 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
18034 stored in the draft group ``queue'' (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view
18035 them there after posting, and edit them at will.
18037 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
18038 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
18039 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
18040 messages in the draft group.
18044 @node Agent Variables
18045 @subsection Agent Variables
18048 @item gnus-agent-directory
18049 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
18050 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
18051 @file{~/News/agent/}.
18053 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
18054 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
18055 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
18056 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
18057 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
18060 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
18061 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
18062 Hook run when connecting to the network.
18064 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
18065 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
18066 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
18068 @item gnus-agent-fetched-hook
18069 @vindex gnus-agent-fetched-hook
18070 Hook run when finished fetching articles.
18072 @item gnus-agent-cache
18073 @vindex gnus-agent-cache
18074 Variable to control whether use the locally stored @sc{nov} and
18075 articles when plugged, e.g. essentially using the Agent as a cache.
18076 The default is non-nil, which means to use the Agent as a cache.
18078 @item gnus-agent-go-online
18079 @vindex gnus-agent-go-online
18080 If @code{gnus-agent-go-online} is @code{nil}, the Agent will never
18081 automatically switch offline servers into online status. If it is
18082 @code{ask}, the default, the Agent will ask if you wish to switch
18083 offline servers into online status when you re-connect. If it has any
18084 other value, all offline servers will be automatically switched into
18087 @item gnus-agent-mark-unread-after-downloaded
18088 @vindex gnus-agent-mark-unread-after-downloaded
18089 If @code{gnus-agent-mark-unread-after-downloaded} is non-@code{nil},
18090 mark articles as unread after downloading. This is usually a safe
18091 thing to do as the newly downloaded article has obviously not been
18092 read. The default is t.
18094 @item gnus-agent-consider-all-articles
18095 @vindex gnus-agent-consider-all-articles
18096 If @code{gnus-agent-consider-all-articles} is non-@code{nil}, the
18097 agent will fetch all missing headers. When @code{nil}, the agent will
18098 fetch only new headers. The default is @code{nil}.
18100 @item gnus-agent-max-fetch-size
18101 @vindex gnus-agent-max-fetch-size
18102 The agent fetches articles into a temporary buffer prior to parsing
18103 them into individual files. To avoid exceeding the max. buffer size,
18104 the agent alternates between fetching and parsing until all articles
18105 have been fetched. @code{gnus-agent-max-fetch-size} provides a size
18106 limit to control how often the cycling occurs. A large value improves
18107 performance. A small value minimizes the time lost should the
18108 connection be lost while fetching (You may need to run
18109 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group} to update the group's state.
18110 However, all articles parsed prior to loosing the connection will be
18111 available while unplugged). The default is 10M so it is unusual to
18114 @item gnus-server-unopen-status
18115 @vindex gnus-server-unopen-status
18116 Perhaps not a Agent variable, but closely related to the Agent, this
18117 variable says what will happen if Gnus cannot open a server. If the
18118 Agent is enabled, the default, @code{nil}, makes Gnus ask the user
18119 whether to deny the server or whether to unplug the agent. If the
18120 Agent is disabled, Gnus always simply deny the server. Other choices
18121 for this variable include @code{denied} and @code{offline} the latter
18122 is only valid if the Agent is used.
18124 @item gnus-auto-goto-ignores
18125 @vindex gnus-auto-goto-ignores
18126 Another variable that isn't a Agent variable, yet so closely related
18127 that most will look for it here, this variable tells the summary
18128 buffer how to maneuver around undownloaded (only headers stored in the
18129 agent) and unfetched (neither article nor headers stored) articles.
18131 The legal values are @code{nil} (maneuver to any article),
18132 @code{undownloaded} (maneuvering while unplugged ignores articles that
18133 have not been fetched), @code{always-undownloaded} (maneuvering always
18134 ignores articles that have not been fetched), @code{unfetched}
18135 (maneuvering ignores articles whose headers have not been fetched).
18140 @node Example Setup
18141 @subsection Example Setup
18143 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
18144 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
18145 @file{~/.gnus.el} file to get started.
18148 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @sc{nntp}
18149 ;;; from your ISP's server.
18150 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
18152 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
18153 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
18154 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
18156 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
18157 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
18159 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
18160 ;;; (gnus-agentize) ; The obsolete setting.
18161 ;;; (setq gnus-agent t) ; Now the default.
18164 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
18165 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
18168 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
18169 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
18170 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
18171 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
18172 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
18175 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
18176 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
18177 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
18178 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
18179 back all the killed groups.)
18181 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
18182 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
18183 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
18186 @node Batching Agents
18187 @subsection Batching Agents
18188 @findex gnus-agent-batch
18190 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
18191 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
18192 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
18194 You can run a complete batch command from the command line with the
18195 following incantation:
18199 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f -l ~/.gnus.el gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null 2>&1
18203 @node Agent Caveats
18204 @subsection Agent Caveats
18206 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
18207 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
18211 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the Agent?
18213 @strong{No}. If you want this behaviour, add
18214 @code{gnus-agent-fetch-selected-article} to
18215 @code{gnus-select-article-hook}.
18217 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists in
18218 the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
18220 @strong{No}, unless @code{gnus-agent-cache} is @code{nil}.
18224 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
18225 articles; when it's plugged, it talks to your ISP and may also use the
18226 locally stored articles.
18233 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
18234 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
18235 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
18238 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
18239 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
18240 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
18241 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
18242 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
18244 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
18245 before generating the summary buffer.
18247 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
18248 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
18249 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
18251 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
18252 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
18253 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
18254 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
18257 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
18258 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
18259 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
18260 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
18261 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
18262 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
18263 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
18264 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
18265 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
18266 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
18267 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
18268 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
18269 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
18270 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
18271 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
18272 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
18273 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
18277 @node Summary Score Commands
18278 @section Summary Score Commands
18279 @cindex score commands
18281 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
18282 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
18283 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
18284 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
18285 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
18287 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
18288 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
18289 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
18290 score file the current one.
18292 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
18297 @kindex V s (Summary)
18298 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
18299 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
18302 @kindex V S (Summary)
18303 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
18304 Display the score of the current article
18305 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
18308 @kindex V t (Summary)
18309 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
18310 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
18311 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}). In the @code{*Score Trace*} buffer, you
18312 can use @kbd{q} to quit. @kbd{e} edits the corresponding score file.
18313 When point is on a string within the match element, @kbd{e} will try to
18314 bring you to this string in the score file.
18317 @kindex V w (Summary)
18318 @findex gnus-score-find-favourite-words
18319 List words used in scoring (@code{gnus-score-find-favourite-words}).
18322 @kindex V R (Summary)
18323 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
18324 Run the current summary through the scoring process
18325 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
18326 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
18327 effect you're having.
18330 @kindex V c (Summary)
18331 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
18332 Make a different score file the current
18333 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
18336 @kindex V e (Summary)
18337 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
18338 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
18339 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
18343 @kindex V f (Summary)
18344 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
18345 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
18346 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
18349 @kindex V F (Summary)
18350 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
18351 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
18352 after editing score files.
18355 @kindex V C (Summary)
18356 @findex gnus-score-customize
18357 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
18358 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
18362 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
18367 @kindex V m (Summary)
18368 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
18369 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
18370 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
18373 @kindex V x (Summary)
18374 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
18375 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
18376 expunge all articles below this score
18377 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
18380 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
18381 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
18384 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
18385 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
18389 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
18390 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
18392 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
18393 keys are available:
18397 Score on the author name.
18400 Score on the subject line.
18403 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
18406 Score on the @code{References} line.
18412 Score on the number of lines.
18415 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
18418 Score on an ``extra'' header, that is, one of those in gnus-extra-headers,
18419 if your @sc{nntp} server tracks additional header data in overviews.
18422 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
18423 the followups to this author. (Using this key leads to the creation of
18424 @file{ADAPT} files.)
18433 Score on thread. (Using this key leads to the creation of @file{ADAPT}
18439 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
18440 what headers you are scoring on.
18452 Substring matching.
18455 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
18484 Greater than number.
18489 The fourth and usually final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e.,
18490 expiring) score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry,
18491 or whether it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score
18496 Temporary score entry.
18499 Permanent score entry.
18502 Immediately scoring.
18506 If you are scoring on `e' (extra) headers, you will then be prompted for
18507 the header name on which you wish to score. This must be a header named
18508 in gnus-extra-headers, and @samp{TAB} completion is available.
18512 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
18513 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
18514 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
18515 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
18517 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
18518 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
18519 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
18520 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
18521 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
18523 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
18524 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
18525 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
18526 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
18527 current score file.
18529 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
18530 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
18531 pretend they are keymaps or not.
18534 @node Group Score Commands
18535 @section Group Score Commands
18536 @cindex group score commands
18538 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
18543 @kindex W f (Group)
18544 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
18545 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
18546 all the time. This command will flush the cache
18547 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
18551 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
18553 @findex gnus-batch-score
18554 @cindex batch scoring
18556 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
18560 @node Score Variables
18561 @section Score Variables
18562 @cindex score variables
18566 @item gnus-use-scoring
18567 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
18568 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
18569 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
18571 @item gnus-kill-killed
18572 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
18573 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
18574 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
18575 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
18576 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
18577 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
18578 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
18580 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
18581 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
18582 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
18583 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
18584 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
18586 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
18587 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
18588 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
18589 (@file{SCORE} by default.)
18591 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
18592 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
18593 @cindex score cache
18594 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
18595 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
18596 bloated, so this regexp can be used to weed out score files unlikely
18597 to be needed again. It would be a bad idea to deny caching of
18598 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
18599 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
18600 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
18603 @item gnus-save-score
18604 @vindex gnus-save-score
18605 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
18606 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
18607 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
18609 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
18610 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
18611 across group visits.
18613 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
18614 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
18615 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
18616 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
18617 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
18618 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
18619 manually entered data.
18621 @item gnus-summary-default-score
18622 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
18623 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
18625 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
18626 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
18627 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
18628 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
18629 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
18630 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
18632 @item gnus-score-over-mark
18633 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
18634 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
18635 default. Default is @samp{+}.
18637 @item gnus-score-below-mark
18638 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
18639 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
18640 default. Default is @samp{-}.
18642 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
18643 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
18644 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
18645 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
18647 Predefined functions available are:
18650 @item gnus-score-find-single
18651 @findex gnus-score-find-single
18652 Only apply the group's own score file.
18654 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
18655 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
18656 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
18657 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
18658 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
18659 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
18660 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
18661 then a regexp match is done.
18663 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
18664 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
18666 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
18667 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
18668 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
18669 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
18671 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
18672 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
18673 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
18674 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
18675 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
18679 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all
18680 these functions will be called with the group name as argument, and
18681 all the returned lists of score files will be applied. These
18682 functions can also return lists of lists of score alists directly. In
18683 that case, the functions that return these non-file score alists
18684 should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file functions, to
18685 ensure that the last score file returned is the local score file.
18688 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
18689 overall score file, you could use the value
18691 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE"))
18692 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
18695 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
18696 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
18697 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
18698 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
18699 are expired. It's 7 by default.
18701 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
18702 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
18703 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, temporary score entries that have
18704 been triggered (matched) will have their dates updated. (This is how Gnus
18705 controls expiry---all non-matched-entries will become too old while
18706 matched entries will stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this
18707 variable to @code{nil}, even matched entries will grow old and will
18708 have to face that oh-so grim reaper.
18710 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
18711 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
18712 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
18714 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
18715 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
18716 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
18717 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
18718 threading---according to the current value of
18719 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
18720 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
18721 simplified in this manner.
18726 @node Score File Format
18727 @section Score File Format
18728 @cindex score file format
18730 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
18731 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
18732 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
18734 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
18738 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
18740 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
18742 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
18744 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
18749 (mark-and-expunge -10)
18753 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
18754 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
18755 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
18756 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
18760 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
18761 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
18763 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
18764 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
18765 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
18767 Six keys are supported by this alist:
18772 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
18773 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
18774 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
18775 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
18776 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
18777 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
18778 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
18779 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
18780 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
18781 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
18782 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
18783 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
18784 to articles that matches these score entries.
18786 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
18787 score entry has one to four elements.
18791 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
18792 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
18796 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
18797 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
18798 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
18799 is successful. If this element is not present, the
18800 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
18801 instead. This is 1000 by default.
18804 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
18805 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
18806 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
18807 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
18808 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
18811 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
18812 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
18813 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
18814 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
18817 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
18818 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
18819 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
18820 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
18821 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
18822 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
18823 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
18824 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
18825 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
18826 instead, if you feel like.
18829 Just as for the standard string overview headers, if you are using
18830 gnus-extra-headers, you can score on these headers' values. In this
18831 case, there is a 5th element in the score entry, being the name of the
18832 header to be scored. The following entry is useful in your
18833 @file{all.SCORE} file in case of spam attacks from a single origin host,
18834 if your @sc{nntp} server tracks NNTP-Posting-Host in overviews:
18837 ("111.222.333.444" -1000 nil s "NNTP-Posting-Host")
18841 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
18842 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
18844 These predicates are true if
18847 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
18850 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
18851 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
18858 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
18859 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
18860 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
18861 it's not. I think.)
18863 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some back ends (like
18864 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
18865 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
18866 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
18869 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
18870 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
18871 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
18872 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
18873 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
18874 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
18875 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
18879 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
18880 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
18881 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
18882 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
18883 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
18884 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
18885 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
18886 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
18889 @item Head, Body, All
18890 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
18894 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
18895 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
18896 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
18897 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
18898 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
18899 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
18900 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
18904 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
18905 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
18906 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
18907 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
18908 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
18909 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
18910 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
18911 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
18912 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
18913 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
18914 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
18918 @cindex Score File Atoms
18920 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
18921 lower than this number will be marked as read.
18924 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
18925 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
18927 @item mark-and-expunge
18928 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
18929 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
18932 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
18933 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
18934 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
18935 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
18936 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
18939 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
18940 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
18943 @item exclude-files
18944 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
18945 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
18949 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
18950 ignored when handling global score files.
18953 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
18954 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
18955 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
18956 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
18959 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
18960 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
18961 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
18962 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
18964 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
18968 (mark-and-expunge -100)
18971 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
18972 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
18973 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
18974 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
18975 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
18977 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where a few
18978 interesting threads which can't be found automatically by ordinary
18979 scoring rules exist.
18982 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
18983 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
18984 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
18985 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
18986 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
18987 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
18988 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
18989 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
18990 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
18991 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
18992 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
18996 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
18997 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
18998 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
18999 file for a number of groups.
19002 @cindex local variables
19003 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(@var{var}
19004 @var{value})} pairs. Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the
19005 current summary buffer, and set to the value specified. This is a
19006 convenient, if somewhat strange, way of setting variables in some
19007 groups if you don't like hooks much. Note that the @var{value} won't
19012 @node Score File Editing
19013 @section Score File Editing
19015 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
19016 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
19017 with a mode for that.
19019 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
19020 additional commands:
19025 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
19026 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
19027 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
19028 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
19031 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
19032 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
19033 Insert the current date in numerical format
19034 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
19035 you were wondering.
19038 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
19039 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
19040 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
19041 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
19042 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
19047 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
19049 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
19050 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
19052 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
19053 e} to begin editing score files.
19056 @node Adaptive Scoring
19057 @section Adaptive Scoring
19058 @cindex adaptive scoring
19060 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
19061 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
19062 stupidity, to be precise.
19064 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
19065 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
19066 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
19067 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
19068 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
19069 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
19070 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
19071 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
19072 variable to @code{(word line)}.
19074 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
19075 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
19076 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
19077 might look something like this:
19080 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
19081 '((gnus-unread-mark)
19082 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
19083 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
19084 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
19085 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
19086 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
19087 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
19088 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
19089 (gnus-ancient-mark)
19090 (gnus-low-score-mark)
19091 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
19094 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
19095 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
19096 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
19097 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
19098 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
19099 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
19102 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
19103 will be applied to each article.
19105 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
19106 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{e}) will have a
19107 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
19108 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
19110 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
19111 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
19112 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
19113 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
19115 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
19116 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
19117 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
19118 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
19120 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
19121 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
19122 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
19123 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
19124 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
19125 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
19127 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
19128 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
19129 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
19131 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
19132 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
19133 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
19135 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
19136 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
19137 let you use different rules in different groups.
19139 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
19140 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
19141 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
19144 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
19145 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
19146 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
19147 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
19148 the length of the match is less than
19149 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
19150 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
19153 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
19154 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
19155 headers. If you adapt on words, the
19156 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
19157 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
19160 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
19161 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
19162 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
19163 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
19164 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
19167 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
19168 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
19169 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
19170 score with 30 points.
19172 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
19173 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
19174 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
19175 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
19176 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
19178 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit
19179 Some may feel that short words shouldn't count when doing adaptive
19180 scoring. If so, you may set @code{gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit} to
19181 an integer. Words shorter than this number will be ignored. This
19182 variable defaults to @code{nil}.
19184 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
19185 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
19186 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
19187 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
19189 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
19190 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
19191 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
19192 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
19194 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
19195 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
19196 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
19197 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
19198 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
19200 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
19201 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
19202 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
19204 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
19205 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
19206 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
19207 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
19210 @node Home Score File
19211 @section Home Score File
19213 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
19214 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
19215 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
19216 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
19218 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
19219 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
19220 could perhaps use the same home score file.
19222 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
19223 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
19228 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
19232 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
19233 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
19237 A list. The elements in this list can be:
19241 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
19242 group name, the @var{file-name} will be used as the home score file.
19245 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
19246 the home score file.
19249 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
19252 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
19257 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
19260 (setq gnus-home-score-file
19261 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
19264 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
19265 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
19267 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
19269 (setq gnus-home-score-file
19270 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
19273 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
19274 Other functions include
19277 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
19278 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
19279 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
19280 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
19284 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
19285 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
19286 their own home score files:
19289 (setq gnus-home-score-file
19290 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
19291 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
19292 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
19293 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
19296 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
19297 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
19298 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
19299 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
19300 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
19302 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
19303 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
19304 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
19305 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
19306 precedence over this variable.
19309 @node Followups To Yourself
19310 @section Followups To Yourself
19312 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
19313 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
19314 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
19315 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
19316 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
19317 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
19321 @item gnus-score-followup-article
19322 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
19323 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
19326 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
19327 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
19328 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
19332 @vindex message-sent-hook
19333 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
19334 @code{message-sent-hook}, like this:
19336 (add-hook 'message-sent-hook 'gnus-score-followup-thread)
19340 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
19341 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
19345 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
19346 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
19349 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
19350 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
19355 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore\\.no>"
19359 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
19360 is system-dependent.
19363 @node Scoring On Other Headers
19364 @section Scoring On Other Headers
19365 @cindex scoring on other headers
19367 Gnus is quite fast when scoring the ``traditional''
19368 headers---@samp{From}, @samp{Subject} and so on. However, scoring
19369 other headers requires writing a @code{head} scoring rule, which means
19370 that Gnus has to request every single article from the back end to find
19371 matches. This takes a long time in big groups.
19373 Now, there's not much you can do about this for news groups, but for
19374 mail groups, you have greater control. In the @pxref{To From
19375 Newsgroups} section of the manual, it's explained in greater detail what
19376 this mechanism does, but here's a cookbook example for @code{nnml} on
19377 how to allow scoring on the @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers.
19379 Put the following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file.
19382 (setq gnus-extra-headers '(To Cc Newsgroups Keywords)
19383 nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
19386 Restart Gnus and rebuild your @code{nnml} overview files with the
19387 @kbd{M-x nnml-generate-nov-databases} command. This will take a long
19388 time if you have much mail.
19390 Now you can score on @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} as ``extra headers'' like
19391 so: @kbd{I e s p To RET <your name> RET}.
19397 @section Scoring Tips
19398 @cindex scoring tips
19404 @cindex scoring crossposts
19405 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
19406 the @code{Xref} header.
19408 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
19411 @item Multiple crossposts
19412 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
19413 more than, say, 3 groups:
19416 ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+"
19420 @item Matching on the body
19421 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
19422 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
19423 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
19424 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
19425 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
19426 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
19427 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
19430 @item Marking as read
19431 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
19432 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
19433 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
19437 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
19439 @item Negated character classes
19440 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
19441 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
19442 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
19446 @node Reverse Scoring
19447 @section Reverse Scoring
19448 @cindex reverse scoring
19450 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
19451 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
19452 like this in your score file:
19456 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
19461 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
19462 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
19465 @node Global Score Files
19466 @section Global Score Files
19467 @cindex global score files
19469 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
19470 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
19471 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
19473 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
19474 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
19475 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
19477 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
19478 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
19479 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
19480 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
19481 files are applicable to which group.
19483 To use the score file
19484 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
19485 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory,
19489 (setq gnus-global-score-files
19490 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
19491 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
19494 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
19496 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
19497 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
19498 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
19499 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
19501 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
19502 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
19504 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
19505 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
19506 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
19507 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
19508 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
19509 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
19511 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
19517 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
19519 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
19521 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
19523 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
19524 lowered out of existence.
19526 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
19527 articles completely.
19530 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
19531 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
19532 old articles for a long time.
19535 @dots{} I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
19536 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
19537 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
19538 holding our breath yet?
19542 @section Kill Files
19545 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
19546 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
19547 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
19549 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
19550 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
19551 files into score files.
19553 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
19554 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
19555 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
19556 that isn't a very good idea.
19558 Normal kill files look like this:
19561 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19562 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
19566 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
19567 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
19569 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
19570 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
19573 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
19578 @kindex M-k (Summary)
19579 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
19580 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
19583 @kindex M-K (Summary)
19584 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
19585 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
19588 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
19593 @kindex M-k (Group)
19594 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
19595 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
19598 @kindex M-K (Group)
19599 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
19600 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
19603 Kill file variables:
19606 @item gnus-kill-file-name
19607 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
19608 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
19609 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
19610 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
19611 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
19612 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
19614 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
19615 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
19616 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
19617 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
19620 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
19621 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
19622 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
19623 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
19624 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
19625 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
19626 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
19627 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
19628 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
19630 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
19631 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
19632 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
19637 @node Converting Kill Files
19638 @section Converting Kill Files
19640 @cindex converting kill files
19642 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
19643 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
19644 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
19647 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
19648 You can fetch it from
19649 @uref{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
19651 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
19652 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
19653 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
19661 GroupLens (@uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/}) is a
19662 collaborative filtering system that helps you work together with other
19663 people to find the quality news articles out of the huge volume of
19664 news articles generated every day.
19666 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
19667 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
19668 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
19669 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
19670 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
19671 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
19672 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
19673 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
19676 @sc{Note:} Unfortunately the GroupLens system seems to have shut down,
19677 so this section is mostly of historical interest.
19680 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
19681 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
19682 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
19683 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
19687 @node Using GroupLens
19688 @subsection Using GroupLens
19690 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
19692 @uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
19693 better bit in town at the moment.
19695 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
19699 @item gnus-use-grouplens
19700 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
19701 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
19702 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
19704 @item grouplens-pseudonym
19705 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
19706 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
19707 with the Better Bit Bureau.
19709 @item grouplens-newsgroups
19710 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
19711 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
19715 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
19716 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
19717 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
19718 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
19719 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
19720 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
19723 @node Rating Articles
19724 @subsection Rating Articles
19726 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
19727 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
19728 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
19729 yourself is, ``on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
19732 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
19737 @kindex r (GroupLens)
19738 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
19739 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
19742 @kindex k (GroupLens)
19743 @findex grouplens-score-thread
19744 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
19745 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
19746 threads in rec.humor.
19750 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
19751 the score of the article you're reading.
19756 @kindex n (GroupLens)
19757 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
19758 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
19761 @kindex , (GroupLens)
19762 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
19763 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
19767 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
19768 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
19771 @node Displaying Predictions
19772 @subsection Displaying Predictions
19774 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
19775 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
19776 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
19777 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
19778 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
19780 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
19781 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
19782 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
19783 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
19784 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
19785 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
19786 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
19787 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
19788 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
19789 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
19790 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
19791 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
19792 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
19794 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
19795 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
19796 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
19797 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
19799 The following are valid values for that variable.
19802 @item prediction-spot
19803 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
19806 @item confidence-interval
19807 A numeric confidence interval.
19809 @item prediction-bar
19810 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
19812 @item confidence-bar
19813 Numerical confidence.
19815 @item confidence-spot
19816 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
19818 @item prediction-num
19819 Plain-old numeric value.
19821 @item confidence-plus-minus
19822 Prediction +/- confidence.
19827 @node GroupLens Variables
19828 @subsection GroupLens Variables
19832 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
19833 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
19834 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
19835 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%)
19838 @item grouplens-bbb-host
19839 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
19842 @item grouplens-bbb-port
19843 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
19845 @item grouplens-score-offset
19846 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
19847 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
19850 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
19851 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
19852 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
19857 @node Advanced Scoring
19858 @section Advanced Scoring
19860 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
19861 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
19862 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
19863 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
19864 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
19866 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
19870 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
19871 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
19872 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
19876 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
19877 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
19879 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
19880 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
19881 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
19882 non-@code{nil} value.
19884 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
19885 operator, and various match operators.
19892 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
19893 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
19894 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
19899 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
19900 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
19901 then this operator will return @code{false}.
19906 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
19907 logical negation of the value of its argument.
19911 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
19912 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
19913 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
19914 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
19915 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
19916 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
19917 the ancestry you want to go.
19919 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
19920 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
19921 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
19922 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
19923 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
19926 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
19927 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
19929 Please note that the following examples are score file rules. To
19930 make a complete score file from them, surround them with another pair
19933 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
19934 when he's talking about Gnus:
19938 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19939 ("subject" "Gnus"))
19945 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
19949 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19956 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
19957 really don't want to read what he's written:
19961 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19962 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
19966 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
19967 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
19968 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
19975 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
19976 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
19977 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
19978 ("body" "white.*socks"))
19982 The possibilities are endless.
19985 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
19986 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
19988 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
19989 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
19990 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
19991 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
19992 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
19993 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
19994 @samp{subject}) first.
19996 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
19997 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
20008 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
20009 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
20015 ("subject" "Gnus")))
20022 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
20023 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
20028 @section Score Decays
20029 @cindex score decays
20032 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
20033 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
20034 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
20035 use them in any sensible way.
20037 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
20038 @findex gnus-decay-score
20039 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
20040 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
20041 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
20042 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
20043 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
20044 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
20045 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
20046 definition of that function:
20049 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
20051 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
20052 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
20055 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
20057 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
20059 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
20062 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
20063 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
20064 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
20065 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
20069 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
20072 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
20075 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
20079 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
20080 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
20081 the new score, which should be an integer.
20083 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
20084 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
20089 @include message.texi
20090 @chapter Emacs MIME
20091 @include emacs-mime.texi
20093 @include sieve.texi
20103 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
20104 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
20105 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
20106 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
20107 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
20108 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
20109 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
20110 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
20111 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
20112 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
20113 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
20114 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
20115 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
20116 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
20117 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
20118 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
20119 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
20120 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
20121 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
20125 @node Process/Prefix
20126 @section Process/Prefix
20127 @cindex process/prefix convention
20129 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
20130 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
20132 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
20133 command to be performed on.
20137 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
20138 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
20139 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
20140 with the current one.
20142 @vindex transient-mark-mode
20143 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
20144 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
20146 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
20147 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
20150 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
20151 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
20153 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
20156 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
20157 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
20158 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
20159 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
20161 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
20162 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
20163 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
20164 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
20165 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
20166 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
20167 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
20168 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
20170 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
20171 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
20172 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
20173 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
20174 expirable, you could say @kbd{M P b M-& E}.
20178 @section Interactive
20179 @cindex interaction
20183 @item gnus-novice-user
20184 @vindex gnus-novice-user
20185 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
20186 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
20187 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
20188 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
20191 @item gnus-expert-user
20192 @vindex gnus-expert-user
20193 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
20194 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
20195 matter how strange.
20197 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
20198 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
20199 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
20200 is @code{t} by default.
20202 @item gnus-interactive-exit
20203 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
20204 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
20209 @node Symbolic Prefixes
20210 @section Symbolic Prefixes
20211 @cindex symbolic prefixes
20213 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
20214 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
20215 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
20216 rule of 900 to the current article.
20218 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
20219 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
20220 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
20221 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
20222 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
20223 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
20224 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
20226 @kindex M-i (Summary)
20227 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
20228 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
20229 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
20230 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
20231 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a C-M-u} means ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u}
20232 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b C-M-u} means
20233 ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
20234 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
20236 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
20237 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
20238 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
20240 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
20244 @node Formatting Variables
20245 @section Formatting Variables
20246 @cindex formatting variables
20248 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
20249 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
20250 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
20251 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
20252 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
20255 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
20256 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
20257 lots of percentages everywhere.
20260 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
20261 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
20262 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
20263 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
20264 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
20265 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
20266 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
20267 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
20270 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
20271 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
20272 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
20273 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
20274 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
20275 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
20276 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
20277 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
20279 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
20280 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
20282 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
20283 @findex gnus-update-format
20284 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
20285 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
20286 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
20287 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
20291 @node Formatting Basics
20292 @subsection Formatting Basics
20294 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
20295 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
20296 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
20298 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
20299 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
20300 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
20301 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
20302 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
20305 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
20306 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
20307 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
20308 less than 4 characters wide.
20310 Also Gnus supports some extended format specifications, such as
20311 @samp{%&user-date;}.
20314 @node Mode Line Formatting
20315 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
20317 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
20318 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
20319 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
20320 with the following two differences:
20325 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
20328 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
20329 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
20330 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
20331 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
20332 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
20333 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
20334 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
20339 @node Advanced Formatting
20340 @subsection Advanced Formatting
20342 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
20343 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
20344 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
20345 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
20347 These are the valid modifiers:
20352 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
20356 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
20361 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
20364 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
20369 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
20372 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
20375 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
20378 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
20384 "~(form (current-time-string))@@"
20389 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
20390 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
20391 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
20392 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
20393 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
20394 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
20395 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
20397 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
20398 last operation, padding.
20400 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
20401 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
20402 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
20403 @xref{Compilation}.
20406 @node User-Defined Specs
20407 @subsection User-Defined Specs
20409 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
20410 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
20411 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
20412 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
20413 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
20414 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
20415 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
20416 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
20417 should protect against that.
20419 Also Gnus supports extended user-defined specs, such as @samp{%u&foo;}.
20420 Gnus will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{foo}.
20422 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
20423 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
20424 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
20425 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
20429 @node Formatting Fonts
20430 @subsection Formatting Fonts
20432 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
20433 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
20434 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
20435 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
20438 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
20439 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
20440 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
20441 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
20442 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
20443 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
20445 Text inside the @samp{%<<} and @samp{%>>} specifiers will get the
20446 special @code{balloon-help} property set to
20447 @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you say @samp{%1<<}, you'll get
20448 @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The @code{gnus-balloon-face-*}
20449 variables should be either strings or symbols naming functions that
20450 return a string. When the mouse passes over text with this property
20451 set, a balloon window will appear and display the string. Please
20452 refer to @ref{Tooltips, ,Tooltips, emacs, The Emacs Manual},
20453 (in GNU Emacs) or the doc string of @code{balloon-help-mode} (in
20454 XEmacs) for more information on this. (For technical reasons, the
20455 guillemets have been approximated as @samp{<<} and @samp{>>} in this
20458 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
20461 ;; Create three face types.
20462 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
20463 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
20465 ;; We want the article count to be in
20466 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
20467 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
20468 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
20470 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
20471 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
20473 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
20474 (setq gnus-group-line-format
20475 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
20478 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
20479 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
20481 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
20482 mode-line variables.
20484 @node Positioning Point
20485 @subsection Positioning Point
20487 Gnus usually moves point to a pre-defined place on each line in most
20488 buffers. By default, point move to the first colon character on the
20489 line. You can customize this behaviour in three different ways.
20491 You can move the colon character to somewhere else on the line.
20493 @findex gnus-goto-colon
20494 You can redefine the function that moves the point to the colon. The
20495 function is called @code{gnus-goto-colon}.
20497 But perhaps the most convenient way to deal with this, if you don't want
20498 to have a colon in your line, is to use the @samp{%*} specifier. If you
20499 put a @samp{%*} somewhere in your format line definition, Gnus will
20504 @subsection Tabulation
20506 You can usually line up your displays by padding and cutting your
20507 strings. However, when combining various strings of different size, it
20508 can often be more convenient to just output the strings, and then worry
20509 about lining up the following text afterwards.
20511 To do that, Gnus supplies tabulator specs--@samp{%=}. There are two
20512 different types---@dfn{hard tabulators} and @dfn{soft tabulators}.
20514 @samp{%50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
20515 50. If the text is already past column 50, nothing will be inserted.
20516 This is the soft tabulator.
20518 @samp{%-50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
20519 50. If the text is already past column 50, the excess text past column
20520 50 will be removed. This is the hard tabulator.
20523 @node Wide Characters
20524 @subsection Wide Characters
20526 Proportional fonts in most countries have characters of the same width.
20527 Some countries, however, use Latin characters mixed with wider
20528 characters---most notable East Asian countries.
20530 The problem is that when formatting, Gnus assumes that if a string is 10
20531 characters wide, it'll be 10 Latin characters wide on the screen. In
20532 these countries, that's not true.
20534 @vindex gnus-use-correct-string-widths
20535 To help fix this, you can set @code{gnus-use-correct-string-widths} to
20536 @code{t}. This makes buffer generation slower, but the results will be
20537 prettier. The default value under XEmacs is @code{t} but @code{nil}
20541 @node Window Layout
20542 @section Window Layout
20543 @cindex window layout
20545 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
20547 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
20548 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
20549 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
20550 @code{t} by default.
20552 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
20553 glitches. Use at your own peril.
20555 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
20556 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
20557 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
20560 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
20561 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
20562 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
20566 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
20567 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
20568 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
20569 possible names is listed below.
20571 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
20572 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
20575 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
20579 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
20580 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
20581 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
20582 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
20583 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
20584 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
20585 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
20586 size spec per split.
20588 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
20589 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
20590 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
20591 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
20592 present) gets focus.
20594 Here's a more complicated example:
20597 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
20598 (summary 0.25 point)
20599 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
20603 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
20604 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
20605 occupy, not a percentage.
20607 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
20608 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
20609 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
20610 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
20611 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
20614 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
20617 (article (horizontal 1.0
20622 (summary 0.25 point)
20627 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
20628 @code{horizontal} thingie?
20630 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
20631 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
20632 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
20633 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
20634 the screen is to be given to this strip.
20636 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
20637 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
20638 lines from the splits.
20640 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
20644 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
20645 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
20646 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
20647 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
20648 buffer = "(" buf-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
20649 size = number | frame-params
20650 buf-name = group | article | summary ...
20653 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
20654 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
20655 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
20656 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
20658 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
20659 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
20660 @cindex window height
20661 @cindex window width
20662 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
20663 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
20664 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
20665 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
20666 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
20667 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
20669 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
20670 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
20671 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
20672 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
20674 @findex gnus-configure-frame
20675 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
20676 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
20677 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
20678 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
20679 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
20680 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
20681 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
20682 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
20683 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
20684 configuration list.
20687 (gnus-configure-frame
20691 (article 0.3 point))
20699 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
20700 @code{frame} split:
20703 (gnus-configure-frame
20706 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
20708 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
20709 (user-position . t)
20710 (left . -1) (top . 1))
20715 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
20716 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
20717 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
20718 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
20719 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
20720 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
20721 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
20722 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
20724 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
20725 be found in its default value.
20727 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
20728 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
20729 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
20733 (message (horizontal 1.0
20734 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
20736 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
20741 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
20742 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
20743 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
20748 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
20749 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
20750 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
20751 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
20752 (name . "Message"))
20753 (message 1.0 point))))
20756 @findex gnus-add-configuration
20757 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
20758 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
20759 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
20760 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
20763 (gnus-add-configuration
20764 '(article (vertical 1.0
20766 (summary .25 point)
20770 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
20771 @file{~/.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
20772 Gnus has been loaded.
20774 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
20775 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
20776 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
20777 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
20778 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
20780 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
20781 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
20782 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
20785 @subsection Example Window Configurations
20789 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
20790 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
20805 (gnus-add-configuration
20808 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
20810 (summary 0.16 point)
20813 (gnus-add-configuration
20816 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
20817 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
20823 @node Faces and Fonts
20824 @section Faces and Fonts
20829 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
20830 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
20831 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
20836 @section Compilation
20837 @cindex compilation
20838 @cindex byte-compilation
20840 @findex gnus-compile
20842 Remember all those line format specification variables?
20843 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
20844 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
20845 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
20846 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
20847 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
20850 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
20851 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
20852 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
20853 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
20854 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
20855 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
20856 them into the @file{~/.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
20860 @section Mode Lines
20863 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
20864 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
20865 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
20866 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
20867 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
20868 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
20869 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
20872 @cindex display-time
20874 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
20875 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
20876 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
20877 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
20878 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
20879 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
20880 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
20881 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
20884 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
20886 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
20887 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
20889 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
20890 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
20891 (length display-time-string)))))
20894 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
20895 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
20896 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
20897 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
20898 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
20901 @node Highlighting and Menus
20902 @section Highlighting and Menus
20904 @cindex highlighting
20907 @vindex gnus-visual
20908 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
20909 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
20910 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
20913 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
20914 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
20917 @item group-highlight
20918 Do highlights in the group buffer.
20919 @item summary-highlight
20920 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
20921 @item article-highlight
20922 Do highlights in the article buffer.
20924 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
20926 Create menus in the group buffer.
20928 Create menus in the summary buffers.
20930 Create menus in the article buffer.
20932 Create menus in the browse buffer.
20934 Create menus in the server buffer.
20936 Create menus in the score buffers.
20938 Create menus in all buffers.
20941 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
20942 buffers, you could say something like:
20945 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
20948 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
20951 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
20954 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
20955 in all Gnus buffers.
20957 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
20960 @item gnus-mouse-face
20961 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
20962 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
20963 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
20967 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
20971 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
20972 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
20973 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
20975 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
20976 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
20977 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
20979 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
20980 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
20981 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
20983 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
20984 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
20985 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
20987 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
20988 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
20989 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
20991 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
20992 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
20993 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
21004 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
21005 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
21006 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
21007 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
21008 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
21012 @vindex gnus-carpal
21013 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
21014 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
21015 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
21020 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
21021 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
21022 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
21024 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
21025 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
21026 Face used on buttons.
21028 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
21029 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
21030 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
21032 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
21033 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
21034 Buttons in the group buffer.
21036 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
21037 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
21038 Buttons in the summary buffer.
21040 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
21041 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
21042 Buttons in the server buffer.
21044 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
21045 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
21046 Buttons in the browse buffer.
21049 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
21050 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
21051 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
21059 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
21060 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
21061 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
21062 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
21063 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
21065 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
21066 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
21067 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
21069 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
21070 been idle for thirty minutes:
21073 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
21076 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
21080 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
21083 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
21084 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
21085 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
21087 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
21088 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
21089 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
21090 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
21092 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
21093 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
21094 @var{idle} minutes.
21096 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
21097 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
21100 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
21101 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
21102 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
21104 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
21105 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
21106 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
21107 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
21109 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
21110 your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
21112 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
21114 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
21117 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
21118 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
21119 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
21120 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
21121 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
21122 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
21123 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
21124 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
21125 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
21126 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
21127 @file{~/.gnus.el} if you want those abilities.
21129 @findex gnus-demon-init
21130 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
21131 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
21132 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
21133 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
21134 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
21136 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
21137 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
21138 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
21147 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
21148 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
21150 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
21151 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
21152 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
21153 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
21156 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
21157 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
21158 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
21159 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
21161 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
21162 this will make spam disappear.
21164 There are some variables to customize, of course:
21167 @item gnus-use-nocem
21168 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
21169 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
21172 @item gnus-nocem-groups
21173 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
21174 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
21175 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
21176 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
21178 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
21179 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
21180 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
21181 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
21182 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
21183 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
21185 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
21186 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
21188 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
21189 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
21190 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
21191 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
21192 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
21193 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
21194 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
21195 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
21196 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
21197 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
21199 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
21200 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
21203 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
21206 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
21207 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
21210 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
21213 The specs are applied left-to-right.
21216 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
21217 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
21219 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
21220 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
21221 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
21222 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
21224 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
21225 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
21228 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
21230 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
21238 This might be dangerous, though.
21240 @item gnus-nocem-directory
21241 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
21242 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
21243 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
21245 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
21246 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
21247 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
21248 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
21249 might then see old spam.
21251 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
21252 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
21253 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
21254 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
21255 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
21258 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
21259 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
21260 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
21261 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
21265 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
21266 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
21267 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
21268 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
21275 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
21276 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
21277 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
21279 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
21280 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
21281 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
21282 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
21283 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
21284 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
21285 @code{undo} function.
21287 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
21288 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
21289 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
21290 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
21291 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
21292 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
21293 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
21294 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
21295 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
21296 never be totally undoable.
21298 @findex gnus-undo-mode
21299 @vindex gnus-use-undo
21301 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
21302 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
21303 default. The @kbd{C-M-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo}
21304 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
21308 @node Predicate Specifiers
21309 @section Predicate Specifiers
21310 @cindex predicate specifiers
21312 Some Gnus variables are @dfn{predicate specifiers}. This is a special
21313 form that allows flexible specification of predicates without having
21314 to type all that much.
21316 These specifiers are lists consisting of functions, symbols and lists.
21321 (or gnus-article-unseen-p
21322 gnus-article-unread-p)
21325 The available symbols are @code{or}, @code{and} and @code{not}. The
21326 functions all take one parameter.
21328 @findex gnus-make-predicate
21329 Internally, Gnus calls @code{gnus-make-predicate} on these specifiers
21330 to create a function that can be called. This input parameter to this
21331 function will be passed along to all the functions in the predicate
21336 @section Moderation
21339 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
21340 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
21341 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
21344 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
21348 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
21351 in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file.
21353 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
21358 You split your incoming mail by matching on
21359 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
21360 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
21363 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
21364 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
21367 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
21368 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
21372 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
21375 (setq gnus-moderated-list
21376 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
21380 @node Image Enhancements
21381 @section Image Enhancements
21383 XEmacs, as well as Emacs 21, is able to display pictures and stuff, so
21384 Gnus has taken advantage of that.
21387 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
21388 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
21389 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
21390 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
21403 So@dots{} You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
21404 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
21405 over your shoulder as you read news.
21407 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
21416 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
21417 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
21418 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
21419 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
21420 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
21421 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
21422 @code{GIF} formats.
21425 @vindex gnus-picon-databases
21426 For instructions on obtaining and installing the picons databases,
21427 point your Web browser at
21428 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}.
21430 If you are using Debian GNU/Linux, saying @samp{apt-get install
21431 picons.*} will install the picons where Gnus can find them.
21433 To enable displaying picons, simply make sure that
21434 @code{gnus-picon-databases} points to the directory containing the
21437 The following variables offer control over where things are located.
21441 @item gnus-picon-databases
21442 @vindex gnus-picon-databases
21443 The location of the picons database. This is a list of directories
21444 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
21445 subdirectories. Defaults to @code{("/usr/lib/picon"
21446 "/usr/local/faces")}.
21448 @item gnus-picon-news-directories
21449 @vindex gnus-picon-news-directories
21450 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picon-databases} for
21451 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
21453 @item gnus-picon-user-directories
21454 @vindex gnus-picon-user-directories
21455 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picon-databases} for user
21456 faces. @code{("users" "usenix" "local" "misc")} is the default.
21458 @item gnus-picon-domain-directories
21459 @vindex gnus-picon-domain-directories
21460 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picon-databases} for
21461 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
21462 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
21464 @item gnus-picon-file-types
21465 @vindex gnus-picon-file-types
21466 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
21467 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your Emacs.
21472 @subsection Smileys
21477 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/BigFace,height=20cm}}
21482 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
21483 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
21485 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
21486 @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
21489 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
21492 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{8-)}, @samp{:-(} and
21493 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
21494 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
21495 text and maps that to file names.
21497 @vindex smiley-regexp-alist
21498 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist}
21499 variable. The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched;
21500 the second element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by
21501 the picture; and the third element is the name of the file to be
21504 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
21509 @item smiley-data-directory
21510 @vindex smiley-data-directory
21511 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
21513 @item gnus-smiley-file-types
21514 @vindex gnus-smiley-file-types
21515 List of suffixes on smiley file names to try.
21524 @code{X-Face} headers describe a 48x48 pixel black-and-white (1 bit
21525 depth) image that's supposed to represent the author of the message.
21526 It seems to be supported by an ever-growing number of mail and news
21530 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
21531 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
21532 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
21533 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
21541 Decoding an @code{X-Face} header either requires an Emacs that has
21542 @samp{compface} support (which most XEmacs versions has), or that you
21543 have @samp{compface} installed on your system. If either is true,
21544 Gnus will default to displaying @code{X-Face} headers.
21546 The variable that controls this is the
21547 @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable. If this variable is a
21548 string, this string will be executed in a sub-shell. If it is a
21549 function, this function will be called with the face as the argument.
21550 If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which is a regexp) matches
21551 the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
21553 The default action under Emacs 20 is to fork off the @code{display}
21554 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For
21555 the @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
21556 like @code{compface} or @code{faces-xface} on a GNU/Linux system.} to
21559 Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image support, the default
21560 action is to display the face before the @code{From} header. (It's
21561 nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with @code{X-Face} support---that
21562 will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native @code{X-Face}
21563 support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
21564 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
21565 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
21566 like @code{netpbm}, @code{libgr-progs} and @code{compface}.})
21568 (Note: @code{x-face} is used in the variable/function names, not
21571 Gnus provides a few convenience functions and variables to allow
21572 easier insertion of X-Face headers in outgoing messages.
21574 @findex gnus-random-x-face
21575 @vindex gnus-convert-pbm-to-x-face-command
21576 @vindex gnus-x-face-directory
21577 @code{gnus-random-x-face} goes through all the @samp{pbm} files in
21578 @code{gnus-x-face-directory} and picks one at random, and then
21579 converts it to the X-Face format by using the
21580 @code{gnus-convert-pbm-to-x-face-command} shell command. The
21581 @samp{pbm} files should be 48x48 pixels big. It returns the X-Face
21582 header data as a string.
21584 @findex gnus-insert-random-x-face-header
21585 @code{gnus-insert-random-x-face-header} calls
21586 @code{gnus-random-x-face} and inserts a @samp{X-Face} header with the
21587 randomly generated data.
21589 @findex gnus-x-face-from-file
21590 @vindex gnus-convert-image-to-x-face-command
21591 @code{gnus-x-face-from-file} takes a GIF file as the parameter, and then
21592 converts the file to X-Face format by using the
21593 @code{gnus-convert-image-to-x-face-command} shell command.
21595 Here's how you would typically use the first function. Put something
21596 like the following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
21599 (setq message-required-news-headers
21600 (nconc message-required-news-headers
21601 (list '(X-Face . gnus-random-x-face))))
21604 Using the last function would be something like this:
21607 (setq message-required-news-headers
21608 (nconc message-required-news-headers
21609 (list '(X-Face . (lambda ()
21610 (gnus-x-face-from-file
21611 "~/My-face.gif"))))))
21616 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
21619 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
21620 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
21621 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
21622 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
21623 unusual directory structure.
21625 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
21626 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
21627 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
21628 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
21630 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
21631 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
21632 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
21633 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
21634 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
21635 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
21637 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
21638 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
21639 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
21644 @subsubsection Toolbar
21648 @item gnus-use-toolbar
21649 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
21650 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
21651 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
21652 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
21654 @item gnus-group-toolbar
21655 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
21656 The toolbar in the group buffer.
21658 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
21659 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
21660 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
21662 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
21663 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
21664 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
21675 @node Fuzzy Matching
21676 @section Fuzzy Matching
21677 @cindex fuzzy matching
21679 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
21680 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
21682 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
21683 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
21684 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
21686 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
21687 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
21688 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
21689 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
21690 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
21693 @node Thwarting Email Spam
21694 @section Thwarting Email Spam
21698 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
21700 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
21701 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
21702 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
21703 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
21704 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
21705 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
21706 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
21707 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
21710 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
21711 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
21712 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
21713 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
21714 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
21715 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
21717 This is annoying. Here's what you can do about it.
21720 * The problem of spam:: Some background, and some solutions
21721 * Anti-Spam Basics:: Simple steps to reduce the amount of spam.
21722 * SpamAssassin:: How to use external anti-spam tools.
21723 * Hashcash:: Reduce spam by burning CPU time.
21724 * Filtering Spam Using The Spam ELisp Package::
21725 * Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat::
21728 @node The problem of spam
21729 @subsection The problem of spam
21731 @cindex spam filtering approaches
21732 @cindex filtering approaches, spam
21734 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
21736 First, some background on spam.
21738 If you have access to e-mail, you are familiar with spam (technically
21739 termed @acronym{UCE}, Unsolicited Commercial E-mail). Simply put, it exists
21740 because e-mail delivery is very cheap compared to paper mail, so only
21741 a very small percentage of people need to respond to an UCE to make it
21742 worthwhile to the advertiser. Ironically, one of the most common
21743 spams is the one offering a database of e-mail addresses for further
21744 spamming. Senders of spam are usually called @emph{spammers}, but terms like
21745 @emph{vermin}, @emph{scum}, and @emph{morons} are in common use as well.
21747 Spam comes from a wide variety of sources. It is simply impossible to
21748 dispose of all spam without discarding useful messages. A good
21749 example is the TMDA system, which requires senders
21750 unknown to you to confirm themselves as legitimate senders before
21751 their e-mail can reach you. Without getting into the technical side
21752 of TMDA, a downside is clearly that e-mail from legitimate sources may
21753 be discarded if those sources can't or won't confirm themselves
21754 through the TMDA system. Another problem with TMDA is that it
21755 requires its users to have a basic understanding of e-mail delivery
21758 The simplest approach to filtering spam is filtering. If you get 200
21759 spam messages per day from @samp{random-address@@vmadmin.com}, you
21760 block @samp{vmadmin.com}. If you get 200 messages about
21761 @samp{VIAGRA}, you discard all messages with @samp{VIAGRA} in the
21762 message. This, unfortunately, is a great way to discard legitimate
21763 e-mail. For instance, the very informative and useful RISKS digest
21764 has been blocked by overzealous mail filters because it
21765 @strong{contained} words that were common in spam messages.
21766 Nevertheless, in isolated cases, with great care, direct filtering of
21767 mail can be useful.
21769 Another approach to filtering e-mail is the distributed spam
21770 processing, for instance DCC implements such a system. In essence,
21771 @code{N} systems around the world agree that a machine @samp{X} in
21772 China, Ghana, or California is sending out spam e-mail, and these
21773 @code{N} systems enter @samp{X} or the spam e-mail from @samp{X} into
21774 a database. The criteria for spam detection vary - it may be the
21775 number of messages sent, the content of the messages, and so on. When
21776 a user of the distributed processing system wants to find out if a
21777 message is spam, he consults one of those @code{N} systems.
21779 Distributed spam processing works very well against spammers that send
21780 a large number of messages at once, but it requires the user to set up
21781 fairly complicated checks. There are commercial and free distributed
21782 spam processing systems. Distributed spam processing has its risks as
21783 well. For instance legitimate e-mail senders have been accused of
21784 sending spam, and their web sites have been shut down for some time
21785 because of the incident.
21787 The statistical approach to spam filtering is also popular. It is
21788 based on a statistical analysis of previous spam messages. Usually
21789 the analysis is a simple word frequency count, with perhaps pairs of
21790 words or 3-word combinations thrown into the mix. Statistical
21791 analysis of spam works very well in most of the cases, but it can
21792 classify legitimate e-mail as spam in some cases. It takes time to
21793 run the analysis, the full message must be analyzed, and the user has
21794 to store the database of spam analyses.
21796 @node Anti-Spam Basics
21797 @subsection Anti-Spam Basics
21801 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
21803 One way of dealing with spam is having Gnus split out all spam into a
21804 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
21806 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
21807 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
21808 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
21809 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
21810 sysadmin whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
21811 part of the mail address.)
21814 (setq message-default-news-headers
21815 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
21818 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
21819 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
21824 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
21825 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
21826 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
21832 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
21833 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
21834 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
21835 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
21837 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @sc{smtp} server
21838 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
21839 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
21840 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
21841 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
21842 your fancy split rule in this way:
21847 (to "larsi" "misc")
21851 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
21852 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
21853 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
21854 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
21855 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
21857 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
21858 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
21859 at @* @uref{http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html}.
21860 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
21861 cosmic balance somewhat.
21863 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
21864 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
21865 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
21866 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
21871 @subsection SpamAssassin, Vipul's Razor, DCC, etc
21872 @cindex SpamAssassin
21873 @cindex Vipul's Razor
21876 The days where the hints in the previous section was sufficient in
21877 avoiding spam is coming to an end. There are many tools out there
21878 that claim to reduce the amount of spam you get. This section could
21879 easily become outdated fast, as new products replace old, but
21880 fortunately most of these tools seem to have similar interfaces. Even
21881 though this section will use SpamAssassin as an example, it should be
21882 easy to adapt it to most other tools.
21884 If the tool you are using is not installed on the mail server, you
21885 need to invoke it yourself. Ideas on how to use the
21886 @code{:postscript} mail source parameter (@pxref{Mail Source
21887 Specifiers}) follows.
21891 '((file :prescript "formail -bs spamassassin < /var/mail/%u")
21894 :postscript "mv %t /tmp/foo; formail -bs spamc < /tmp/foo > %t")))
21897 Once you managed to process your incoming spool somehow, thus making
21898 the mail contain e.g. a header indicating it is spam, you are ready to
21899 filter it out. Using normal split methods (@pxref{Splitting Mail}):
21902 (setq nnmail-split-methods '(("spam" "^X-Spam-Flag: YES")
21906 Or using fancy split methods (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
21909 (setq nnmail-split-methods 'nnmail-split-fancy
21910 nnmail-split-fancy '(| ("X-Spam-Flag" "YES" "spam")
21914 Some people might not like the idea of piping the mail through various
21915 programs using a @code{:prescript} (if some program is buggy, you
21916 might lose all mail). If you are one of them, another solution is to
21917 call the external tools during splitting. Example fancy split method:
21920 (setq nnmail-split-fancy '(| (: kevin-spamassassin)
21922 (defun kevin-spamassassin ()
21924 (let ((buf (or (get-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
21925 (get-buffer " *nnml move*"))))
21927 (progn (message "Oops, cannot find message buffer") nil)
21929 (if (eq 1 (call-process-region (point-min) (point-max)
21930 "spamc" nil nil nil "-c"))
21934 That is about it. As some spam is likely to get through anyway, you
21935 might want to have a nifty function to call when you happen to read
21936 spam. And here is the nifty function:
21939 (defun my-gnus-raze-spam ()
21940 "Submit SPAM to Vipul's Razor, then mark it as expirable."
21942 (gnus-summary-show-raw-article)
21943 (gnus-summary-save-in-pipe "razor-report -f -d")
21944 (gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable 1))
21948 @subsection Hashcash
21951 A novel technique to fight spam is to require senders to do something
21952 costly for each message they send. This has the obvious drawback that
21953 you cannot rely on that everyone in the world uses this technique,
21954 since it is not part of the Internet standards, but it may be useful
21955 in smaller communities.
21957 While the tools in the previous section work well in practice, they
21958 work only because the tools are constantly maintained and updated as
21959 new form of spam appears. This means that a small percentage of spam
21960 will always get through. It also means that somewhere, someone needs
21961 to read lots of spam to update these tools. Hashcash avoids that, but
21962 instead requires that everyone you communicate with supports the
21963 scheme. You can view the two approaches as pragmatic vs dogmatic.
21964 The approaches have their own advantages and disadvantages, but as
21965 often in the real world, a combination of them is stronger than either
21966 one of them separately.
21969 The ``something costly'' is to burn CPU time, more specifically to
21970 compute a hash collision up to a certain number of bits. The
21971 resulting hashcash cookie is inserted in a @samp{X-Hashcash:}
21972 header. For more details, and for the external application
21973 @code{hashcash} you need to install to use this feature, see
21974 @uref{http://www.cypherspace.org/~adam/hashcash/}. Even more
21975 information can be found at @uref{http://www.camram.org/}.
21977 If you wish to call hashcash for each message you send, say something
21981 (require 'hashcash)
21982 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'mail-add-payment)
21985 The @code{hashcash.el} library can be found at
21986 @uref{http://users.actrix.gen.nz/mycroft/hashcash.el}, or in the Gnus
21987 development contrib directory.
21989 You will need to set up some additional variables as well:
21993 @item hashcash-default-payment
21994 @vindex hashcash-default-payment
21995 This variable indicates the default number of bits the hash collision
21996 should consist of. By default this is 0, meaning nothing will be
21997 done. Suggested useful values include 17 to 29.
21999 @item hashcash-payment-alist
22000 @vindex hashcash-payment-alist
22001 Some receivers may require you to spend burn more CPU time than the
22002 default. This variable contains a list of @samp{(@var{addr}
22003 @var{amount})} cells, where @var{addr} is the receiver (email address
22004 or newsgroup) and @var{amount} is the number of bits in the collision
22005 that is needed. It can also contain @samp{(@var{addr} @var{string}
22006 @var{amount})} cells, where the @var{string} is the string to use
22007 (normally the email address or newsgroup name is used).
22011 Where the @code{hashcash} binary is installed.
22015 Currently there is no built in functionality in Gnus to verify
22016 hashcash cookies, it is expected that this is performed by your hand
22017 customized mail filtering scripts. Improvements in this area would be
22018 a useful contribution, however.
22020 @node Filtering Spam Using The Spam ELisp Package
22021 @subsection Filtering Spam Using The Spam ELisp Package
22022 @cindex spam filtering
22025 The idea behind @code{spam.el} is to have a control center for spam detection
22026 and filtering in Gnus. To that end, @code{spam.el} does two things: it
22027 filters incoming mail, and it analyzes mail known to be spam or ham.
22028 @emph{Ham} is the name used throughout @code{spam.el} to indicate
22031 So, what happens when you load @code{spam.el}? First of all, you get
22032 the following keyboard commands:
22042 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-spam
22043 @code{gnus-summary-mark-as-spam}.
22045 Mark current article as spam, showing it with the @samp{$} mark.
22046 Whenever you see a spam article, make sure to mark its summary line
22047 with @kbd{M-d} before leaving the group. This is done automatically
22048 for unread articles in @emph{spam} groups.
22054 @findex spam-bogofilter-score
22055 @code{spam-bogofilter-score}.
22057 You must have Bogofilter installed for that command to work properly.
22063 Also, when you load @code{spam.el}, you will be able to customize its
22064 variables. Try @code{customize-group} on the @samp{spam} variable
22067 The concepts of ham processors and spam processors are very important.
22068 Ham processors and spam processors for a group can be set with the
22069 @code{spam-process} group parameter, or the
22070 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. Ham processors take
22071 mail known to be non-spam (@emph{ham}) and process it in some way so
22072 that later similar mail will also be considered non-spam. Spam
22073 processors take mail known to be spam and process it so similar spam
22074 will be detected later.
22076 Gnus learns from the spam you get. You have to collect your spam in
22077 one or more spam groups, and set or customize the variable
22078 @code{spam-junk-mailgroups} as appropriate. You can also declare
22079 groups to contain spam by setting their group parameter
22080 @code{spam-contents} to @code{gnus-group-spam-classification-spam}, or
22081 by customizing the corresponding variable
22082 @code{gnus-spam-newsgroup-contents}. The @code{spam-contents} group
22083 parameter and the @code{gnus-spam-newsgroup-contents} variable can
22084 also be used to declare groups as @emph{ham} groups if you set their
22085 classification to @code{gnus-group-spam-classification-ham}. If
22086 groups are not classified by means of @code{spam-junk-mailgroups},
22087 @code{spam-contents}, or @code{gnus-spam-newsgroup-contents}, they are
22088 considered @emph{unclassified}. All groups are unclassified by
22091 In spam groups, all messages are considered to be spam by default:
22092 they get the @samp{$} mark when you enter the group. You must review
22093 these messages from time to time and remove the @samp{$} mark for
22094 every message that is not spam after all. To remove the @samp{$}
22095 mark, you can use @kbd{M-u} to ``unread'' the article, or @kbd{d} for
22096 declaring it read the non-spam way. When you leave a group, all
22097 spam-marked (@samp{$}) articles are sent to a spam processor which
22098 will study them as spam samples.
22100 Messages may also be deleted in various other ways, and unless
22101 @code{spam-ham-marks} gets overridden below, marks @samp{R} and
22102 @samp{r} for default read or explicit delete, marks @samp{X} and
22103 @samp{K} for automatic or explicit kills, as well as mark @samp{Y} for
22104 low scores, are all considered to be associated with articles which
22105 are not spam. This assumption might be false, in particular if you
22106 use kill files or score files as means for detecting genuine spam, you
22107 should then adjust the @code{spam-ham-marks} variable.
22109 @defvar spam-ham-marks
22110 You can customize this variable to be the list of marks you want to
22111 consider ham. By default, the list contains the deleted, read,
22112 killed, kill-filed, and low-score marks.
22115 @defvar spam-spam-marks
22116 You can customize this variable to be the list of marks you want to
22117 consider spam. By default, the list contains only the spam mark.
22120 When you leave @emph{any} group, regardless of its
22121 @code{spam-contents} classification, all spam-marked articles are sent
22122 to a spam processor, which will study these as spam samples. If you
22123 explicit kill a lot, you might sometimes end up with articles marked
22124 @samp{K} which you never saw, and which might accidentally contain
22125 spam. Best is to make sure that real spam is marked with @samp{$},
22128 When you leave a @emph{spam} group, all spam-marked articles are
22129 marked as expired after processing with the spam processor. This is
22130 not done for @emph{unclassified} or @emph{ham} groups. Also, any
22131 @strong{ham} articles in a spam group will be moved to a location
22132 determined by either the @code{ham-process-destination} group
22133 parameter or a match in the @code{gnus-ham-process-destinations}
22134 variable, which is a list of regular expressions matched with group
22135 names (it's easiest to customize this variable with
22136 @code{customize-variable gnus-ham-process-destinations}). The ultimate
22137 location is a group name. If the @code{ham-process-destination}
22138 parameter is not set, spam articles are only expired.
22140 When you leave a @emph{ham} group, all ham-marked articles are sent to
22141 a ham processor, which will study these as non-spam samples.
22143 When you leave a @emph{ham} or @emph{unclassified} group, all
22144 @strong{spam} articles are moved to a location determined by either
22145 the @code{spam-process-destination} group parameter or a match in the
22146 @code{gnus-spam-process-destinations} variable, which is a list of
22147 regular expressions matched with group names (it's easiest to
22148 customize this variable with @code{customize-variable
22149 gnus-spam-process-destinations}). The ultimate location is a group
22150 name. If the @code{spam-process-destination} parameter is not set,
22151 the spam articles are only expired.
22153 To use the @code{spam.el} facilities for incoming mail filtering, you
22154 must add the following to your fancy split list
22155 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} or @code{nnimap-split-fancy}:
22161 Note that the fancy split may be called @code{nnmail-split-fancy} or
22162 @code{nnimap-split-fancy}, depending on whether you use the nnmail or
22163 nnimap back ends to retrieve your mail.
22165 The @code{spam-split} function will process incoming mail and send the
22166 mail considered to be spam into the group name given by the variable
22167 @code{spam-split-group}. By default that group name is @samp{spam},
22168 but you can customize it.
22170 @emph{Note for IMAP users}
22172 The boolean variable @code{nnimap-split-download-body} needs to be
22173 set, if you want to split based on the whole message instead of just
22174 the headers. By default, the nnimap backend will only retrieve the
22175 message headers. If you use spam-check-bogofilter, spam-check-ifile,
22176 or spam-check-stat (the splitters that can benefit from the full
22177 message body), you should set this variable. It is not set by default
22178 because it will slow IMAP down.
22180 @xref{Splitting in IMAP}.
22182 @emph{TODO: Currently, spam.el only supports insertion of articles
22183 into a backend. There is no way to tell spam.el that an article is no
22184 longer spam or ham.}
22186 @emph{TODO: spam.el needs to provide a uniform way of training all the
22187 statistical databases. Some have that functionality built-in, others
22190 The following are the methods you can use to control the behavior of
22191 @code{spam-split} and their corresponding spam and ham processors:
22194 * Blacklists and Whitelists::
22195 * BBDB Whitelists::
22197 * Regular Expressions Header Matching::
22199 * ifile spam filtering::
22200 * spam-stat spam filtering::
22201 * Extending the spam elisp package::
22204 @node Blacklists and Whitelists
22205 @subsubsection Blacklists and Whitelists
22206 @cindex spam filtering
22207 @cindex whitelists, spam filtering
22208 @cindex blacklists, spam filtering
22211 @defvar spam-use-blacklist
22213 Set this variable to @code{t} if you want to use blacklists when
22214 splitting incoming mail. Messages whose senders are in the blacklist
22215 will be sent to the @code{spam-split-group}. This is an explicit
22216 filter, meaning that it acts only on mail senders @emph{declared} to
22221 @defvar spam-use-whitelist
22223 Set this variable to @code{t} if you want to use whitelists when
22224 splitting incoming mail. Messages whose senders are not in the
22225 whitelist will be sent to the next spam-split rule. This is an
22226 explicit filter, meaning that unless someone is in the whitelist, their
22227 messages are not assumed to be spam or ham.
22231 @defvar spam-use-whitelist-exclusive
22233 Set this variable to @code{t} if you want to use whitelists as an
22234 implicit filter, meaning that every message will be considered spam
22235 unless the sender is in the whitelist. Use with care.
22239 @defvar gnus-group-spam-exit-processor-blacklist
22241 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22242 customizing the group parameters or the
22243 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22244 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the senders of
22245 spam-marked articles will be added to the blacklist.
22249 @defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-whitelist
22251 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22252 customizing the group parameters or the
22253 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22254 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the senders of
22255 ham-marked articles in @emph{ham} groups will be added to the
22256 whitelist. Note that this ham processor has no effect in @emph{spam}
22257 or @emph{unclassified} groups.
22261 Blacklists are lists of regular expressions matching addresses you
22262 consider to be spam senders. For instance, to block mail from any
22263 sender at @samp{vmadmin.com}, you can put @samp{vmadmin.com} in your
22264 blacklist. You start out with an empty blacklist. Blacklist entries
22265 use the Emacs regular expression syntax.
22267 Conversely, whitelists tell Gnus what addresses are considered
22268 legitimate. All messages from whitelisted addresses are considered
22269 non-spam. Also see @ref{BBDB Whitelists}. Whitelist entries use the
22270 Emacs regular expression syntax.
22272 The blacklist and whitelist file locations can be customized with the
22273 @code{spam-directory} variable (@file{~/News/spam} by default), or
22274 the @code{spam-whitelist} and @code{spam-blacklist} variables
22275 directly. The whitelist and blacklist files will by default be in the
22276 @code{spam-directory} directory, named @file{whitelist} and
22277 @file{blacklist} respectively.
22279 @node BBDB Whitelists
22280 @subsubsection BBDB Whitelists
22281 @cindex spam filtering
22282 @cindex BBDB whitelists, spam filtering
22283 @cindex BBDB, spam filtering
22286 @defvar spam-use-BBDB
22288 Analogous to @code{spam-use-whitelist} (@pxref{Blacklists and
22289 Whitelists}), but uses the BBDB as the source of whitelisted
22290 addresses, without regular expressions. You must have the BBDB loaded
22291 for @code{spam-use-BBDB} to work properly. Messages whose senders are
22292 not in the BBDB will be sent to the next spam-split rule. This is an
22293 explicit filter, meaning that unless someone is in the BBDB, their
22294 messages are not assumed to be spam or ham.
22298 @defvar spam-use-BBDB-exclusive
22300 Set this variable to @code{t} if you want to use the BBDB as an
22301 implicit filter, meaning that every message will be considered spam
22302 unless the sender is in the BBDB. Use with care. Only sender
22303 addresses in the BBDB will be allowed through; all others will be
22304 classified as spammers.
22308 @defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-BBDB
22310 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22311 customizing the group parameters or the
22312 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22313 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the senders of
22314 ham-marked articles in @emph{ham} groups will be added to the
22315 BBDB. Note that this ham processor has no effect in @emph{spam}
22316 or @emph{unclassified} groups.
22321 @subsubsection Blackholes
22322 @cindex spam filtering
22323 @cindex blackholes, spam filtering
22326 @defvar spam-use-blackholes
22328 This option is disabled by default. You can let Gnus consult the
22329 blackhole-type distributed spam processing systems (DCC, for instance)
22330 when you set this option. The variable @code{spam-blackhole-servers}
22331 holds the list of blackhole servers Gnus will consult. The current
22332 list is fairly comprehensive, but make sure to let us know if it
22333 contains outdated servers.
22335 The blackhole check uses the @code{dig.el} package, but you can tell
22336 @code{spam.el} to use @code{dns.el} instead for better performance if
22337 you set @code{spam-use-dig} to nil. It is not recommended at this
22338 time to set @code{spam-use-dig} to nil despite the possible
22339 performance improvements, because some users may be unable to use it,
22340 but you can try it and see if it works for you.
22344 @defvar spam-blackhole-servers
22346 The list of servers to consult for blackhole checks.
22350 @defvar spam-blackhole-good-server-regex
22352 A regular expression for IPs that should not be checked against the
22353 blackhole server list. When set to nil, it has no effect.
22357 @defvar spam-use-dig
22359 Use the @code{dig.el} package instead of the @code{dns.el} package.
22360 The default setting of @code{t} is recommended.
22364 Blackhole checks are done only on incoming mail. There is no spam or
22365 ham processor for blackholes.
22367 @node Regular Expressions Header Matching
22368 @subsubsection Regular Expressions Header Matching
22369 @cindex spam filtering
22370 @cindex regular expressions header matching, spam filtering
22373 @defvar spam-use-regex-headers
22375 This option is disabled by default. You can let Gnus check the
22376 message headers against lists of regular expressions when you set this
22377 option. The variables @code{spam-regex-headers-spam} and
22378 @code{spam-regex-headers-ham} hold the list of regular expressions.
22379 Gnus will check against the message headers to determine if the
22380 message is spam or ham, respectively.
22384 @defvar spam-regex-headers-spam
22386 The list of regular expressions that, when matched in the headers of
22387 the message, positively identify it as spam.
22391 @defvar spam-regex-headers-ham
22393 The list of regular expressions that, when matched in the headers of
22394 the message, positively identify it as ham.
22398 Regular expression header checks are done only on incoming mail.
22399 There is no specific spam or ham processor for regular expressions.
22402 @subsubsection Bogofilter
22403 @cindex spam filtering
22404 @cindex bogofilter, spam filtering
22407 @defvar spam-use-bogofilter
22409 Set this variable if you want @code{spam-split} to use Eric Raymond's
22412 With a minimum of care for associating the @samp{$} mark for spam
22413 articles only, Bogofilter training all gets fairly automatic. You
22414 should do this until you get a few hundreds of articles in each
22415 category, spam or not. The command @kbd{S t} in summary mode, either
22416 for debugging or for curiosity, shows the @emph{spamicity} score of
22417 the current article (between 0.0 and 1.0).
22419 Bogofilter determines if a message is spam based on an internal
22420 threshold, set at compilation time. That threshold can't be
22423 If the @code{bogofilter} executable is not in your path, Bogofilter
22424 processing will be turned off.
22426 You should not enable this if you use @code{spam-use-bogofilter-headers}.
22430 @defvar spam-use-bogofilter-headers
22432 Set this variable if you want @code{spam-split} to use Eric Raymond's
22433 speedy Bogofilter, looking only at the message headers. It works
22434 similarly to @code{spam-use-bogofilter}, but the @code{X-Bogosity} header
22435 must be in the message already. Normally you would do this with a
22436 procmail recipe or something similar; consult the Bogofilter
22437 installation documents for details.
22439 You should not enable this if you use @code{spam-use-bogofilter}.
22443 @defvar gnus-group-spam-exit-processor-bogofilter
22444 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22445 customizing the group parameters or the
22446 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22447 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, spam-marked articles
22448 will be added to the Bogofilter spam database.
22451 @defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-bogofilter
22452 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22453 customizing the group parameters or the
22454 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22455 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the ham-marked
22456 articles in @emph{ham} groups will be added to the Bogofilter database
22457 of non-spam messages. Note that this ham processor has no effect in
22458 @emph{spam} or @emph{unclassified} groups.
22461 @defvar spam-bogofilter-database-directory
22463 This is the directory where Bogofilter will store its databases. It
22464 is not specified by default, so Bogofilter will use its own default
22465 database directory.
22469 The Bogofilter mail classifier is similar to ifile in intent and
22470 purpose. A ham and a spam processor are provided, plus the
22471 @code{spam-use-bogofilter} and @code{spam-use-bogofilter-headers}
22472 variables to indicate to spam-split that Bogofilter should either be
22473 used, or has already been used on the article. The 0.9.2.1 version of
22474 Bogofilter was used to test this functionality.
22476 @node ifile spam filtering
22477 @subsubsection ifile spam filtering
22478 @cindex spam filtering
22479 @cindex ifile, spam filtering
22482 @defvar spam-use-ifile
22484 Enable this variable if you want @code{spam-split} to use ifile, a
22485 statistical analyzer similar to Bogofilter.
22489 @defvar spam-ifile-all-categories
22491 Enable this variable if you want @code{spam-use-ifile} to give you all
22492 the ifile categories, not just spam/non-spam. If you use this, make
22493 sure you train ifile as described in its documentation.
22497 @defvar spam-ifile-spam-category
22499 This is the category of spam messages as far as ifile is concerned.
22500 The actual string used is irrelevant, but you probably want to leave
22501 the default value of @samp{spam}.
22504 @defvar spam-ifile-database-path
22506 This is the filename for the ifile database. It is not specified by
22507 default, so ifile will use its own default database name.
22511 The ifile mail classifier is similar to Bogofilter in intent and
22512 purpose. A ham and a spam processor are provided, plus the
22513 @code{spam-use-ifile} variable to indicate to spam-split that ifile
22514 should be used. The 1.2.1 version of ifile was used to test this
22517 @node spam-stat spam filtering
22518 @subsubsection spam-stat spam filtering
22519 @cindex spam filtering
22520 @cindex spam-stat, spam filtering
22524 @xref{Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat}.
22526 @defvar spam-use-stat
22528 Enable this variable if you want @code{spam-split} to use
22529 spam-stat.el, an Emacs Lisp statistical analyzer.
22533 @defvar gnus-group-spam-exit-processor-stat
22534 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22535 customizing the group parameters or the
22536 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22537 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the spam-marked
22538 articles will be added to the spam-stat database of spam messages.
22541 @defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-stat
22542 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22543 customizing the group parameters or the
22544 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22545 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the ham-marked
22546 articles in @emph{ham} groups will be added to the spam-stat database
22547 of non-spam messages. Note that this ham processor has no effect in
22548 @emph{spam} or @emph{unclassified} groups.
22551 This enables spam.el to cooperate with spam-stat.el. spam-stat.el
22552 provides an internal (Lisp-only) spam database, which unlike ifile or
22553 Bogofilter does not require external programs. A spam and a ham
22554 processor, and the @code{spam-use-stat} variable for @code{spam-split}
22557 @node Extending the spam elisp package
22558 @subsubsection Extending the spam elisp package
22559 @cindex spam filtering
22560 @cindex spam elisp package, extending
22561 @cindex extending the spam elisp package
22563 Say you want to add a new back end called blackbox. For filtering
22564 incoming mail, provide the following:
22572 (defvar spam-use-blackbox nil
22573 "True if blackbox should be used.")
22578 (spam-use-blackbox . spam-check-blackbox)
22580 to @code{spam-list-of-checks}.
22585 Write the @code{spam-check-blackbox} function. It should return
22586 @samp{nil} or @code{spam-split-group}. See the existing
22587 @code{spam-check-*} functions for examples of what you can do.
22589 Make sure to add @code{spam-use-blackbox} to
22590 @code{spam-list-of-statistical-checks} if Blackbox is a statistical
22591 mail analyzer that needs the full message body to operate.
22595 For processing spam and ham messages, provide the following:
22602 Note you don't have to provide a spam or a ham processor. Only
22603 provide them if Blackbox supports spam or ham processing.
22606 (defvar gnus-group-spam-exit-processor-blackbox "blackbox"
22607 "The Blackbox summary exit spam processor.
22608 Only applicable to spam groups.")
22610 (defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-blackbox "blackbox"
22611 "The whitelist summary exit ham processor.
22612 Only applicable to non-spam (unclassified and ham) groups.")
22620 (defun spam-blackbox-register-spam-routine ()
22621 (spam-generic-register-routine
22622 ;; the spam function
22624 (let ((from (spam-fetch-field-from-fast article)))
22625 (when (stringp from)
22626 (blackbox-do-something-with-this-spammer from))))
22627 ;; the ham function
22630 (defun spam-blackbox-register-ham-routine ()
22631 (spam-generic-register-routine
22632 ;; the spam function
22634 ;; the ham function
22636 (let ((from (spam-fetch-field-from-fast article)))
22637 (when (stringp from)
22638 (blackbox-do-something-with-this-ham-sender from))))))
22641 Write the @code{blackbox-do-something-with-this-ham-sender} and
22642 @code{blackbox-do-something-with-this-spammer} functions. You can add
22643 more complex code than fetching the message sender, but keep in mind
22644 that retrieving the whole message takes significantly longer than the
22645 sender through @code{spam-fetch-field-from-fast}, because the message
22646 senders are kept in memory by Gnus.
22651 @node Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat
22652 @subsection Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat
22653 @cindex Paul Graham
22654 @cindex Graham, Paul
22655 @cindex naive Bayesian spam filtering
22656 @cindex Bayesian spam filtering, naive
22657 @cindex spam filtering, naive Bayesian
22659 Paul Graham has written an excellent essay about spam filtering using
22660 statistics: @uref{http://www.paulgraham.com/spam.html,A Plan for
22661 Spam}. In it he describes the inherent deficiency of rule-based
22662 filtering as used by SpamAssassin, for example: Somebody has to write
22663 the rules, and everybody else has to install these rules. You are
22664 always late. It would be much better, he argues, to filter mail based
22665 on whether it somehow resembles spam or non-spam. One way to measure
22666 this is word distribution. He then goes on to describe a solution
22667 that checks whether a new mail resembles any of your other spam mails
22670 The basic idea is this: Create a two collections of your mail, one
22671 with spam, one with non-spam. Count how often each word appears in
22672 either collection, weight this by the total number of mails in the
22673 collections, and store this information in a dictionary. For every
22674 word in a new mail, determine its probability to belong to a spam or a
22675 non-spam mail. Use the 15 most conspicuous words, compute the total
22676 probability of the mail being spam. If this probability is higher
22677 than a certain threshold, the mail is considered to be spam.
22679 Gnus supports this kind of filtering. But it needs some setting up.
22680 First, you need two collections of your mail, one with spam, one with
22681 non-spam. Then you need to create a dictionary using these two
22682 collections, and save it. And last but not least, you need to use
22683 this dictionary in your fancy mail splitting rules.
22686 * Creating a spam-stat dictionary::
22687 * Splitting mail using spam-stat::
22688 * Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary::
22691 @node Creating a spam-stat dictionary
22692 @subsubsection Creating a spam-stat dictionary
22694 Before you can begin to filter spam based on statistics, you must
22695 create these statistics based on two mail collections, one with spam,
22696 one with non-spam. These statistics are then stored in a dictionary
22697 for later use. In order for these statistics to be meaningful, you
22698 need several hundred emails in both collections.
22700 Gnus currently supports only the nnml back end for automated dictionary
22701 creation. The nnml back end stores all mails in a directory, one file
22702 per mail. Use the following:
22704 @defun spam-stat-process-spam-directory
22705 Create spam statistics for every file in this directory. Every file
22706 is treated as one spam mail.
22709 @defun spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory
22710 Create non-spam statistics for every file in this directory. Every
22711 file is treated as one non-spam mail.
22714 Usually you would call @code{spam-stat-process-spam-directory} on a
22715 directory such as @file{~/Mail/mail/spam} (this usually corresponds
22716 the the group @samp{nnml:mail.spam}), and you would call
22717 @code{spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory} on a directory such as
22718 @file{~/Mail/mail/misc} (this usually corresponds the the group
22719 @samp{nnml:mail.misc}).
22721 When you are using IMAP, you won't have the mails available locally,
22722 so that will not work. One solution is to use the Gnus Agent to cache
22723 the articles. Then you can use directories such as
22724 @file{"~/News/agent/nnimap/mail.yourisp.com/personal_spam"} for
22725 @code{spam-stat-process-spam-directory}. @xref{Agent as Cache}.
22728 This variable holds the hash-table with all the statistics -- the
22729 dictionary we have been talking about. For every word in either
22730 collection, this hash-table stores a vector describing how often the
22731 word appeared in spam and often it appeared in non-spam mails.
22734 If you want to regenerate the statistics from scratch, you need to
22735 reset the dictionary.
22737 @defun spam-stat-reset
22738 Reset the @code{spam-stat} hash-table, deleting all the statistics.
22741 When you are done, you must save the dictionary. The dictionary may
22742 be rather large. If you will not update the dictionary incrementally
22743 (instead, you will recreate it once a month, for example), then you
22744 can reduce the size of the dictionary by deleting all words that did
22745 not appear often enough or that do not clearly belong to only spam or
22746 only non-spam mails.
22748 @defun spam-stat-reduce-size
22749 Reduce the size of the dictionary. Use this only if you do not want
22750 to update the dictionary incrementally.
22753 @defun spam-stat-save
22754 Save the dictionary.
22757 @defvar spam-stat-file
22758 The filename used to store the dictionary. This defaults to
22759 @file{~/.spam-stat.el}.
22762 @node Splitting mail using spam-stat
22763 @subsubsection Splitting mail using spam-stat
22765 In order to use @code{spam-stat} to split your mail, you need to add the
22766 following to your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
22769 (require 'spam-stat)
22773 This will load the necessary Gnus code, and the dictionary you
22776 Next, you need to adapt your fancy splitting rules: You need to
22777 determine how to use @code{spam-stat}. The following examples are for
22778 the nnml back end. Using the nnimap back end works just as well. Just
22779 use @code{nnimap-split-fancy} instead of @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
22781 In the simplest case, you only have two groups, @samp{mail.misc} and
22782 @samp{mail.spam}. The following expression says that mail is either
22783 spam or it should go into @samp{mail.misc}. If it is spam, then
22784 @code{spam-stat-split-fancy} will return @samp{mail.spam}.
22787 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
22788 `(| (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
22792 @defvar spam-stat-split-fancy-spam-group
22793 The group to use for spam. Default is @samp{mail.spam}.
22796 If you also filter mail with specific subjects into other groups, use
22797 the following expression. Only mails not matching the regular
22798 expression are considered potential spam.
22801 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
22802 `(| ("Subject" "\\bspam-stat\\b" "mail.emacs")
22803 (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
22807 If you want to filter for spam first, then you must be careful when
22808 creating the dictionary. Note that @code{spam-stat-split-fancy} must
22809 consider both mails in @samp{mail.emacs} and in @samp{mail.misc} as
22810 non-spam, therefore both should be in your collection of non-spam
22811 mails, when creating the dictionary!
22814 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
22815 `(| (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
22816 ("Subject" "\\bspam-stat\\b" "mail.emacs")
22820 You can combine this with traditional filtering. Here, we move all
22821 HTML-only mails into the @samp{mail.spam.filtered} group. Note that since
22822 @code{spam-stat-split-fancy} will never see them, the mails in
22823 @samp{mail.spam.filtered} should be neither in your collection of spam mails,
22824 nor in your collection of non-spam mails, when creating the
22828 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
22829 `(| ("Content-Type" "text/html" "mail.spam.filtered")
22830 (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
22831 ("Subject" "\\bspam-stat\\b" "mail.emacs")
22836 @node Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary
22837 @subsubsection Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary
22839 The main interface to using @code{spam-stat}, are the following functions:
22841 @defun spam-stat-buffer-is-spam
22842 Called in a buffer, that buffer is considered to be a new spam mail.
22843 Use this for new mail that has not been processed before.
22846 @defun spam-stat-buffer-is-no-spam
22847 Called in a buffer, that buffer is considered to be a new non-spam
22848 mail. Use this for new mail that has not been processed before.
22851 @defun spam-stat-buffer-change-to-spam
22852 Called in a buffer, that buffer is no longer considered to be normal
22853 mail but spam. Use this to change the status of a mail that has
22854 already been processed as non-spam.
22857 @defun spam-stat-buffer-change-to-non-spam
22858 Called in a buffer, that buffer is no longer considered to be spam but
22859 normal mail. Use this to change the status of a mail that has already
22860 been processed as spam.
22863 @defun spam-stat-save
22864 Save the hash table to the file. The filename used is stored in the
22865 variable @code{spam-stat-file}.
22868 @defun spam-stat-load
22869 Load the hash table from a file. The filename used is stored in the
22870 variable @code{spam-stat-file}.
22873 @defun spam-stat-score-word
22874 Return the spam score for a word.
22877 @defun spam-stat-score-buffer
22878 Return the spam score for a buffer.
22881 @defun spam-stat-split-fancy
22882 Use this function for fancy mail splitting. Add the rule @samp{(:
22883 spam-stat-split-fancy)} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
22886 Make sure you load the dictionary before using it. This requires the
22887 following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
22890 (require 'spam-stat)
22894 Typical test will involve calls to the following functions:
22897 Reset: (setq spam-stat (make-hash-table :test 'equal))
22898 Learn spam: (spam-stat-process-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
22899 Learn non-spam: (spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
22900 Save table: (spam-stat-save)
22901 File size: (nth 7 (file-attributes spam-stat-file))
22902 Number of words: (hash-table-count spam-stat)
22903 Test spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
22904 Test non-spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
22905 Reduce table size: (spam-stat-reduce-size)
22906 Save table: (spam-stat-save)
22907 File size: (nth 7 (file-attributes spam-stat-file))
22908 Number of words: (hash-table-count spam-stat)
22909 Test spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
22910 Test non-spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
22913 Here is how you would create your dictionary:
22916 Reset: (setq spam-stat (make-hash-table :test 'equal))
22917 Learn spam: (spam-stat-process-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
22918 Learn non-spam: (spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
22919 Repeat for any other non-spam group you need...
22920 Reduce table size: (spam-stat-reduce-size)
22921 Save table: (spam-stat-save)
22924 @node Various Various
22925 @section Various Various
22931 @item gnus-home-directory
22932 @vindex gnus-home-directory
22933 All Gnus file and directory variables will be initialized from this
22934 variable, which defaults to @file{~/}.
22936 @item gnus-directory
22937 @vindex gnus-directory
22938 Most Gnus storage file and directory variables will be initialized from
22939 this variable, which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment
22940 variable, or @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
22942 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{~/.gnus.el} file is read.
22943 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
22944 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
22945 @file{~/.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
22947 @item gnus-default-directory
22948 @vindex gnus-default-directory
22949 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
22950 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
22951 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
22952 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
22953 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
22954 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
22957 @vindex gnus-verbose
22958 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
22959 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
22960 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
22961 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
22962 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
22964 @item gnus-verbose-backends
22965 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
22966 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
22967 to the Gnus back ends instead of Gnus proper.
22969 @item nnheader-max-head-length
22970 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
22971 When the back ends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
22972 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
22973 the absolute max length the back ends will try to read before giving up
22974 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
22975 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
22976 @code{t}, the back ends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
22977 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
22978 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
22980 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
22981 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
22982 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
22983 read when doing the operation described above.
22985 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
22986 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
22988 @cindex invalid characters in file names
22989 @cindex characters in file names
22990 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
22991 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
22992 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
22995 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
22999 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
23000 Windows (phooey) systems.
23002 @item gnus-hidden-properties
23003 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
23004 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
23005 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
23006 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
23008 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
23009 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
23010 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
23011 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
23012 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
23014 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
23015 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
23016 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
23018 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
23019 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
23021 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
23022 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
23023 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
23024 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
23027 @sc{imap} users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
23035 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
23036 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
23038 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
23040 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
23046 Not because of victories @*
23049 but for the common sunshine,@*
23051 the largess of the spring.
23055 but for the day's work done@*
23056 as well as I was able;@*
23057 not for a seat upon the dais@*
23058 but at the common table.@*
23063 @chapter Appendices
23066 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
23067 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
23068 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
23069 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
23070 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
23071 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
23072 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
23073 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
23074 * Frequently Asked Questions::
23081 @cindex Installing under XEmacs
23083 XEmacs is distributed as a collection of packages. You should install
23084 whatever packages the Gnus XEmacs package requires. The current
23085 requirements are @samp{gnus}, @samp{w3}, @samp{mh-e},
23086 @samp{mailcrypt}, @samp{rmail}, @samp{eterm}, @samp{mail-lib},
23087 @samp{xemacs-base}, @samp{sh-script} and @samp{fsf-compat}. The
23088 @samp{misc-games} package is required for Morse decoding.
23095 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
23096 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
23098 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
23099 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
23100 @uref{http://quimby.gnus.org/}. This is also the primary
23101 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
23102 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
23104 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
23105 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
23106 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
23107 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
23108 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
23109 appropriate name, don't you think?)
23111 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
23112 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
23113 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
23114 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
23117 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
23118 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
23119 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
23120 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
23121 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
23122 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
23123 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
23124 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
23125 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
23129 @node Gnus Versions
23130 @subsection Gnus Versions
23132 @cindex September Gnus
23134 @cindex Quassia Gnus
23135 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
23138 @cindex Gnus versions
23140 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
23141 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
23142 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
23144 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
23145 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
23147 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
23148 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
23150 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
23151 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
23153 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
23154 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
23157 On the 26th of October 2000, Oort Gnus was begun.
23159 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
23160 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'',
23161 ``Pterodactyl Gnus'', ``Oort Gnus'' -- don't panic. Don't let it know
23162 that you're frightened. Back away. Slowly. Whatever you do, don't
23163 run. Walk away, calmly, until you're out of its reach. Find a proper
23164 released version of Gnus and snuggle up to that instead.
23167 @node Other Gnus Versions
23168 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
23171 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
23172 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
23173 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
23174 @sc{mime} capabilities.
23176 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
23177 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
23178 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
23179 @sc{mime} and multilingualization things, especially important for
23186 What's the point of Gnus?
23188 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
23189 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
23190 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
23191 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
23192 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
23193 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
23194 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
23195 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
23196 keep track of millions of people who post?
23198 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
23199 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
23200 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
23201 to separate the newsreader from the back ends, Gnus now offers a simple
23202 interface for anybody who wants to write new back ends for fetching mail
23203 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
23204 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
23205 every one of you to explore and invent.
23207 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
23208 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
23211 @node Compatibility
23212 @subsection Compatibility
23214 @cindex compatibility
23215 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
23216 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
23217 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
23222 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
23226 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
23229 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
23232 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
23233 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
23234 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
23235 important variables have their values copied into their global
23236 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
23237 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
23239 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
23240 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
23241 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
23242 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
23243 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
23247 @cindex highlighting
23248 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
23249 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
23250 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
23251 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
23252 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
23253 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
23256 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
23257 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
23258 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
23259 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
23261 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
23262 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
23263 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
23264 to stop doing it the old way.
23266 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
23268 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
23270 @cindex reporting bugs
23272 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
23273 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
23274 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
23276 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
23277 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
23278 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
23279 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
23284 @subsection Conformity
23286 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
23287 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
23295 There are no known breaches of this standard.
23299 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
23301 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
23302 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
23303 We do have some breaches to this one.
23309 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
23310 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
23311 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
23312 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
23313 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
23318 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
23319 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
23320 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
23321 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
23323 @item MIME - RFC 2045-2049 etc
23325 All the various @sc{mime} RFCs are supported.
23327 @item Disposition Notifications - RFC 2298
23328 Message Mode is able to request notifications from the receiver.
23330 @item PGP - RFC 1991 and RFC 2440
23333 RFC 1991 is the original PGP message specification, published as a
23334 Information RFC. RFC 2440 was the follow-up, now called Open PGP, and
23335 put on the Standards Track. Both document a non-@sc{mime} aware PGP
23336 format. Gnus supports both encoding (signing and encryption) and
23337 decoding (verification and decryption).
23339 @item PGP/MIME - RFC 2015/3156
23340 RFC 2015 (superseded by 3156 which references RFC 2440 instead of RFC
23341 1991) describes the @sc{mime}-wrapping around the RF 1991/2440 format.
23342 Gnus supports both encoding and decoding.
23344 @item S/MIME - RFC 2633
23345 RFC 2633 describes the @sc{s/mime} format.
23347 @item IMAP - RFC 1730/2060, RFC 2195, RFC 2086, RFC 2359, RFC 2595, RFC 1731
23348 RFC 1730 is @sc{imap} version 4, updated somewhat by RFC 2060 (@sc{imap} 4
23349 revision 1). RFC 2195 describes CRAM-MD5 authentication for @sc{imap}. RFC
23350 2086 describes access control lists (ACLs) for @sc{imap}. RFC 2359
23351 describes a @sc{imap} protocol enhancement. RFC 2595 describes the proper
23352 TLS integration (STARTTLS) with @sc{imap}. RFC 1731 describes the
23353 GSSAPI/Kerberos4 mechanisms for @sc{imap}.
23357 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
23358 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
23363 @subsection Emacsen
23369 Gnus should work on :
23377 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
23381 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
23382 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
23385 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
23386 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
23387 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
23391 @node Gnus Development
23392 @subsection Gnus Development
23394 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
23395 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
23396 propose changes and new features, post patches and new back ends. This
23397 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
23398 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
23399 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
23400 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
23401 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
23403 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
23404 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
23405 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
23406 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
23407 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
23410 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
23411 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
23412 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
23413 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
23414 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
23416 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
23417 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
23418 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
23419 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
23420 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
23421 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
23422 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
23423 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
23424 usually keep up with these rapid changes, while people on the newsgroup
23425 can't be assumed to do so.
23430 @subsection Contributors
23431 @cindex contributors
23433 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
23434 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
23435 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
23436 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
23437 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
23438 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
23439 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
23440 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
23441 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
23442 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
23444 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for@dots{} oops,
23450 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
23453 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
23454 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @sc{mime} and
23455 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
23456 functionality and stuff.
23459 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
23460 well as numerous other things).
23463 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
23466 Joe Reiss---creator of the smiley faces.
23469 Justin Sheehy--the FAQ maintainer.
23472 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
23475 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
23476 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
23479 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
23482 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
23483 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
23486 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
23489 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
23492 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
23495 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
23498 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
23499 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
23502 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
23505 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
23508 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
23511 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
23515 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
23518 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
23521 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
23524 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
23525 well as autoconf support.
23529 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
23530 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
23532 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
23547 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
23549 Katsumi Yamaoka, @c Yamaoka
23553 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
23563 Alexei V. Barantsev,
23578 Massimo Campostrini,
23583 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
23584 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
23588 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
23591 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
23597 Michael Welsh Duggan,
23602 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
23606 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
23614 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
23616 Michelangelo Grigni,
23620 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
23622 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c Hayashi
23624 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
23631 François Felix Ingrand,
23632 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c Ichikawa
23633 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
23635 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
23645 Peter Skov Knudsen,
23646 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
23648 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
23649 Thor Kristoffersen,
23652 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
23670 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
23671 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
23678 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
23683 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
23687 John McClary Prevost,
23693 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
23698 Christian von Roques,
23701 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
23708 Philippe Schnoebelen,
23710 Randal L. Schwartz,
23724 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
23729 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
23749 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
23750 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
23751 (550kB and counting).
23753 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
23756 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
23757 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
23761 @subsection New Features
23762 @cindex new features
23765 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
23766 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
23767 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
23768 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
23769 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
23772 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
23773 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
23774 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
23777 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
23779 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
23784 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
23785 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
23788 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
23789 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
23792 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
23795 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
23796 All the mail back ends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
23797 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
23800 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
23801 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
23802 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
23803 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
23806 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
23807 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
23810 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
23811 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
23812 (@pxref{The Active File}).
23815 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
23816 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
23819 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
23820 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
23821 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
23824 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
23825 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
23826 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
23829 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{~/.gnus.el}) to avoid
23830 cluttering up the @file{.emacs} file.
23833 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
23834 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
23837 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
23838 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
23841 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
23842 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
23845 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
23846 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
23849 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
23850 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
23853 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
23856 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
23857 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
23860 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
23861 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
23864 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
23865 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
23868 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
23871 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
23872 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
23875 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
23879 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
23883 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
23884 configuration (@pxref{Window Layout}).
23887 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
23893 @node September Gnus
23894 @subsubsection September Gnus
23898 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/september,height=20cm}}
23902 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
23907 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
23908 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
23912 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
23913 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
23917 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
23921 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
23922 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
23925 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
23929 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
23932 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
23935 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
23938 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
23942 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
23943 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
23946 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
23950 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
23954 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
23958 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
23962 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
23965 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
23966 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
23969 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
23973 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
23974 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
23977 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
23980 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
23981 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
23982 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
23985 Gnus has a new back end (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
23989 The Gnus cache is much faster.
23992 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
23996 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
23997 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
24000 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
24001 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
24004 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
24005 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
24008 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
24009 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
24010 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
24013 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
24014 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
24017 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
24020 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
24023 All mail back ends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
24026 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
24029 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
24030 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
24033 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Window
24037 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
24040 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}}
24045 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
24048 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
24052 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
24055 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
24059 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
24062 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
24065 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
24066 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
24069 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
24070 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
24074 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
24075 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
24078 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
24082 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
24083 buffer to allow easier treatment.
24086 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
24089 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
24093 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
24097 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
24098 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
24101 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
24105 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
24106 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
24109 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
24110 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
24113 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
24117 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
24120 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
24123 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
24129 @subsubsection Red Gnus
24131 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
24135 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/red,height=20cm}}
24142 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
24145 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
24146 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
24149 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
24150 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
24154 Article washing status can be displayed in the
24155 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
24158 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
24161 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
24162 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
24165 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
24169 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
24170 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
24174 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
24175 Server Internals}).
24178 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
24182 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
24185 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
24186 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
24189 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
24190 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
24191 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
24194 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
24195 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
24198 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
24199 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
24202 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{C-M-_}
24206 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
24207 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
24210 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
24211 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
24214 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
24218 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
24221 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
24225 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
24226 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
24229 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
24230 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
24233 A new command for reading collections of documents
24234 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{C-M-d}
24235 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
24238 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
24242 A new mail-to-news back end makes it possible to post even when the @sc{nntp}
24243 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
24246 A new back end for reading searches from Web search engines
24247 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
24248 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
24251 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
24252 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
24256 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
24260 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
24264 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}}
24269 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
24273 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
24277 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
24278 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
24281 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
24287 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
24289 New features in Gnus 5.6:
24294 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
24295 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
24296 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
24299 The @code{nndraft} back end has returned, but works differently than
24300 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
24301 group, which is created automatically.
24304 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
24308 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
24311 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
24312 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
24315 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
24319 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
24322 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
24323 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
24326 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
24329 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section ``Symbolic
24330 Prefixes'' in the Gnus manual for details.
24333 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
24334 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the @file{all.SCORE} file.
24337 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
24338 control over simplification.
24341 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
24344 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
24348 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
24351 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
24354 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
24355 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
24356 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
24359 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
24360 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
24363 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
24367 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
24368 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
24371 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
24372 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
24375 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
24379 A history of where mails have been split is available.
24382 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
24385 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
24386 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
24389 A new function for citing in Message has been
24390 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
24393 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
24396 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
24400 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
24401 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
24404 The ``lapsed date'' article header can be kept continually
24405 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
24408 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} back end.
24411 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
24415 @node Pterodactyl Gnus
24416 @subsubsection Pterodactyl Gnus
24418 New features in Gnus 5.8:
24423 The mail-fetching functions have changed. See the manual for the
24424 many details. In particular, all procmail fetching variables are gone.
24426 If you used procmail like in
24429 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
24430 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
24431 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/mail/incoming/")
24432 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "\\.in")
24435 this now has changed to
24439 '((directory :path "~/mail/incoming/"
24443 More information is available in the info doc at Select Methods ->
24444 Getting Mail -> Mail Sources
24447 Gnus is now a @sc{mime}-capable reader. This affects many parts of
24448 Gnus, and adds a slew of new commands. See the manual for details.
24451 Gnus has also been multilingualized. This also affects too
24452 many parts of Gnus to summarize here, and adds many new variables.
24455 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} can now be a function to be
24456 called to position point.
24459 The user can now decide which extra headers should be included in
24460 summary buffers and @sc{nov} files.
24463 @code{gnus-article-display-hook} has been removed. Instead, a number
24464 of variables starting with @code{gnus-treat-} have been added.
24467 The Gnus posting styles have been redone again and now works in a
24468 subtly different manner.
24471 New web-based back ends have been added: @code{nnslashdot},
24472 @code{nnwarchive} and @code{nnultimate}. nnweb has been revamped,
24473 again, to keep up with ever-changing layouts.
24476 Gnus can now read @sc{imap} mail via @code{nnimap}.
24484 @section The Manual
24488 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
24489 either @code{texi2dvi}
24491 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
24492 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
24494 to get what you hold in your hands now.
24496 The following conventions have been used:
24501 This is a @samp{string}
24504 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
24507 This is a @file{file}
24510 This is a @code{symbol}
24514 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
24518 (setq flargnoze "yes")
24521 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
24524 (setq flumphel 'yes)
24527 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
24528 ever get them confused.
24532 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
24533 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
24534 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
24535 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
24536 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
24537 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
24538 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
24544 @node On Writing Manuals
24545 @section On Writing Manuals
24547 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
24548 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
24549 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
24550 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
24551 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
24552 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
24555 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
24556 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
24557 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
24560 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
24561 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
24566 @section Terminology
24568 @cindex terminology
24573 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
24574 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
24575 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
24576 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
24577 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
24581 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
24582 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
24583 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
24584 not posting, and replying is not following up.
24588 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
24592 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
24597 Gnus considers mail and news to be mostly the same, really. The only
24598 difference is how to access the actual articles. News articles are
24599 commonly fetched via the protocol NNTP, whereas mail messages could be
24600 read from a file on the local disk. The internal architecture of Gnus
24601 thus comprises a `front end' and a number of `back ends'. Internally,
24602 when you enter a group (by hitting @key{RET}, say), you thereby invoke
24603 a function in the front end in Gnus. The front end then `talks' to a
24604 back end and says things like ``Give me the list of articles in the foo
24605 group'' or ``Show me article number 4711''.
24607 So a back end mainly defines either a protocol (the @code{nntp} back end
24608 accesses news via NNTP, the @code{nnimap} back end accesses mail via
24609 IMAP) or a file format and directory layout (the @code{nnspool} back end
24610 accesses news via the common `spool directory' format, the @code{nnml}
24611 back end access mail via a file format and directory layout that's
24614 Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this is all
24615 done by the back ends. A back end is a collection of functions to
24616 access the articles.
24618 However, sometimes the term `back end' is also used where `server'
24619 would have been more appropriate. And then there is the term `select
24620 method' which can mean either. The Gnus terminology can be quite
24625 Gnus will always use one method (and back end) as the @dfn{native}, or
24626 default, way of getting news.
24630 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
24631 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary back ends for getting
24636 Secondary back ends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
24637 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
24641 A message that has been posted as news.
24644 @cindex mail message
24645 A message that has been mailed.
24649 A mail message or news article
24653 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
24658 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
24663 A line from the head of an article.
24667 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
24668 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
24672 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the back end for the headers of all
24673 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
24674 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
24675 normal @sc{head} format.
24679 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
24680 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
24681 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
24682 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
24683 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
24684 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
24686 @item killed groups
24687 @cindex killed groups
24688 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
24689 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
24691 @item zombie groups
24692 @cindex zombie groups
24693 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
24696 @cindex active file
24697 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
24698 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
24699 is rather large, as you might surmise.
24702 @cindex bogus groups
24703 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
24704 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
24705 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
24708 @cindex activating groups
24709 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
24710 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
24711 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
24715 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
24717 @item select method
24718 @cindex select method
24719 A structure that specifies the back end, the server and the virtual
24722 @item virtual server
24723 @cindex virtual server
24724 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
24725 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
24726 whole is a virtual server.
24730 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
24731 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
24734 @item ephemeral groups
24735 @cindex ephemeral groups
24736 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
24737 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
24738 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
24741 @cindex solid groups
24742 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
24743 group buffer are solid groups.
24745 @item sparse articles
24746 @cindex sparse articles
24747 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
24748 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
24752 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
24753 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
24757 @cindex thread root
24758 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
24759 articles in the thread.
24763 An article that has responses.
24767 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
24771 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
24772 specified by RFC 1153.
24778 @node Customization
24779 @section Customization
24780 @cindex general customization
24782 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
24783 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
24784 for some quite common situations.
24787 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
24788 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
24789 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
24790 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
24794 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
24795 @subsection Slow/Expensive NNTP Connection
24797 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
24798 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
24799 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
24803 @item gnus-read-active-file
24804 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
24805 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
24806 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
24807 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
24808 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
24810 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
24811 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
24812 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
24813 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
24817 @node Slow Terminal Connection
24818 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
24820 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
24821 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
24822 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
24826 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
24827 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
24828 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
24829 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
24830 horizontal and vertical recentering.
24832 @item gnus-visible-headers
24833 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
24834 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
24835 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
24836 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
24838 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
24840 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
24841 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
24842 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
24845 @item gnus-use-full-window
24846 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
24847 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
24848 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
24849 want to read them anyway.
24851 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
24852 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
24856 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
24857 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
24858 lines, which might save some time.
24862 @node Little Disk Space
24863 @subsection Little Disk Space
24866 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
24867 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
24871 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
24872 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
24873 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
24874 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
24877 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
24878 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
24879 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
24880 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
24883 @item gnus-save-killed-list
24884 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
24885 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
24886 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
24887 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
24893 @subsection Slow Machine
24894 @cindex slow machine
24896 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
24897 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
24899 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
24900 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
24902 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
24903 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
24904 summary buffer faster.
24908 @node Troubleshooting
24909 @section Troubleshooting
24910 @cindex troubleshooting
24912 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
24920 Make sure your computer is switched on.
24923 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
24924 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
24928 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
24929 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
24930 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
24931 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
24934 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
24938 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
24939 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
24940 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
24941 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
24942 something like that.
24945 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
24948 @cindex reporting bugs
24950 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
24952 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
24953 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
24954 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
24955 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
24957 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
24958 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
24959 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
24960 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
24963 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
24964 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
24965 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
24966 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
24967 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
24968 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
24970 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
24971 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
24972 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
24976 If you would like to contribute a patch to fix bugs or make
24977 improvements, please produce the patch using @samp{diff -u}.
24980 If you want to debug your problem further before reporting, possibly
24981 in order to solve the problem yourself and send a patch, you can use
24982 edebug. Debugging lisp code is documented in the Elisp manual
24983 (@pxref{Debugging, , Debugging Lisp Programs, elisp, The GNU Emacs
24984 Lisp Reference Manual}). To get you started with edebug, consider if
24985 you discover some weird behaviour when pressing @kbd{c}, the first
24986 step is to do @kbd{C-h k c} and click on the hyperlink (Emacs only) in
24987 the documentation buffer that leads you to the function definition,
24988 then press @kbd{M-x edebug-defun RET} with point inside that function,
24989 return to Gnus and press @kbd{c} to invoke the code. You will be
24990 placed in the lisp buffer and can single step using @kbd{SPC} and
24991 evaluate expressions using @kbd{M-:} or inspect variables using
24992 @kbd{C-h v}, abort execution with @kbd{q}, and resume execution with
24993 @kbd{c} or @kbd{g}.
24998 Sometimes, a problem do not directly generate a elisp error but
24999 manifests itself by causing Gnus to be very slow. In these cases, you
25000 can use @kbd{M-x toggle-debug-on-quit} and press @kbd{C-g} when things are
25001 slow, and then try to analyze the backtrace (repeating the procedure
25002 helps isolating the real problem areas). A fancier approach is to use
25003 the elisp profiler, ELP. The profiler is (or should be) fully
25004 documented elsewhere, but to get you started there are a few steps
25005 that need to be followed. First, instrument the part of Gnus you are
25006 interested in for profiling, e.g. @kbd{M-x elp-instrument-package RET
25007 gnus} or @kbd{M-x elp-instrument-package RET message}. Then perform
25008 the operation that is slow and press @kbd{M-x elp-results}. You will
25009 then see which operations that takes time, and can debug them further.
25010 If the entire operation takes much longer than the time spent in the
25011 slowest function in the profiler output, you probably profiled the
25012 wrong part of Gnus. To reset profiling statistics, use @kbd{M-x
25013 elp-reset-all}. @kbd{M-x elp-restore-all} is supposed to remove
25014 profiling, but given the complexities and dynamic code generation in
25015 Gnus, it might not always work perfectly.
25017 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
25018 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
25020 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
25021 @cindex ding mailing list
25022 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@email{ding@@gnus.org}.
25023 Write to @email{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
25027 @node Gnus Reference Guide
25028 @section Gnus Reference Guide
25030 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
25031 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
25032 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
25033 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
25036 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
25037 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
25038 back ends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
25039 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
25040 and general methods of operation.
25043 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
25044 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
25045 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
25046 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
25047 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
25048 * Group Info:: The group info format.
25049 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
25050 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
25051 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
25055 @node Gnus Utility Functions
25056 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
25057 @cindex Gnus utility functions
25058 @cindex utility functions
25060 @cindex internal variables
25062 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
25063 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
25064 Below is a list of the most common ones.
25068 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
25069 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
25070 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
25072 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
25073 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
25074 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
25076 @item gnus-group-real-name
25077 @findex gnus-group-real-name
25078 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
25081 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
25082 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
25083 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
25084 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
25086 @item gnus-get-info
25087 @findex gnus-get-info
25088 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
25090 @item gnus-group-unread
25091 @findex gnus-group-unread
25092 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
25096 @findex gnus-active
25097 The active entry for @var{group}.
25099 @item gnus-set-active
25100 @findex gnus-set-active
25101 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
25103 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
25104 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
25105 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
25108 @item gnus-continuum-version
25109 @findex gnus-continuum-version
25110 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
25111 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
25114 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
25115 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
25116 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
25118 @item gnus-news-group-p
25119 @findex gnus-news-group-p
25120 Says whether @var{group} came from a news back end.
25122 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
25123 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
25124 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
25126 @item gnus-server-to-method
25127 @findex gnus-server-to-method
25128 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
25130 @item gnus-server-equal
25131 @findex gnus-server-equal
25132 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
25134 @item gnus-group-native-p
25135 @findex gnus-group-native-p
25136 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
25138 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
25139 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
25140 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
25142 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
25143 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
25144 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
25146 @item group-group-find-parameter
25147 @findex group-group-find-parameter
25148 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
25149 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
25151 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
25152 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
25153 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
25155 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
25156 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
25157 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
25159 @item gnus-check-backend-function
25160 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
25161 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the back end
25162 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
25165 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
25169 @item gnus-read-method
25170 @findex gnus-read-method
25171 Prompts the user for a select method.
25176 @node Back End Interface
25177 @subsection Back End Interface
25179 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
25180 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
25181 server is a @dfn{back end} and some @dfn{back end variables}. As examples
25182 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
25183 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
25184 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
25186 When Gnus asks for information from a back end---say @code{nntp}---on
25187 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
25188 function parameters. (If not, the back end should use the ``current''
25189 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
25190 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
25191 been opened, the function should fail.
25193 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
25194 name. Take this example:
25198 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
25199 (nntp-port-number 4324))
25202 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
25203 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
25205 The back ends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
25206 The standard back ends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
25207 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
25209 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
25210 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
25211 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
25213 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
25214 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
25215 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
25216 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
25217 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
25218 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
25221 Some back ends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} back ends, and
25222 some might be said not to be. The latter are back ends that generally
25223 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
25224 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
25227 Gnus identifies each message by way of group name and article number. A
25228 few remarks about these article numbers might be useful. First of all,
25229 the numbers are positive integers. Secondly, it is normally not
25230 possible for later articles to `re-use' older article numbers without
25231 confusing Gnus. That is, if a group has ever contained a message
25232 numbered 42, then no other message may get that number, or Gnus will get
25233 mightily confused.@footnote{See the function
25234 @code{nnchoke-request-update-info}, @ref{Optional Back End Functions}.}
25235 Third, article numbers must be assigned in order of arrival in the
25236 group; this is not necessarily the same as the date of the message.
25238 The previous paragraph already mentions all the `hard' restrictions that
25239 article numbers must fulfill. But it seems that it might be useful to
25240 assign @emph{consecutive} article numbers, for Gnus gets quite confused
25241 if there are holes in the article numbering sequence. However, due to
25242 the `no-reuse' restriction, holes cannot be avoided altogether. It's
25243 also useful for the article numbers to start at 1 to avoid running out
25244 of numbers as long as possible.
25246 Note that by convention, backends are named @code{nnsomething}, but
25247 Gnus also comes with some @code{nnnotbackends}, such as
25248 @file{nnheader.el}, @file{nnmail.el} and @file{nnoo.el}.
25250 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary back end
25253 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
25256 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
25257 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
25258 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
25259 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
25260 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
25261 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
25265 @node Required Back End Functions
25266 @subsubsection Required Back End Functions
25270 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
25272 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
25273 @code{Message-ID}s. Current back ends do not fully support either---only
25274 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most back ends do not support
25275 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
25277 The result data should either be HEADs or @sc{nov} lines, and the result
25278 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
25279 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
25280 of HEADs and @sc{nov} lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
25282 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching ``extra
25283 headers'', in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
25284 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
25285 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
25286 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the back end finds it
25287 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
25288 number, do maximum fetches.
25290 Here's an example HEAD:
25293 221 1056 Article retrieved.
25294 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
25295 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
25296 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
25297 Subject: Re: Something very droll
25298 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
25299 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
25301 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
25302 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
25303 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
25307 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
25308 these in the data buffer.
25310 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
25314 head = error / valid-head
25315 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
25316 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
25317 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
25318 header = <text> eol
25322 (The version of BNF used here is the one used in RFC822.)
25324 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
25325 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
25329 nov-buffer = *nov-line
25330 nov-line = field 7*8[ <TAB> field ] eol
25331 field = <text except TAB>
25334 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
25338 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
25340 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
25341 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
25343 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The back end
25344 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
25345 server. In fact, it should do so.
25347 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
25348 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
25351 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
25353 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
25354 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
25357 There should be no data returned.
25360 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
25362 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the back end
25363 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that back end
25364 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
25365 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
25367 There should be no data returned.
25370 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
25372 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
25373 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
25374 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
25375 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
25377 There should be no data returned.
25380 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
25382 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
25384 There should be no data returned.
25387 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
25389 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
25390 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
25391 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
25392 it would be nice if that were possible.
25394 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
25395 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
25396 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
25397 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
25398 into its article buffer.
25400 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
25401 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
25402 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
25403 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
25404 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
25405 on successful article retrieval.
25408 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
25410 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
25411 making @var{group} the current group.
25413 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
25416 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
25419 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
25422 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
25423 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
25424 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
25425 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
25426 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
25427 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
25428 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
25429 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader. If the group contains no
25430 articles, the lowest article number should be reported as 1 and the
25434 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
25435 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
25436 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
25440 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
25442 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
25443 a no-op on most back ends.
25445 There should be no data returned.
25448 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
25450 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
25453 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
25456 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
25457 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
25460 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
25461 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag. If the group
25462 contains no articles, the lowest article number should be reported as 1
25463 and the highest as 0.
25466 active-file = *active-line
25467 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
25469 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
25472 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
25473 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
25474 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
25477 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
25479 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
25480 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
25481 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
25482 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
25483 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
25484 clear if the posting could not be completed.
25486 There should be no result data from this function.
25491 @node Optional Back End Functions
25492 @subsubsection Optional Back End Functions
25496 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
25498 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
25499 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
25500 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
25502 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
25503 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
25504 former is in the same format as the data from
25505 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
25506 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
25509 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
25513 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
25515 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the back end for
25516 alterations. This comes in handy if the back end really carries all the
25517 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
25518 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
25519 should return a non-nil value.
25521 There should be no result data from this function.
25524 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
25526 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
25527 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
25528 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
25529 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
25530 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
25531 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
25532 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
25533 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
25535 There should be no result data from this function.
25538 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
25540 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
25541 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
25542 @file{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some back ends (such as @sc{imap}) however carry
25543 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
25544 propagate the mark information to the server.
25546 @var{action} is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
25549 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
25552 @var{range} is a range of articles you wish to update marks on.
25553 @var{action} is @code{add} or @code{del}, used to add marks or remove
25554 marks (preserving all marks not mentioned). @var{mark} is a list of
25555 marks; where each mark is a symbol. Currently used marks are
25556 @code{read}, @code{tick}, @code{reply}, @code{expire}, @code{killed},
25557 @code{dormant}, @code{save}, @code{download}, @code{unsend},
25558 @code{forward} and @code{recent}, but your back end should, if
25559 possible, not limit itself to these.
25561 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
25562 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
25563 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
25564 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
25566 An example action list:
25569 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
25570 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
25571 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
25574 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
25575 mark on (currently not used for anything).
25577 There should be no result data from this function.
25579 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
25581 If the user tries to set a mark that the back end doesn't like, this
25582 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
25583 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
25584 @var{mark}. If the back end doesn't care, it must return the original
25585 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
25587 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
25588 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
25589 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
25592 There should be no result data from this function.
25595 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
25597 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
25598 request that the back end check for incoming articles, in one way or
25599 another. A mail back end will typically read the spool file or query the
25600 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
25601 to be heeded---if the back end decides that it is too much work just
25602 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
25603 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
25605 There should be no result data from this function.
25608 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
25610 The result data from this function should be a description of
25614 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
25616 description = <text>
25619 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
25621 The result data from this function should be the description of all
25622 groups available on the server.
25625 description-buffer = *description-line
25629 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
25631 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
25632 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date format
25633 (i.e., the date format used in mail and news headers, and returned by
25634 the function @code{message-make-date} by default). The data should be
25635 in the active buffer format.
25637 It is okay for this function to return `too many' groups; some back ends
25638 might find it cheaper to return the full list of groups, rather than
25639 just the new groups. But don't do this for back ends with many groups.
25640 Normally, if the user creates the groups herself, there won't be too
25641 many groups, so @code{nnml} and the like are probably safe. But for
25642 back ends like @code{nntp}, where the groups have been created by the
25643 server, it is quite likely that there can be many groups.
25646 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
25648 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
25650 There should be no return data.
25653 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
25655 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
25656 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
25657 numbers.) It is left up to the back end to decide how old articles
25658 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
25659 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
25662 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
25665 There should be no result data returned.
25668 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM &optional LAST)
25670 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
25671 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
25673 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
25674 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
25675 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
25676 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
25677 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
25678 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
25680 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
25681 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
25684 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
25685 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
25687 There should be no data returned.
25690 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
25692 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
25693 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
25694 this function in short order.
25696 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
25697 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
25699 The group should exist before the backend is asked to accept the
25700 article for that group.
25702 There should be no data returned.
25705 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
25707 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
25708 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
25710 There should be no data returned.
25713 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
25715 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
25716 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
25717 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
25719 There should be no data returned.
25722 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
25724 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
25725 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
25727 There should be no data returned.
25732 @node Error Messaging
25733 @subsubsection Error Messaging
25735 @findex nnheader-report
25736 @findex nnheader-get-report
25737 The back ends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
25738 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
25739 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the back end
25740 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
25741 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
25742 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
25745 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
25747 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
25750 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
25751 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
25752 recently reported message for the back end in question. This function
25753 takes one argument---the server symbol.
25755 Internally, these functions access @var{back-end}@code{-status-string},
25756 so the @code{nnchoke} back end will have its error message stored in
25757 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
25760 @node Writing New Back Ends
25761 @subsubsection Writing New Back Ends
25763 Many back ends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
25764 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
25765 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
25766 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
25767 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
25770 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
25771 back ends when writing new back ends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
25772 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
25774 All the back ends declare their public variables and functions by using a
25775 package called @code{nnoo}.
25777 To inherit functions from other back ends (and allow other back ends to
25778 inherit functions from the current back end), you should use the
25784 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
25785 parameters. For instance:
25788 (nnoo-declare nndir
25792 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
25793 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
25796 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
25797 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
25798 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
25800 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
25801 variables in the parent back ends to map the variable to when executing
25802 a function in those back ends.
25805 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
25806 "Where nndir will look for groups."
25807 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
25810 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
25811 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
25812 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
25814 @item nnoo-define-basics
25815 This macro defines some common functions that almost all back ends should
25819 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
25823 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
25824 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
25825 function as being public so that other back ends can inherit it.
25827 @item nnoo-map-functions
25828 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current back end to
25829 functions from the parent back ends.
25832 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
25833 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
25834 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
25837 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
25838 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
25839 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
25840 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
25843 This macro allows importing functions from back ends. It should be the
25844 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
25845 haven't already been defined.
25851 nnmh-request-newgroups)
25855 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
25856 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
25857 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
25862 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} back end.
25865 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
25866 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
25870 (require 'nnheader)
25874 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
25876 (nnoo-declare nndir
25879 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
25880 "Where nndir will look for groups."
25881 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
25883 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
25884 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
25887 (defvoo nndir-current-group ""
25889 nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
25890 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
25891 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
25893 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
25894 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
25896 ;;; Interface functions.
25898 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
25900 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
25901 (setq nndir-directory
25902 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
25904 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
25905 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
25906 (push `(nndir-current-group
25907 ,(file-name-nondirectory
25908 (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
25910 (push `(nndir-top-directory
25911 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
25913 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
25915 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
25916 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
25917 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
25918 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
25919 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
25923 nnmh-status-message
25925 nnmh-request-newgroups))
25931 @node Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
25932 @subsubsection Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
25934 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
25935 @findex gnus-declare-backend
25936 Having Gnus start using your new back end is rather easy---you just
25937 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
25938 enter the back end into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
25940 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the back end name and
25941 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
25946 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
25949 The above line would then go in the @file{nnchoke.el} file.
25951 The abilities can be:
25955 This is a mailish back end---followups should (probably) go via mail.
25957 This is a newsish back end---followups should (probably) go via news.
25959 This back end supports both mail and news.
25961 This is neither a post nor mail back end---it's something completely
25964 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
25965 articles and groups.
25967 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
25968 true for almost all back ends.
25969 @item prompt-address
25970 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
25971 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for back ends like
25972 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
25976 @node Mail-like Back Ends
25977 @subsubsection Mail-like Back Ends
25979 One of the things that separate the mail back ends from the rest of the
25980 back ends is the heavy dependence by most of the mail back ends on
25981 common functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the
25982 definition of @code{nnml-request-scan}:
25985 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
25986 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
25987 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
25990 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
25991 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
25994 This function takes four parameters.
25998 This should be a symbol to designate which back end is responsible for
26001 @item exit-function
26002 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
26004 @item temp-directory
26005 Where the temporary files should be stored.
26008 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
26009 performed for one group only.
26012 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{back-end}@code{-save-mail} to
26013 save each article. @var{back-end}@code{-active-number} will be called to
26014 find the article number assigned to this article.
26016 The function also uses the following variables:
26017 @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
26018 this back end); and @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} and
26019 @var{back-end}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
26020 @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
26024 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
26025 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
26029 @node Score File Syntax
26030 @subsection Score File Syntax
26032 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
26033 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
26034 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
26036 Here's a typical score file:
26040 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
26047 BNF definition of a score file:
26050 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
26051 element = rule / atom
26052 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
26053 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
26054 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
26055 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
26057 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
26058 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
26059 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
26060 date-header = "date"
26061 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
26062 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
26063 score = "nil" / <integer>
26064 date = "nil" / <natural number>
26065 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
26066 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
26067 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
26068 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
26069 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
26070 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
26071 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
26072 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
26073 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
26074 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
26075 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
26076 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
26077 exclude-files / read-only / touched
26078 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
26079 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
26080 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
26081 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
26082 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
26083 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
26084 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
26085 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
26086 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
26087 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
26088 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
26089 eval = "eval" space <form>
26090 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
26093 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
26096 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
26097 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
26098 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
26099 one looong line, then that's ok.
26101 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
26102 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
26106 @subsection Headers
26108 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
26109 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
26110 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
26111 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
26113 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
26114 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
26115 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
26116 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
26117 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
26118 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
26119 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
26121 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
26122 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
26123 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
26124 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
26125 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
26127 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
26128 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
26134 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
26135 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
26137 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
26138 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
26139 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
26140 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
26142 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
26146 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
26149 is transformed into
26152 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
26155 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
26156 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
26159 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
26162 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
26163 is slightly tricky:
26166 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
26172 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
26175 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
26181 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
26188 and is equal to the previous range.
26190 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
26191 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
26192 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
26196 range = simple-range / normal-range
26197 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
26198 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
26199 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
26200 number *[ " " contents ]
26203 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
26204 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
26205 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
26206 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
26207 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
26212 @subsection Group Info
26214 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
26215 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
26216 describes the group.
26218 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
26219 second is a more complex one:
26222 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
26224 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
26225 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
26227 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
26230 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
26231 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
26232 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
26233 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
26234 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
26235 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
26236 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
26237 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
26238 this section is about.
26240 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
26241 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
26242 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
26244 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
26247 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
26248 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
26249 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
26250 group = quote <string> quote
26251 ralevel = rank / level
26252 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
26253 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
26254 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
26256 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
26257 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
26258 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
26259 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
26262 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
26263 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
26266 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
26267 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
26270 @item gnus-info-group
26271 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
26272 @findex gnus-info-group
26273 @findex gnus-info-set-group
26274 Get/set the group name.
26276 @item gnus-info-rank
26277 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
26278 @findex gnus-info-rank
26279 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
26280 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
26282 @item gnus-info-level
26283 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
26284 @findex gnus-info-level
26285 @findex gnus-info-set-level
26286 Get/set the group level.
26288 @item gnus-info-score
26289 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
26290 @findex gnus-info-score
26291 @findex gnus-info-set-score
26292 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
26294 @item gnus-info-read
26295 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
26296 @findex gnus-info-read
26297 @findex gnus-info-set-read
26298 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
26300 @item gnus-info-marks
26301 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
26302 @findex gnus-info-marks
26303 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
26304 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
26306 @item gnus-info-method
26307 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
26308 @findex gnus-info-method
26309 @findex gnus-info-set-method
26310 Get/set the group select method.
26312 @item gnus-info-params
26313 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
26314 @findex gnus-info-params
26315 @findex gnus-info-set-params
26316 Get/set the group parameters.
26319 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
26320 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
26322 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
26323 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
26324 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
26325 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
26328 @node Extended Interactive
26329 @subsection Extended Interactive
26330 @cindex interactive
26331 @findex gnus-interactive
26333 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
26334 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
26335 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
26338 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
26339 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
26344 The best thing to do would have been to implement
26345 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
26346 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
26347 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
26348 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
26349 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
26350 @code{interactive}.
26352 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
26357 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
26358 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
26362 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
26363 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
26364 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
26367 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
26371 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
26375 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
26381 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
26382 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
26386 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
26387 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
26388 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
26390 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
26391 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
26392 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
26393 Gnus, that's very useful.
26395 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
26396 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
26397 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
26398 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
26399 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
26400 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
26401 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
26402 following function:
26405 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
26409 (,function ,@@args))
26413 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
26414 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
26415 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
26418 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
26419 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
26420 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
26422 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
26423 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
26424 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
26427 @node Various File Formats
26428 @subsection Various File Formats
26431 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
26432 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
26436 @node Active File Format
26437 @subsubsection Active File Format
26439 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
26440 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
26443 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
26446 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
26447 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
26448 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
26449 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
26450 no.general 1000 900 y
26453 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
26456 active = *group-line
26457 group-line = group spc high-number spc low-number spc flag <NEWLINE>
26458 group = <non-white-space string>
26460 high-number = <non-negative integer>
26461 low-number = <positive integer>
26462 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
26465 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
26466 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
26469 @node Newsgroups File Format
26470 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
26472 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
26473 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
26474 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
26477 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
26478 Here's the definition:
26482 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
26483 group = <non-white-space string>
26485 description = <string>
26490 @node Emacs for Heathens
26491 @section Emacs for Heathens
26493 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
26494 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
26495 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{C-M-a}'', ``kill the
26496 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
26497 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
26498 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
26499 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
26503 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
26504 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
26509 @subsection Keystrokes
26513 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
26516 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
26519 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
26520 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
26521 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
26522 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
26523 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
26524 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
26526 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
26527 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
26528 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
26529 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
26530 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
26531 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
26532 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
26534 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
26535 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{C-M-m}
26536 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
26537 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
26538 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
26539 ``Press @kbd{C-M-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
26540 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
26542 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
26543 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
26544 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
26545 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
26546 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
26552 @subsection Emacs Lisp
26554 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
26555 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
26556 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
26557 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
26559 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
26560 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
26561 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
26562 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
26563 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
26564 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
26565 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
26568 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
26569 write the following:
26572 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
26575 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
26576 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
26577 you can go and fill your @file{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
26580 If you have put that thing in your @file{.emacs} file, it will be read
26581 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
26582 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
26583 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
26584 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
26586 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
26587 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
26588 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
26592 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
26596 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
26599 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
26600 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
26603 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
26606 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
26607 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
26610 @include gnus-faq.texi
26630 @c Local Variables:
26632 @c coding: iso-8859-1
26634 % LocalWords: BNF mucho detailmenu cindex kindex kbd
26635 % LocalWords: findex Gnusae vindex dfn dfn samp nntp setq nnspool nntpserver
26636 % LocalWords: nnmbox newusers Blllrph NEWGROUPS dingnusdingnusdingnus
26637 % LocalWords: pre fab rec comp nnslashdot regex ga ga sci nnml nnbabyl nnmh
26638 % LocalWords: nnfolder emph looong eld newsreaders defun init elc pxref