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4 @settitle Pterodactyl Gnus 0.94 Manual
9 @c * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
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265 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
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274 Copyright \copyright{} 1995,96,97,98,99 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
276 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
277 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
278 are preserved on all copies.
280 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
281 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
282 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
283 permission notice identical to this one.
285 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
286 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
295 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
297 Copyright (C) 1995,96,97,98,99 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
299 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
300 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
301 are preserved on all copies.
304 Permission is granted to process this file through Tex and print the
305 results, provided the printed document carries copying permission
306 notice identical to this one except for the removal of this paragraph
307 (this paragraph not being relevant to the printed manual).
310 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
311 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also that the
312 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
313 permission notice identical to this one.
315 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
316 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
322 @title Pterodactyl Gnus 0.94 Manual
324 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
327 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
328 Copyright @copyright{} 1995,96,97,98,99 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
330 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
331 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
332 are preserved on all copies.
334 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
335 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
336 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
337 permission notice identical to this one.
339 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
340 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
349 @top The Gnus Newsreader
353 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
354 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
355 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
358 This manual corresponds to Pterodactyl Gnus 0.94.
369 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
370 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
372 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
373 being accused of plagiarism:
375 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
376 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
377 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you can
378 even read news with it!
380 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
381 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
382 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
383 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
384 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
391 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
392 * The Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
393 * The Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
394 * The Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
395 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
396 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
397 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
398 * Various:: General purpose settings.
399 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
400 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
401 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
402 * Key Index:: Key Index.
406 @chapter Starting Gnus
411 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
412 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
415 @findex gnus-other-frame
416 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
417 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
418 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
420 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
421 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
422 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
424 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
425 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
428 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
429 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
430 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
431 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
432 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
433 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
434 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
435 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
436 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
437 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
438 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
442 @node Finding the News
443 @section Finding the News
446 @vindex gnus-select-method
448 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
449 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
450 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
451 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
454 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
455 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
458 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
461 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
464 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
467 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
468 certainly be much faster.
470 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
472 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
473 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
474 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
475 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
476 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
477 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
479 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
480 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
481 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
482 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
484 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
485 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
486 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
487 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
488 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
489 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
490 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
491 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
492 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
495 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
497 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
498 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
499 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
500 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
501 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
502 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
504 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
506 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
507 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
508 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
509 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
510 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
511 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
514 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
515 would typically set this variable to
518 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
523 @section The First Time
524 @cindex first time usage
526 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
527 be subscribed by default.
529 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
530 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
531 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
532 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
535 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
536 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
537 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
539 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
540 help you with most common problems.
542 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
543 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
547 @node The Server is Down
548 @section The Server is Down
549 @cindex server errors
551 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
552 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
553 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
555 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
556 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
557 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
558 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
559 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
560 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
561 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
563 @findex gnus-no-server
564 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
566 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
567 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
568 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
569 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
570 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
571 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
576 @section Slave Gnusae
579 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
580 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
581 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
582 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
584 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
587 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
588 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
589 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
590 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
591 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
592 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
593 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
595 Anyways, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
596 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
597 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
598 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
599 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
600 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
601 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
602 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
604 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
605 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
608 @node Fetching a Group
609 @section Fetching a Group
610 @cindex fetching a group
612 @findex gnus-fetch-group
613 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
614 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
615 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
616 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
617 It takes the group name as a parameter.
625 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
626 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
627 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
628 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
629 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
630 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
631 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
632 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the backends for new groups even
633 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
636 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
637 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
638 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
642 @node Checking New Groups
643 @subsection Checking New Groups
645 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
646 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
647 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
648 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
649 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
650 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
651 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
652 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
653 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
654 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
656 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
657 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
658 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
659 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
660 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
661 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
662 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
663 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
664 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
665 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
666 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
668 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
669 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
670 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
671 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
672 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
673 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
676 @node Subscription Methods
677 @subsection Subscription Methods
679 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
680 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
681 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
683 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
684 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
686 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
690 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
691 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
692 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
693 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
694 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
696 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
697 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
698 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
699 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
701 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
702 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
703 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
705 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
706 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
707 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
708 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
709 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
710 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
711 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
712 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
713 up. Or something like that.
715 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
716 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
717 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
718 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
719 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
721 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
722 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
727 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
728 A closely related variable is
729 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
730 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
731 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
732 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
735 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
736 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
737 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
738 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
741 @node Filtering New Groups
742 @subsection Filtering New Groups
744 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
745 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
746 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
749 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
752 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
753 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
754 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
755 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
756 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
757 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
758 subscribing these groups.
759 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
760 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
762 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
763 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
764 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
765 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
766 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
767 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
768 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
769 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
771 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
772 Yet another variable that meddles here is
773 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
774 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
775 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
776 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
777 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
778 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
779 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
780 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
782 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
783 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
786 @node Changing Servers
787 @section Changing Servers
788 @cindex changing servers
790 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
791 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
792 very flaky and you want to use another.
794 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
795 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
799 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
800 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
801 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
802 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
805 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
806 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
807 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
808 functions more than absolutely necessary.
810 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
811 @findex gnus-change-server
812 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
813 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
814 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
815 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
816 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
818 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
819 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
820 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
821 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
822 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
824 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
825 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
826 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
827 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
828 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
829 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
831 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
832 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
833 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
837 @section Startup Files
838 @cindex startup files
843 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
844 information is traditionally stored in this file.
846 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
847 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
848 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
849 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
850 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
851 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
852 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
854 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
855 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
856 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
857 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
858 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
859 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
861 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
862 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
863 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
864 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
865 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
866 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
867 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
868 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
869 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
870 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
872 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
873 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
874 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
875 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
876 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
877 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
878 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
879 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
880 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
881 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
882 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
883 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
885 @vindex gnus-startup-file
886 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
887 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
888 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
890 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
891 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
892 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
893 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
894 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
895 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
896 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
897 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
898 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
899 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
902 (defun turn-off-backup ()
903 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
905 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
906 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
909 @vindex gnus-init-file
910 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
911 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
912 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
913 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
914 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
915 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
916 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
917 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
918 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
927 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
928 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
929 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
930 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
931 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
934 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
935 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
938 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
939 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
940 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
942 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
943 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
944 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
945 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
946 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
947 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
949 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
950 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
951 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
954 @node The Active File
955 @section The Active File
957 @cindex ignored groups
959 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
960 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
961 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
963 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
964 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
965 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
966 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
967 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
968 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
969 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
972 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
973 @c if you set it to anything else.
975 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
977 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
978 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
979 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
981 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
982 you actually subscribe to.
984 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
985 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
986 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
987 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
989 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
990 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
991 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
992 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
993 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
994 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
996 Some news servers (Leafnode and old versions of INN, for instance) do
997 not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these servers, @code{nil}
998 is probably the most effficient value for this variable.
1000 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
1001 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1002 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1003 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1004 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1005 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1007 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1008 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1010 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1011 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1013 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1014 secondary select methods.
1017 @node Startup Variables
1018 @section Startup Variables
1022 @item gnus-load-hook
1023 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1024 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1025 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1026 times you start Gnus.
1028 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1029 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1030 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1032 @item gnus-startup-hook
1033 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1034 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1036 @item gnus-started-hook
1037 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1038 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1041 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1042 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1043 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1044 generating the group buffer.
1046 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1047 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1048 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1049 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1050 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1051 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1052 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1053 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1055 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1056 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1057 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1058 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1059 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1060 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1062 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1063 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1064 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1066 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1067 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1068 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1070 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1071 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1072 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1073 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1078 @node The Group Buffer
1079 @chapter The Group Buffer
1080 @cindex group buffer
1082 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1083 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1084 long as Gnus is active.
1088 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1089 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group.ps,height=9cm}}
1090 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1091 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1092 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1093 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1094 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1095 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1101 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1102 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1103 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1104 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1105 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1106 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1107 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1108 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1109 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1110 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1111 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1112 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1113 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1114 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1115 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1116 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1117 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1121 @node Group Buffer Format
1122 @section Group Buffer Format
1125 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1126 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1127 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1131 @node Group Line Specification
1132 @subsection Group Line Specification
1133 @cindex group buffer format
1135 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1136 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1138 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1141 25: news.announce.newusers
1142 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1147 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1148 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1149 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1150 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1152 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1153 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1154 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1155 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1156 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1157 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1159 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1161 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1162 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1163 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1164 never examined by Gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1167 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1168 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1169 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1171 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1176 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1179 Whether the group is subscribed.
1182 Level of subscribedness.
1185 Number of unread articles.
1188 Number of dormant articles.
1191 Number of ticked articles.
1194 Number of read articles.
1197 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1198 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1201 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1204 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1213 Newsgroup description.
1216 @samp{m} if moderated.
1219 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1228 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1232 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1235 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1236 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1237 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1238 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1239 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.emacs.gnus}.
1242 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1244 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1248 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1252 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1253 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1254 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1255 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1256 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1257 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1262 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1263 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1264 group, or a bogus native group.
1267 @node Group Modeline Specification
1268 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1269 @cindex group modeline
1271 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1272 The mode line can be changed by setting
1273 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1274 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1278 The native news server.
1280 The native select method.
1284 @node Group Highlighting
1285 @subsection Group Highlighting
1286 @cindex highlighting
1287 @cindex group highlighting
1289 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1290 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1291 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1292 that look like @var{(form . face)}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1293 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1295 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1299 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-1
1300 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))))
1301 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-2
1302 '((t (:foreground "SeaGreen" :bold t))))
1303 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-3
1304 '((t (:foreground "SpringGreen" :bold t))))
1305 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-4
1306 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))))
1307 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-5
1308 '((t (:foreground "SkyBlue" :bold t))))
1310 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1311 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1312 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1313 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1314 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1315 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1318 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1320 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1327 The number of unread articles in the group.
1331 Whether the group is a mail group.
1333 The level of the group.
1335 The score of the group.
1337 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1339 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1340 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1342 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1343 topic being inserted.
1346 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1347 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1348 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1350 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1351 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1352 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1353 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1354 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1357 @node Group Maneuvering
1358 @section Group Maneuvering
1359 @cindex group movement
1361 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1362 expected, hopefully.
1368 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1369 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1370 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1376 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1377 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1378 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1382 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1383 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1387 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1388 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1392 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1393 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1394 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1398 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1399 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1400 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1403 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1409 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1410 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1411 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1416 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1417 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1418 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1422 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1423 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1424 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1427 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1428 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1429 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1430 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1434 @node Selecting a Group
1435 @section Selecting a Group
1436 @cindex group selection
1441 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1442 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1443 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1444 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1445 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1446 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1447 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1448 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1449 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1450 negative, Gnus fetches the @var{abs(N)} oldest articles.
1454 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1455 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1456 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1457 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1458 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1462 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1463 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1464 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1465 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1466 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1467 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1468 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1469 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
1470 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
1471 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
1474 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1475 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1476 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1477 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1478 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1481 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
1482 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
1483 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
1484 doing any processing of its contents
1485 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
1486 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
1487 manner will have no permanent effects.
1491 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
1492 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
1493 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
1494 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
1495 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
1496 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
1497 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
1498 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
1501 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
1502 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
1503 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
1504 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
1509 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
1510 full summary buffer.
1513 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
1516 Select the highest scored article in the group when entering the
1521 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function will
1522 be called to place point on a subject line, and/or select some article.
1523 Useful functions include:
1526 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-subject
1527 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article, but
1528 don't select the article.
1530 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-article
1531 Select the first unread article.
1533 @item gnus-summary-best-unread-article
1534 Select the highest-scored unread article.
1538 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
1539 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
1540 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
1544 @node Subscription Commands
1545 @section Subscription Commands
1546 @cindex subscription
1554 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
1555 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
1556 Toggle subscription to the current group
1557 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
1563 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
1564 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
1565 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
1566 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
1572 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
1573 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
1574 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
1580 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
1581 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
1584 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
1585 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
1586 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
1587 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
1588 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
1594 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
1595 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
1599 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
1600 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
1603 @kindex S C-k (Group)
1604 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
1605 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
1606 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
1607 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
1608 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
1609 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
1610 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
1611 @file{.newsrc} file.
1615 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1625 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
1626 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
1627 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
1628 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
1629 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
1630 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
1635 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
1636 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
1637 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
1641 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1642 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
1643 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1645 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1646 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1647 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1648 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
1649 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
1650 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
1657 @section Group Levels
1661 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
1662 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
1663 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
1664 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
1665 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1667 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
1673 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
1674 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
1675 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
1676 prompted for a level.
1679 @vindex gnus-level-killed
1680 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
1681 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
1682 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
1683 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
1684 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
1685 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
1686 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
1687 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
1688 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
1689 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
1690 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
1691 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
1692 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
1693 reasons of efficiency.
1695 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
1696 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
1698 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
1699 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
1700 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
1702 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
1703 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
1704 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
1705 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
1706 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
1707 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
1708 relevant valid ranges.
1710 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
1711 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
1712 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
1713 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
1714 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
1715 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
1718 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
1719 All groups with a level less than or equal to
1720 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
1723 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
1724 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
1725 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
1726 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
1729 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
1730 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
1731 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
1732 use this level as the ``work'' level.
1734 @vindex gnus-activate-level
1735 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
1736 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
1737 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
1738 to 5. The default is 6.
1742 @section Group Score
1747 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
1748 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
1749 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
1752 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
1753 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
1754 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
1755 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
1756 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
1757 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
1758 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
1759 least significant part.))
1761 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
1762 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
1763 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
1764 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
1765 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
1766 action after each summary exit, you can add
1767 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
1768 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
1769 slow things down somewhat.
1772 @node Marking Groups
1773 @section Marking Groups
1774 @cindex marking groups
1776 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
1777 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
1778 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
1779 bidding on those groups.
1781 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
1782 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
1783 with the process mark and then execute the command.
1791 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
1792 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
1798 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
1799 Remove the mark from the current group
1800 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
1804 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
1805 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
1809 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
1810 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
1814 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
1815 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
1819 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
1820 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
1821 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
1824 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
1826 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
1827 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
1828 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
1829 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
1830 the command to be executed.
1833 @node Foreign Groups
1834 @section Foreign Groups
1835 @cindex foreign groups
1837 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
1838 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
1839 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
1840 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
1847 @findex gnus-group-make-group
1848 @cindex making groups
1849 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
1850 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
1851 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
1855 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
1856 @cindex renaming groups
1857 Rename the current group to something else
1858 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
1859 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
1865 @findex gnus-group-customize
1866 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
1870 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
1871 @cindex renaming groups
1872 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
1873 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
1877 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
1878 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
1879 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
1883 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
1884 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
1885 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
1889 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
1891 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
1892 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
1897 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
1898 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
1902 @cindex (ding) archive
1903 @cindex archive group
1904 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
1905 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
1906 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
1907 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
1908 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
1909 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
1910 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
1914 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
1916 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
1917 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
1918 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
1919 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
1923 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
1925 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
1926 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
1927 @xref{Anything Groups}.
1931 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
1932 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
1934 Make a group based on some file or other
1935 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1936 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
1937 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
1938 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
1939 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{nsmail} and @code{forward}.
1940 If you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
1941 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
1945 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
1946 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
1947 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
1948 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
1952 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
1957 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
1958 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1959 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
1960 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
1961 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
1962 @xref{Web Searches}.
1964 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
1965 to a particular group by using a match string like
1966 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
1969 @kindex G DEL (Group)
1970 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
1971 This function will delete the current group
1972 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
1973 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
1974 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
1975 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
1976 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
1980 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
1981 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
1982 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
1986 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
1987 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
1988 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
1991 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
1994 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
1995 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
1996 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
1997 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
1998 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
1999 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2003 @node Group Parameters
2004 @section Group Parameters
2005 @cindex group parameters
2007 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2008 Here's an example group parameter list:
2011 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2015 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2016 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2017 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2018 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2020 The following group parameters can be used:
2025 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2028 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2031 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2032 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2033 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2034 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2035 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2037 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2038 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2039 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2040 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2041 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2042 list address instead.
2046 Address used when doing a @kbd{a} in that group.
2049 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2052 It is totally ignored
2053 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2054 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2056 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2057 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2058 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2059 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2060 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2062 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2063 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2064 sending the message.
2068 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2069 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2070 of whether it has any unread articles.
2072 @item broken-reply-to
2073 @cindex broken-reply-to
2074 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2075 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2076 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2077 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2078 broken behavior. So there!
2082 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2083 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2087 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2088 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2089 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2094 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2095 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2096 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2097 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2098 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2099 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2100 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2104 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2105 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2106 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2109 @cindex total-expire
2110 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2111 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2112 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2113 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2118 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2119 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2120 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2121 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2122 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2123 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2126 @cindex score file group parameter
2127 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2128 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2129 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2132 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2133 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2134 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2135 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2138 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2139 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2140 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2141 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2144 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2145 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2149 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2152 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2157 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2158 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2159 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2163 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2164 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2165 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2167 @item @var{(variable form)}
2168 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2169 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2170 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2171 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2172 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2173 @code{eval}ed there.
2175 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2176 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2177 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2178 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2179 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2182 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2183 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2184 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2185 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2186 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2188 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2189 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2190 like this in the group parameters:
2195 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2200 Use the @kbd{G p} command to edit group parameters of a group. You
2201 might also be interested in reading about topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
2205 @node Listing Groups
2206 @section Listing Groups
2207 @cindex group listing
2209 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2217 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2218 List all groups that have unread articles
2219 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2220 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2221 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2222 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2229 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2230 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2231 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2232 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2233 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2234 unsubscribed groups).
2238 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2239 List all unread groups on a specific level
2240 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2241 with no unread articles.
2245 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2246 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2247 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2248 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2253 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2254 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2258 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2259 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2260 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2264 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2265 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2269 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2270 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2271 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2272 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2273 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2274 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2275 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2276 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2280 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2281 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2282 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2286 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2287 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2288 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2292 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2293 @cindex visible group parameter
2294 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2295 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2296 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2297 get the same effect.
2299 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2300 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2301 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2302 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2303 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2306 @node Sorting Groups
2307 @section Sorting Groups
2308 @cindex sorting groups
2310 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2311 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2312 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2313 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2314 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2315 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2320 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2321 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2322 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2324 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2325 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2326 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2328 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2329 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2330 Sort by group level.
2332 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2333 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2334 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
2336 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2337 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2338 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2339 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
2341 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2342 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2343 Sort by number of unread articles.
2345 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
2346 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
2347 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
2352 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
2353 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
2357 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
2358 some sorting criteria:
2362 @kindex G S a (Group)
2363 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2364 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
2365 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2368 @kindex G S u (Group)
2369 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
2370 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
2371 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2374 @kindex G S l (Group)
2375 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
2376 Sort the group buffer by group level
2377 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
2380 @kindex G S v (Group)
2381 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
2382 Sort the group buffer by group score
2383 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2386 @kindex G S r (Group)
2387 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
2388 Sort the group buffer by group rank
2389 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2392 @kindex G S m (Group)
2393 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
2394 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
2395 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
2399 All the commands below obeys the process/prefix convention
2400 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2402 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
2403 commands will sort in reverse order.
2405 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
2409 @kindex G P a (Group)
2410 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
2411 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
2412 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
2415 @kindex G P u (Group)
2416 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
2417 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
2418 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
2421 @kindex G P l (Group)
2422 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
2423 Sort the groups by group level
2424 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
2427 @kindex G P v (Group)
2428 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
2429 Sort the groups by group score
2430 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2433 @kindex G P r (Group)
2434 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
2435 Sort the groups by group rank
2436 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2439 @kindex G P m (Group)
2440 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
2441 Sort the groups alphabetically by backend name
2442 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
2448 @node Group Maintenance
2449 @section Group Maintenance
2450 @cindex bogus groups
2455 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
2456 Find bogus groups and delete them
2457 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
2461 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
2462 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
2463 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
2464 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
2465 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
2469 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
2470 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
2471 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
2472 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}).
2475 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
2476 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
2477 Run all articles in all groups through the expiry process
2478 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
2483 @node Browse Foreign Server
2484 @section Browse Foreign Server
2485 @cindex foreign servers
2486 @cindex browsing servers
2491 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
2492 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
2493 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
2494 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
2497 @findex gnus-browse-mode
2498 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
2499 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
2500 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
2502 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
2507 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2508 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2512 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2513 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2516 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
2517 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
2518 Enter the current group and display the first article
2519 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
2522 @kindex RET (Browse)
2523 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
2524 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
2528 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
2529 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
2530 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2536 @findex gnus-browse-exit
2537 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
2541 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
2542 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
2543 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
2548 @section Exiting Gnus
2549 @cindex exiting Gnus
2551 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
2556 @findex gnus-group-suspend
2557 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
2558 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
2559 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
2563 @findex gnus-group-exit
2564 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
2565 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
2569 @findex gnus-group-quit
2570 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
2571 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
2574 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
2575 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
2576 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
2577 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
2578 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
2583 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
2584 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
2585 trying to customize meta-variables.
2590 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
2591 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
2592 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
2598 @section Group Topics
2601 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
2602 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
2603 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
2604 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
2605 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
2606 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
2610 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
2611 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group-topic.ps,height=9cm}}
2622 2: alt.religion.emacs
2625 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2627 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2628 13: comp.sources.unix
2631 @findex gnus-topic-mode
2633 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
2634 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
2635 is a toggling command.)
2637 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
2638 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
2639 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
2640 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
2643 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
2644 the hook for the group mode:
2647 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
2651 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
2652 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
2653 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
2654 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
2655 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
2659 @node Topic Variables
2660 @subsection Topic Variables
2661 @cindex topic variables
2663 Now, if you select a topic, it will fold/unfold that topic, which is
2664 really neat, I think.
2666 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
2667 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
2668 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
2681 Number of groups in the topic.
2683 Number of unread articles in the topic.
2685 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
2688 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
2689 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
2690 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
2693 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
2694 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
2696 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
2697 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
2698 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
2701 @node Topic Commands
2702 @subsection Topic Commands
2703 @cindex topic commands
2705 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
2706 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
2707 definitions slightly.
2713 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
2714 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
2715 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
2719 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
2720 Move the current group to some other topic
2721 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2722 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2726 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
2727 Copy the current group to some other topic
2728 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2729 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2733 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
2734 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
2735 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
2736 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
2737 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
2738 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
2739 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
2742 This command uses the process/prefix convention
2743 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2747 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
2748 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2749 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
2753 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
2754 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2755 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
2759 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
2760 Toggle hiding empty topics
2761 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
2765 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
2766 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
2767 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
2770 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
2771 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
2772 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
2773 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
2777 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
2779 @findex gnus-topic-indent
2780 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2781 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
2782 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
2785 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
2786 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
2787 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2788 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
2792 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
2794 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
2795 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
2796 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
2797 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
2798 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
2799 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
2802 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
2803 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
2804 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the expiry
2805 process (if any) (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}).
2809 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
2810 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
2811 topic will be removed along with the topic.
2815 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
2816 Yank the previously killed group or topic
2817 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
2822 @findex gnus-topic-rename
2823 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
2826 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
2827 @findex gnus-topic-delete
2828 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
2832 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
2833 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
2834 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
2838 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
2839 @cindex group parameters
2840 @cindex topic parameters
2842 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
2843 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
2849 @subsection Topic Sorting
2850 @cindex topic sorting
2852 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
2858 @kindex T S a (Topic)
2859 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2860 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
2861 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2864 @kindex T S u (Topic)
2865 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
2866 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
2867 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2870 @kindex T S l (Topic)
2871 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
2872 Sort the current topic by group level
2873 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
2876 @kindex T S v (Topic)
2877 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
2878 Sort the current topic by group score
2879 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2882 @kindex T S r (Topic)
2883 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
2884 Sort the current topic by group rank
2885 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2888 @kindex T S m (Topic)
2889 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
2890 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
2891 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
2895 @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group sorting.
2898 @node Topic Topology
2899 @subsection Topic Topology
2900 @cindex topic topology
2903 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
2909 2: alt.religion.emacs
2912 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2914 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2915 13: comp.sources.unix
2918 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
2919 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
2920 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
2925 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
2926 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
2930 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
2931 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
2932 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
2933 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
2934 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
2935 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
2937 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
2938 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
2939 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
2942 @node Topic Parameters
2943 @subsection Topic Parameters
2944 @cindex topic parameters
2946 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
2947 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
2948 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
2950 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
2951 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
2952 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
2953 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
2959 2: alt.religion.emacs
2963 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2965 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2966 13: comp.sources.unix
2970 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
2971 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
2972 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
2973 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
2974 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
2975 . "religion.SCORE")}.
2977 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
2978 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
2979 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
2980 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
2981 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
2983 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
2984 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
2985 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
2986 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
2987 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
2988 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
2989 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
2990 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
2993 @node Misc Group Stuff
2994 @section Misc Group Stuff
2997 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
2998 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
2999 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3000 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3007 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3008 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3009 @xref{The Server Buffer}.
3013 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3014 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a
3015 prefix, the current group name will be used as the default.
3019 @findex gnus-group-mail
3020 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
3024 Variables for the group buffer:
3028 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3029 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3030 is called after the group buffer has been
3033 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3034 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3035 is called after the group buffer is
3036 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3039 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3040 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3041 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3042 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3044 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3045 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3046 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3047 whether they are empty or not.
3052 @node Scanning New Messages
3053 @subsection Scanning New Messages
3054 @cindex new messages
3055 @cindex scanning new news
3061 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
3062 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
3063 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
3064 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
3065 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
3066 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
3071 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
3072 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
3073 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
3074 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
3075 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
3076 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
3077 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
3079 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
3080 @cindex activating groups
3082 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
3083 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
3088 @findex gnus-group-restart
3089 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
3090 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
3091 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
3095 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3096 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3098 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3099 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3103 @node Group Information
3104 @subsection Group Information
3105 @cindex group information
3106 @cindex information on groups
3113 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
3114 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
3117 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
3118 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
3119 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
3120 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
3121 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
3122 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
3123 for fetching the file.
3125 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
3126 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
3130 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
3132 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
3133 @cindex describing groups
3134 @cindex group description
3135 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
3136 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
3137 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
3141 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
3142 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
3143 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
3150 @findex gnus-version
3151 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
3155 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
3156 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
3159 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
3162 @findex gnus-info-find-node
3163 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
3167 @node Group Timestamp
3168 @subsection Group Timestamp
3170 @cindex group timestamps
3172 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
3173 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
3174 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
3177 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
3180 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
3182 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
3183 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
3186 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3187 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
3190 This will result in lines looking like:
3193 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
3194 0: custom 19961002T012713
3197 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
3198 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
3202 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3203 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
3208 @subsection File Commands
3209 @cindex file commands
3215 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
3216 @vindex gnus-init-file
3217 @cindex reading init file
3218 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
3219 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
3223 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
3224 @cindex saving .newsrc
3225 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
3226 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
3227 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
3230 @c @kindex Z (Group)
3231 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
3232 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3237 @node The Summary Buffer
3238 @chapter The Summary Buffer
3239 @cindex summary buffer
3241 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3242 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3244 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3245 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3247 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3250 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3251 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3252 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3253 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3254 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3255 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
3256 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3257 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3258 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3259 * Sorting:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3260 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
3261 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
3262 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
3263 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
3264 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
3265 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
3266 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
3267 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
3268 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
3269 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
3270 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
3271 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
3272 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3273 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3274 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3275 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3276 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
3277 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3278 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3282 @node Summary Buffer Format
3283 @section Summary Buffer Format
3284 @cindex summary buffer format
3288 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
3289 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary.ps,width=7.5cm}}
3290 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-article.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
3296 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
3297 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
3298 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
3299 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
3302 @findex mail-extract-address-components
3303 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
3304 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
3305 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
3306 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
3307 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
3308 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
3309 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
3310 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
3311 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
3312 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead:
3315 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
3316 'mail-extract-address-components)
3319 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
3320 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
3321 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
3322 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
3325 @node Summary Buffer Lines
3326 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
3328 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3329 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
3330 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
3331 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
3332 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3334 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
3336 The following format specification characters are understood:
3344 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
3345 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
3346 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
3348 Full @code{From} header.
3350 The name (from the @code{From} header).
3352 The name, code @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header
3353 (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
3355 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
3356 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
3357 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
3358 may be more thorough.
3360 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
3363 Number of lines in the article.
3365 Number of characters in the article.
3367 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3369 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
3370 pushes everything after it off the screen).
3372 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
3373 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3375 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
3376 for adopted articles.
3378 One space for each thread level.
3380 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
3385 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
3386 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
3390 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
3392 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
3393 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
3394 default level. If the difference between
3395 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
3396 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
3404 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
3406 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
3412 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
3413 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
3415 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
3416 article has any children.
3422 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
3423 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
3424 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
3425 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
3426 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
3427 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
3430 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
3431 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
3432 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
3433 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
3434 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
3435 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
3437 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
3438 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
3440 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
3443 @node To From Newsgroups
3444 @subsection To From Newsgroups
3448 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
3449 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
3450 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
3451 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
3452 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
3456 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
3457 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
3458 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
3462 (setq gnus-extra-headers
3463 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
3466 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
3467 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
3470 @findex gnus-extra-header
3471 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
3472 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
3473 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
3476 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
3480 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
3481 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
3482 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
3483 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
3484 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
3485 headers are used instead.
3489 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
3490 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
3491 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
3492 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
3495 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3496 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
3497 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
3498 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
3500 In summary, you'd typically do something like the following:
3503 (setq gnus-extra-headers
3505 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
3506 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
3507 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20f%]%) %s\n")
3508 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
3512 Now, this is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
3513 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
3520 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
3521 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
3524 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
3525 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
3527 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
3528 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
3529 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
3530 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
3532 Here are the elements you can play with:
3538 Unprefixed group name.
3540 Current article number.
3542 Current article score.
3546 Number of unread articles in this group.
3548 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
3551 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
3552 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
3553 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
3554 and no unselected ones.
3556 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
3557 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
3559 Subject of the current article.
3561 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
3563 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
3565 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3567 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3569 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
3571 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
3575 @node Summary Highlighting
3576 @subsection Summary Highlighting
3580 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3581 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3582 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
3583 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
3584 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3586 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
3587 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
3588 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
3589 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3591 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
3592 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
3593 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
3594 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
3596 @item gnus-summary-highlight
3597 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
3598 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
3599 list where the elements are of the format @var{(FORM . FACE)}. If you
3600 would, for instance, like ticked articles to be italic and high-scored
3601 articles to be bold, you could set this variable to something like
3603 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
3604 ((> score default) . bold))
3606 As you may have guessed, if @var{FORM} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
3607 @var{FACE} will be applied to the line.
3611 @node Summary Maneuvering
3612 @section Summary Maneuvering
3613 @cindex summary movement
3615 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
3616 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
3618 None of these commands select articles.
3623 @kindex M-n (Summary)
3624 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
3625 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
3626 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
3627 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
3631 @kindex M-p (Summary)
3632 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
3633 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
3634 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
3635 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
3640 @kindex G j (Summary)
3641 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
3642 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
3643 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
3646 @kindex G g (Summary)
3647 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
3648 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
3649 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
3652 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
3653 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
3654 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
3655 to the group buffer.
3657 Variables related to summary movement:
3661 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
3662 @item gnus-auto-select-next
3663 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
3664 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
3665 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
3666 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
3667 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
3668 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
3669 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
3670 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
3671 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
3672 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
3673 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
3674 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
3676 @item gnus-auto-select-same
3677 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
3678 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
3679 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
3680 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
3681 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
3682 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
3684 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
3686 @item gnus-summary-check-current
3687 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
3688 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
3689 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
3690 Instead, they will choose the current article.
3692 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
3693 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
3694 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
3695 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
3696 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
3697 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
3698 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
3699 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
3702 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
3703 the given number of lines from the top.
3708 @node Choosing Articles
3709 @section Choosing Articles
3710 @cindex selecting articles
3713 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
3714 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
3718 @node Choosing Commands
3719 @subsection Choosing Commands
3721 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
3722 and they all select and display an article.
3726 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3727 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3728 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
3729 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3734 @kindex G n (Summary)
3735 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
3736 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
3737 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
3742 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
3743 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
3744 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
3749 @kindex G N (Summary)
3750 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
3751 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
3756 @kindex G P (Summary)
3757 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
3758 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
3761 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
3762 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
3763 Go to the next article with the same subject
3764 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
3767 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
3768 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
3769 Go to the previous article with the same subject
3770 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
3774 @kindex G f (Summary)
3776 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
3777 Go to the first unread article
3778 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
3782 @kindex G b (Summary)
3784 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
3785 Go to the article with the highest score
3786 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
3791 @kindex G l (Summary)
3792 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
3793 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
3796 @kindex G o (Summary)
3797 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
3799 @cindex article history
3800 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
3801 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
3802 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
3803 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
3804 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
3805 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
3809 @node Choosing Variables
3810 @subsection Choosing Variables
3812 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
3815 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3816 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3817 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
3818 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
3819 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
3820 the server and display it in the article buffer.
3822 @item gnus-select-article-hook
3823 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
3824 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
3825 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
3827 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
3828 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
3829 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
3830 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
3831 @findex gnus-unread-mark
3832 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
3833 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
3834 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
3835 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
3836 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
3837 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
3838 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
3839 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
3840 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
3845 @node Paging the Article
3846 @section Scrolling the Article
3847 @cindex article scrolling
3852 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3853 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3854 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
3855 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
3856 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3859 @kindex DEL (Summary)
3860 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
3861 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
3864 @kindex RET (Summary)
3865 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
3866 Scroll the current article one line forward
3867 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
3870 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
3871 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
3872 Scroll the current article one line backward
3873 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
3877 @kindex A g (Summary)
3879 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
3880 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
3881 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
3882 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
3883 the way it came from the server.
3888 @kindex A < (Summary)
3889 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
3890 Scroll to the beginning of the article
3891 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
3896 @kindex A > (Summary)
3897 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
3898 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
3902 @kindex A s (Summary)
3904 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
3905 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
3906 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
3910 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
3911 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
3916 @node Reply Followup and Post
3917 @section Reply, Followup and Post
3920 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
3921 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
3925 @node Summary Mail Commands
3926 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
3928 @cindex composing mail
3930 Commands for composing a mail message:
3936 @kindex S r (Summary)
3938 @findex gnus-summary-reply
3939 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
3940 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
3941 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
3942 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
3947 @kindex S R (Summary)
3948 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
3949 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
3950 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
3951 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
3952 command uses the process/prefix convention.
3955 @kindex S w (Summary)
3956 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
3957 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
3958 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
3959 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
3960 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
3963 @kindex S W (Summary)
3964 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
3965 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
3966 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
3967 the process/prefix convention.
3970 @kindex S o m (Summary)
3971 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
3972 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
3973 Forward the current article to some other person
3974 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3975 headers of the forwarded article.
3980 @kindex S m (Summary)
3981 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
3982 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
3983 Send a mail to some other person
3984 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
3987 @kindex S D b (Summary)
3988 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
3989 @cindex bouncing mail
3990 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
3991 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
3992 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
3993 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
3994 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
3995 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
3996 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
3997 very well fail, though.
4000 @kindex S D r (Summary)
4001 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
4002 Not to be confused with the previous command,
4003 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
4004 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
4005 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
4006 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
4007 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
4008 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
4009 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
4011 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
4012 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
4013 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
4014 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
4015 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
4017 This command understands the process/prefix convention
4018 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4021 @kindex S O m (Summary)
4022 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
4023 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
4024 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
4025 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4028 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
4029 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
4030 @cindex crossposting
4031 @cindex excessive crossposting
4032 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
4033 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
4035 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
4036 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
4037 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
4038 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
4039 command understands the process/prefix convention
4040 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
4044 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4047 @node Summary Post Commands
4048 @subsection Summary Post Commands
4050 @cindex composing news
4052 Commands for posting a news article:
4058 @kindex S p (Summary)
4059 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
4060 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
4061 Post an article to the current group
4062 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
4067 @kindex S f (Summary)
4068 @findex gnus-summary-followup
4069 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
4070 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
4074 @kindex S F (Summary)
4076 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
4077 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
4078 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
4079 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
4080 process/prefix convention.
4083 @kindex S n (Summary)
4084 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
4085 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4086 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
4089 @kindex S N (Summary)
4090 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
4091 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4092 message through mail and include the original message
4093 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
4094 the process/prefix convention.
4097 @kindex S o p (Summary)
4098 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
4099 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
4100 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
4101 headers of the forwarded article.
4104 @kindex S O p (Summary)
4105 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
4107 @cindex making digests
4108 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
4109 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
4110 process/prefix convention.
4113 @kindex S u (Summary)
4114 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
4115 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
4116 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
4117 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
4120 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4123 @node Canceling and Superseding
4124 @section Canceling Articles
4125 @cindex canceling articles
4126 @cindex superseding articles
4128 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
4129 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
4131 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
4133 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
4135 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
4136 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
4137 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
4138 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
4139 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
4140 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4142 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
4143 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
4146 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
4147 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
4148 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
4150 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
4151 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
4152 your original article.
4154 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
4156 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
4157 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
4158 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
4161 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
4162 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
4163 have posted almost the same article twice.
4165 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
4166 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
4167 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
4168 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
4169 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
4170 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
4171 header by substituting one of those words for the word
4172 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
4173 you would do normally. The previous article will be
4174 canceled/superseded.
4176 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
4179 @node Marking Articles
4180 @section Marking Articles
4181 @cindex article marking
4182 @cindex article ticking
4185 There are several marks you can set on an article.
4187 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
4188 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
4189 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
4191 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
4194 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
4195 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
4196 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
4200 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
4204 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
4205 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
4206 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
4210 @node Unread Articles
4211 @subsection Unread Articles
4213 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
4218 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
4219 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
4221 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
4222 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
4223 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
4224 tick it. However, articles can be expired, so if you want to keep an
4225 article forever, you'll have to make it persistent (@pxref{Persistent
4229 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
4230 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
4232 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
4233 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
4234 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
4237 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
4238 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
4240 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
4245 @subsection Read Articles
4246 @cindex expirable mark
4248 All the following marks mark articles as read.
4253 @vindex gnus-del-mark
4254 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
4255 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
4258 @vindex gnus-read-mark
4259 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
4262 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
4263 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
4264 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
4267 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
4268 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
4271 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
4272 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
4275 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
4276 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
4279 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
4280 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
4283 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
4284 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
4287 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
4288 @sc{SOUP}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
4291 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
4292 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
4296 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
4297 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
4298 (@code{gnus-duplicated-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
4302 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
4303 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
4305 One more special mark, though:
4309 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
4310 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
4312 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
4313 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
4314 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
4315 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
4321 @subsection Other Marks
4322 @cindex process mark
4325 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
4331 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
4332 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
4333 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
4334 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
4335 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
4338 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
4339 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
4340 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
4341 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
4344 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
4345 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
4346 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
4349 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
4350 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
4351 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
4352 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
4355 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
4356 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
4357 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
4358 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
4359 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
4362 @vindex gnus-process-mark
4363 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
4364 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
4365 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
4366 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
4367 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
4371 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
4372 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
4373 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
4375 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
4376 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
4377 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
4381 @subsection Setting Marks
4382 @cindex setting marks
4384 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
4389 @kindex M c (Summary)
4390 @kindex M-u (Summary)
4391 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
4392 @cindex mark as unread
4393 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
4394 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
4400 @kindex M t (Summary)
4401 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
4402 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
4403 @xref{Article Caching}.
4408 @kindex M ? (Summary)
4409 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
4410 Mark the current article as dormant
4411 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
4415 @kindex M d (Summary)
4417 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
4418 Mark the current article as read
4419 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
4423 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
4424 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
4425 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
4430 @kindex M k (Summary)
4431 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
4432 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
4433 and then select the next unread article
4434 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
4438 @kindex M K (Summary)
4439 @kindex C-k (Summary)
4440 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
4441 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
4442 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
4445 @kindex M C (Summary)
4446 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
4447 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
4448 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
4451 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
4452 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
4453 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
4454 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
4457 @kindex M H (Summary)
4458 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
4459 Catchup the current group to point
4460 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
4463 @kindex C-w (Summary)
4464 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
4465 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
4466 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
4469 @kindex M V k (Summary)
4470 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
4471 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
4472 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
4476 @kindex M e (Summary)
4478 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
4479 Mark the current article as expirable
4480 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
4483 @kindex M b (Summary)
4484 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
4485 Set a bookmark in the current article
4486 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
4489 @kindex M B (Summary)
4490 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
4491 Remove the bookmark from the current article
4492 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
4495 @kindex M V c (Summary)
4496 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
4497 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
4498 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4501 @kindex M V u (Summary)
4502 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
4503 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
4504 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
4507 @kindex M V m (Summary)
4508 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
4509 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
4510 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
4511 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4514 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
4515 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
4516 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
4517 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
4518 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
4519 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
4520 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
4521 The default is @code{t}.
4524 @node Generic Marking Commands
4525 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
4527 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
4528 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
4529 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
4530 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go the the
4531 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
4534 Multiply these five behaviours with five different marking commands, and
4535 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
4538 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
4539 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
4540 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
4541 to list in this manual.
4543 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
4544 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
4545 @kbd{!} command to go the the next article instead of the next unread
4546 article, you could say something like:
4549 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
4550 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
4551 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
4557 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
4558 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
4562 @node Setting Process Marks
4563 @subsection Setting Process Marks
4564 @cindex setting process marks
4571 @kindex M P p (Summary)
4572 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
4573 Mark the current article with the process mark
4574 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
4575 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
4579 @kindex M P u (Summary)
4580 @kindex M-# (Summary)
4581 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
4582 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
4585 @kindex M P U (Summary)
4586 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
4587 Remove the process mark from all articles
4588 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
4591 @kindex M P i (Summary)
4592 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
4593 Invert the list of process marked articles
4594 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
4597 @kindex M P R (Summary)
4598 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
4599 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
4600 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
4603 @kindex M P r (Summary)
4604 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
4605 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
4608 @kindex M P t (Summary)
4609 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4610 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4611 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4614 @kindex M P T (Summary)
4615 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4616 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4617 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4620 @kindex M P v (Summary)
4621 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
4622 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
4623 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
4626 @kindex M P s (Summary)
4627 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
4628 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4631 @kindex M P S (Summary)
4632 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
4633 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
4634 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
4637 @kindex M P a (Summary)
4638 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
4639 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4642 @kindex M P b (Summary)
4643 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
4644 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
4645 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
4648 @kindex M P k (Summary)
4649 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
4650 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
4651 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
4654 @kindex M P y (Summary)
4655 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
4656 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
4657 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
4660 @kindex M P w (Summary)
4661 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
4662 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
4663 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
4672 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
4673 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
4674 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
4677 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
4678 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
4679 additional articles.
4685 @kindex / / (Summary)
4686 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
4687 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
4688 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
4691 @kindex / a (Summary)
4692 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
4693 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
4694 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
4697 @kindex / x (Summary)
4698 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
4699 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
4700 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
4701 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
4705 @kindex / u (Summary)
4707 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
4708 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
4709 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
4710 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
4711 dormant articles will also be excluded.
4714 @kindex / m (Summary)
4715 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
4716 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
4717 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
4720 @kindex / t (Summary)
4721 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
4722 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
4723 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}). If given a prefix, limit to
4724 articles younger than that number of days.
4727 @kindex / n (Summary)
4728 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
4729 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
4730 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
4731 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4734 @kindex / w (Summary)
4735 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
4736 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
4737 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
4741 @kindex / v (Summary)
4742 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
4743 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
4744 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
4748 @kindex M S (Summary)
4749 @kindex / E (Summary)
4750 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
4751 Include all expunged articles in the limit
4752 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
4755 @kindex / D (Summary)
4756 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
4757 Include all dormant articles in the limit
4758 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
4761 @kindex / * (Summary)
4762 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
4763 Include all cached articles in the limit
4764 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
4767 @kindex / d (Summary)
4768 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
4769 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
4770 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
4773 @kindex / M (Summary)
4774 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
4775 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
4778 @kindex / T (Summary)
4779 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
4780 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
4783 @kindex / c (Summary)
4784 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
4785 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
4786 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
4789 @kindex / C (Summary)
4790 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
4791 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
4792 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
4793 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
4801 @cindex article threading
4803 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
4804 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
4805 hierarchical fashion.
4807 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
4808 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
4809 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
4810 or simply missing. Weird news propagation excarcerbates the problem,
4811 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
4812 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
4813 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
4815 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
4819 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
4822 A tree-like article structure.
4825 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
4828 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
4829 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
4830 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
4831 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
4832 called loose threads.
4834 @item thread gathering
4835 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
4837 @item sparse threads
4838 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
4839 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
4845 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
4846 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
4850 @node Customizing Threading
4851 @subsection Customizing Threading
4852 @cindex customizing threading
4855 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
4856 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
4857 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
4858 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
4863 @subsubsection Loose Threads
4866 @cindex loose threads
4869 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
4870 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
4871 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
4872 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
4873 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
4874 read or killed the root in a previous session.
4876 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
4877 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
4878 There are four possible values:
4882 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
4883 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-adopt.ps,width=7.5cm}}
4884 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-empty.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4885 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-none.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4886 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-dummy.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4891 @cindex adopting articles
4896 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
4897 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
4898 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
4899 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
4902 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
4903 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
4904 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
4905 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
4906 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
4907 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
4908 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
4911 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
4912 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
4913 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
4917 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
4918 display them after one another.
4921 Don't gather loose threads.
4924 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4925 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4926 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
4927 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
4928 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
4929 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
4930 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
4931 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
4932 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
4933 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
4934 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
4936 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
4937 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
4938 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
4941 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4942 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4943 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
4944 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
4945 simplification is used.
4947 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4948 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4949 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
4950 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
4952 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
4954 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4960 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
4961 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
4962 "answer" "reference" "announce"
4963 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
4968 (mapconcat 'identity
4969 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
4971 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
4974 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
4977 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
4978 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
4979 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
4980 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
4981 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
4982 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
4984 Useful functions to put in this list include:
4987 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
4988 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
4989 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
4991 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
4992 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
4995 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
4996 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
4997 Remove excessive whitespace.
5000 You may also write your own functions, of course.
5003 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5004 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5005 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
5006 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
5007 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
5008 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
5009 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
5010 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
5012 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5013 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5014 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
5015 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
5016 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
5017 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
5018 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
5019 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
5020 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
5024 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5025 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5026 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
5027 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
5029 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5030 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5031 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
5034 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
5038 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5039 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
5045 @node Filling In Threads
5046 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
5049 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
5050 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
5051 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
5052 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
5053 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
5054 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
5055 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
5056 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
5057 fetching old headers only works if the backend you are using carries
5058 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
5059 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
5060 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
5062 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
5063 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
5064 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
5066 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
5067 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
5068 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
5069 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
5070 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
5071 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
5072 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
5073 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
5074 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
5075 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
5076 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
5077 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
5078 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
5079 @code{nil} by default.
5084 @node More Threading
5085 @subsubsection More Threading
5088 @item gnus-show-threads
5089 @vindex gnus-show-threads
5090 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
5091 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
5092 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
5093 slower and more awkward.
5095 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5096 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5097 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
5100 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
5101 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
5102 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
5103 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
5104 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
5105 threads are expunged.
5107 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
5108 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
5109 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
5112 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5113 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5114 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
5115 this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subject change is ignored. If it
5116 is @code{nil}, which is the default, a change in the subject will result
5119 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
5120 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
5121 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
5127 @node Low-Level Threading
5128 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
5132 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
5133 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
5134 Hook run before parsing any headers.
5136 @item gnus-alter-header-function
5137 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
5138 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
5139 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
5140 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
5141 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
5142 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
5143 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
5144 meaningful. Here's one example:
5147 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
5149 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
5150 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
5152 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
5154 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
5161 @node Thread Commands
5162 @subsection Thread Commands
5163 @cindex thread commands
5169 @kindex T k (Summary)
5170 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
5171 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
5172 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
5173 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
5174 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
5179 @kindex T l (Summary)
5180 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
5181 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
5182 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
5183 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
5186 @kindex T i (Summary)
5187 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
5188 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
5189 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
5192 @kindex T # (Summary)
5193 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5194 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
5195 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5198 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
5199 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5200 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
5201 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5204 @kindex T T (Summary)
5205 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
5206 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
5209 @kindex T s (Summary)
5210 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
5211 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
5212 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
5215 @kindex T h (Summary)
5216 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
5217 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
5220 @kindex T S (Summary)
5221 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
5222 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
5225 @kindex T H (Summary)
5226 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
5227 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
5230 @kindex T t (Summary)
5231 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
5232 Re-thread the current article's thread
5233 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
5234 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
5237 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
5238 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
5239 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
5240 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
5244 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
5245 understand the numeric prefix.
5250 @kindex T n (Summary)
5251 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
5252 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
5255 @kindex T p (Summary)
5256 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
5257 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
5260 @kindex T d (Summary)
5261 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
5262 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
5265 @kindex T u (Summary)
5266 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
5267 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
5270 @kindex T o (Summary)
5271 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
5272 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
5275 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
5276 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
5277 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
5278 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
5279 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
5280 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
5281 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
5282 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
5283 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
5284 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
5285 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
5286 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
5293 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
5294 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
5295 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
5296 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5297 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
5298 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5299 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
5300 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
5301 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
5302 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
5303 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
5305 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
5306 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
5307 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
5308 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
5309 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
5311 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
5312 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
5313 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
5315 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
5316 last function in the list. You should probably always include
5317 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
5318 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
5319 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
5320 ascending article order.
5322 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
5323 by number, you could do something like:
5326 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5327 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5328 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5329 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
5332 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
5333 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
5334 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
5335 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
5336 which the articles arrived.
5338 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
5342 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5344 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
5345 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
5348 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
5349 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
5350 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
5351 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
5354 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
5355 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
5356 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
5357 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
5358 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
5359 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
5360 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
5361 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
5362 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
5363 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
5364 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
5365 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
5366 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
5368 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
5372 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
5373 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
5374 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
5379 @node Asynchronous Fetching
5380 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
5381 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
5382 @cindex article pre-fetch
5385 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
5386 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
5387 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
5388 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
5389 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
5391 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
5392 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
5394 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
5395 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
5396 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
5397 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
5398 connection is blocked.
5400 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
5401 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
5402 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
5403 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
5405 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
5406 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
5407 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
5408 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
5411 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
5414 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
5415 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
5416 happen automatically.
5418 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
5419 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
5420 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
5421 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
5422 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
5423 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
5424 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
5426 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
5427 @findex gnus-async-read-p
5428 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
5429 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
5430 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
5431 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
5432 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
5433 data structure as the only parameter.
5435 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
5438 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
5439 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
5440 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
5441 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
5444 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
5447 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
5448 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
5449 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
5451 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
5452 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
5453 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
5454 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
5458 Remove articles when they are read.
5461 Remove articles when exiting the group.
5464 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
5466 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
5467 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
5468 @c from the next group.
5471 @node Article Caching
5472 @section Article Caching
5473 @cindex article caching
5476 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
5477 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
5478 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
5479 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
5480 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
5482 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
5484 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5485 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
5486 @vindex gnus-use-cache
5487 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
5488 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
5489 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
5490 cache is flat or hierarchal is controlled by the
5491 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
5493 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
5494 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
5495 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
5496 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
5497 as dormant, and don't worry.
5499 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
5501 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
5502 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
5503 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
5504 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
5505 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
5506 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
5507 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
5508 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
5509 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
5510 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
5512 @findex gnus-jog-cache
5513 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
5514 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
5515 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
5516 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
5517 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
5518 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
5519 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
5520 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
5521 not then be downloaded by this command.
5523 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
5524 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
5525 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
5526 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
5527 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
5528 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
5530 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
5531 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
5532 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
5533 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
5534 variables, the group is not cached.
5536 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
5537 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
5538 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
5539 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
5540 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
5541 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
5542 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
5543 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
5544 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
5548 @node Persistent Articles
5549 @section Persistent Articles
5550 @cindex persistent articles
5552 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
5553 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
5554 useful in my opinion.
5556 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
5557 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
5558 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
5559 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
5560 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
5561 the expiry going on at the news server.
5563 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
5564 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
5565 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
5571 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
5572 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
5575 @kindex M-* (Summary)
5576 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
5577 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
5578 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
5582 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
5584 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
5585 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
5586 interested in persistent articles:
5589 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
5593 @node Article Backlog
5594 @section Article Backlog
5596 @cindex article backlog
5598 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
5599 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
5600 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
5601 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
5602 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
5603 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
5604 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
5605 increase memory usage some.
5607 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
5608 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
5609 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
5610 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
5611 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
5612 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
5613 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
5615 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
5618 @node Saving Articles
5619 @section Saving Articles
5620 @cindex saving articles
5622 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
5623 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
5624 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
5625 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
5626 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
5628 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
5629 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
5630 unwanted headers before saving the article.
5632 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
5633 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
5634 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
5635 deleted before saving.
5641 @kindex O o (Summary)
5643 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
5644 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
5645 Save the current article using the default article saver
5646 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
5649 @kindex O m (Summary)
5650 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
5651 Save the current article in mail format
5652 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
5655 @kindex O r (Summary)
5656 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
5657 Save the current article in rmail format
5658 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
5661 @kindex O f (Summary)
5662 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
5663 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
5664 Save the current article in plain file format
5665 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
5668 @kindex O F (Summary)
5669 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
5670 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
5671 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
5674 @kindex O b (Summary)
5675 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
5676 Save the current article body in plain file format
5677 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
5680 @kindex O h (Summary)
5681 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
5682 Save the current article in mh folder format
5683 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
5686 @kindex O v (Summary)
5687 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
5688 Save the current article in a VM folder
5689 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
5692 @kindex O p (Summary)
5693 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
5694 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
5695 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
5698 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
5699 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
5700 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
5701 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
5702 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
5703 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
5704 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
5705 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
5706 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
5707 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
5708 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
5709 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
5713 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
5714 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
5715 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
5716 functions below, or you can create your own.
5720 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5721 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5722 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
5723 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5724 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
5725 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5726 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5728 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5729 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5730 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
5731 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
5732 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5733 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5735 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
5736 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
5737 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
5738 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5739 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
5740 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5741 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5743 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5744 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5745 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
5746 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5747 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5749 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5750 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5751 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
5752 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
5753 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
5756 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
5757 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
5758 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
5759 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
5760 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
5762 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5763 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5764 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
5765 reader to use this setting.
5768 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
5769 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
5770 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
5771 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
5774 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
5775 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
5776 available functions that generate names:
5780 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
5781 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
5782 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5784 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
5785 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5786 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5788 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
5789 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
5790 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5792 @item gnus-plain-save-name
5793 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5794 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5797 @vindex gnus-split-methods
5798 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
5799 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
5800 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
5801 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
5805 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
5806 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
5807 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
5808 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
5811 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
5812 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
5813 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
5814 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
5815 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
5816 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
5817 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
5818 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
5819 called returns a string or a list of strings.
5821 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
5822 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
5823 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
5824 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
5826 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
5827 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
5828 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
5831 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
5832 lots of mail groups called things like
5833 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
5834 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
5835 following will do just that:
5838 (defun my-save-name (group)
5839 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
5840 (substring group (match-end 0))))
5842 (setq gnus-split-methods
5843 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
5848 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5849 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
5850 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
5851 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
5852 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
5853 all the files in the top level directory
5854 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
5855 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
5856 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
5857 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
5859 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
5860 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
5861 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
5862 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
5863 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
5866 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
5870 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
5871 (setq gnus-default-article-saver 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
5874 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
5875 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
5876 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
5877 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
5880 @node Decoding Articles
5881 @section Decoding Articles
5882 @cindex decoding articles
5884 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
5885 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
5888 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
5889 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
5890 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
5891 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
5892 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
5893 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
5897 @cindex article series
5898 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
5899 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
5900 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
5901 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
5902 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
5904 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
5905 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
5906 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
5908 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
5909 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
5910 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
5912 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
5913 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
5914 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
5917 @node Uuencoded Articles
5918 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
5920 @cindex uuencoded articles
5925 @kindex X u (Summary)
5926 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
5927 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
5928 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
5931 @kindex X U (Summary)
5932 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
5933 Uudecodes and saves the current series
5934 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5937 @kindex X v u (Summary)
5938 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
5939 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
5942 @kindex X v U (Summary)
5943 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
5944 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
5945 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
5949 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
5950 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
5951 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
5952 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
5953 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5955 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
5956 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
5957 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
5958 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
5961 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
5962 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
5963 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
5964 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
5965 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
5966 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
5970 @node Shell Archives
5971 @subsection Shell Archives
5973 @cindex shell archives
5974 @cindex shared articles
5976 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
5977 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
5978 some commands to deal with these:
5983 @kindex X s (Summary)
5984 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
5985 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
5988 @kindex X S (Summary)
5989 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
5990 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
5993 @kindex X v s (Summary)
5994 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
5995 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
5998 @kindex X v S (Summary)
5999 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
6000 Unshars, views and saves the current series
6001 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
6005 @node PostScript Files
6006 @subsection PostScript Files
6012 @kindex X p (Summary)
6013 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
6014 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
6017 @kindex X P (Summary)
6018 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
6019 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
6020 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
6023 @kindex X v p (Summary)
6024 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
6025 View the current PostScript series
6026 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
6029 @kindex X v P (Summary)
6030 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
6031 View and save the current PostScript series
6032 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
6037 @subsection Other Files
6041 @kindex X o (Summary)
6042 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
6043 Save the current series
6044 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
6047 @kindex X b (Summary)
6048 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
6049 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
6050 doesn't really work yet.
6054 @node Decoding Variables
6055 @subsection Decoding Variables
6057 Adjective, not verb.
6060 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
6061 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
6062 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
6066 @node Rule Variables
6067 @subsubsection Rule Variables
6068 @cindex rule variables
6070 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
6071 variables are of the form
6074 (list '(regexp1 command2)
6081 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6082 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6084 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
6085 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
6088 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6089 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
6092 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6093 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6094 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
6095 user and default view rules.
6097 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6098 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6099 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
6104 @node Other Decode Variables
6105 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
6108 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6110 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6111 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
6112 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
6113 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
6114 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
6118 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
6119 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
6122 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
6123 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
6124 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
6127 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6128 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6129 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
6130 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
6131 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
6134 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6135 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6136 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
6138 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6139 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6140 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
6141 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
6142 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
6145 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6146 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6147 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
6149 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6150 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6151 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
6152 looking for files to display.
6154 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
6155 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
6156 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
6159 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6160 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6161 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
6164 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6165 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6166 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
6169 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6170 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6171 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
6174 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6175 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6176 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
6177 decoded articles as unread.
6179 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6180 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6181 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
6182 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
6184 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6185 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6186 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
6188 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6189 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6191 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
6192 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
6193 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
6194 @code{metamail} for viewing.
6196 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6197 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6198 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
6199 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
6200 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
6201 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC1153---no easy way
6202 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
6203 simply dropped them.
6208 @node Uuencoding and Posting
6209 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
6213 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6214 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6215 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
6216 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
6217 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
6218 for you when you post the article.
6220 @item gnus-uu-post-length
6221 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
6222 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
6223 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
6225 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
6226 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
6227 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
6228 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
6229 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
6230 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
6231 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
6233 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6234 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6235 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
6236 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
6237 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
6238 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
6239 Default is @code{t}.
6245 @subsection Viewing Files
6246 @cindex viewing files
6247 @cindex pseudo-articles
6249 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
6250 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
6251 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
6252 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
6253 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
6254 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
6255 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
6257 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
6258 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
6259 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
6260 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
6262 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
6263 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
6264 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
6266 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
6267 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
6268 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
6269 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
6270 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
6272 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
6273 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
6274 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
6275 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
6276 a list of parameters to that command.
6278 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
6279 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
6280 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
6282 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
6283 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
6284 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
6287 @node Article Treatment
6288 @section Article Treatment
6290 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
6291 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
6292 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
6293 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
6294 these articles easier.
6297 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
6298 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
6299 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
6300 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
6301 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
6302 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
6303 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
6304 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
6308 @node Article Highlighting
6309 @subsection Article Highlighting
6310 @cindex highlighting
6312 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
6313 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
6318 @kindex W H a (Summary)
6319 @findex gnus-article-highlight
6320 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
6321 Do much highlighting of the current article
6322 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
6323 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
6326 @kindex W H h (Summary)
6327 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
6328 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
6329 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
6330 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
6331 variable, which is a list where each element has the form @var{(regexp
6332 name content)}. @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
6333 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
6334 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
6335 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
6336 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
6339 @kindex W H c (Summary)
6340 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
6341 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
6343 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
6346 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6348 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6349 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
6350 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
6352 @item gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6353 @vindex gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6354 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
6356 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
6357 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
6358 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
6360 @item gnus-cite-face-list
6361 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
6362 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
6363 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
6364 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
6365 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
6367 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
6368 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
6369 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
6371 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
6372 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
6373 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
6375 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
6376 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
6377 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
6378 that it's a citation.
6380 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
6381 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
6382 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
6384 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
6385 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
6386 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
6388 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
6389 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
6390 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
6391 cited text belonging to the attribution.
6397 @kindex W H s (Summary)
6398 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6399 @vindex gnus-signature-face
6400 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
6401 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
6402 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
6403 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
6404 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
6409 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
6412 @node Article Fontisizing
6413 @subsection Article Fontisizing
6415 @cindex article emphasis
6417 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
6418 @kindex W e (Summary)
6419 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
6420 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*}. Gnus can make this look nicer by
6421 running the article through the @kbd{W e}
6422 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
6424 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
6425 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
6426 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
6427 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
6428 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
6429 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
6430 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
6431 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
6435 (setq gnus-article-emphasis
6436 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
6437 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
6440 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
6441 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
6442 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
6443 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
6444 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
6445 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
6446 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
6447 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
6448 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
6449 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
6450 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
6451 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
6452 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
6454 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
6455 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
6456 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
6460 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
6463 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
6465 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
6466 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
6467 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
6468 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
6470 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
6473 @node Article Hiding
6474 @subsection Article Hiding
6475 @cindex article hiding
6477 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
6478 too much cruft in most articles.
6483 @kindex W W a (Summary)
6484 @findex gnus-article-hide
6485 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
6486 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
6487 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
6490 @kindex W W h (Summary)
6491 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
6492 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
6496 @kindex W W b (Summary)
6497 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
6498 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
6499 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
6502 @kindex W W s (Summary)
6503 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
6504 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
6508 @kindex W W p (Summary)
6509 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
6510 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
6511 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
6512 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
6513 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
6514 articles that have signatures in them do:
6516 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
6518 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
6520 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
6521 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
6523 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
6526 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
6531 @kindex W W P (Summary)
6532 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
6533 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
6534 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
6537 @kindex W W B (Summary)
6538 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
6539 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
6540 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
6541 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
6542 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
6543 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
6544 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
6545 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
6546 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
6547 signature should be removed.
6550 @kindex W W c (Summary)
6551 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
6552 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
6553 customizing the hiding:
6557 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
6558 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
6559 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
6560 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
6561 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
6562 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
6563 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
6568 Starting point of the hidden text.
6570 Ending point of the hidden text.
6572 Number of characters in the hidden region.
6574 Number of lines of hidden text.
6577 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
6578 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
6579 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave shown.
6584 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
6585 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
6587 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
6588 following two variables:
6591 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6592 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6593 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
6594 50), hide the cited text.
6596 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6597 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6598 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
6603 @kindex W W C (Summary)
6604 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
6605 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
6606 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
6607 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
6608 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
6612 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
6613 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
6614 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
6616 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
6617 citation customization.
6619 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
6623 @node Article Washing
6624 @subsection Article Washing
6626 @cindex article washing
6628 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
6629 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
6631 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
6632 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
6638 @kindex W l (Summary)
6639 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
6640 Remove page breaks from the current article
6641 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
6645 @kindex W r (Summary)
6646 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
6647 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
6648 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
6649 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
6650 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
6651 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
6653 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
6654 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
6655 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
6656 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
6659 @kindex W t (Summary)
6660 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
6661 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
6662 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
6665 @kindex W v (Summary)
6666 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
6667 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
6668 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
6671 @kindex W o (Summary)
6672 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
6673 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
6676 @kindex W d (Summary)
6677 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
6678 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
6680 @cindex M******** sm*rtq**t*s
6682 Treat M******** sm*rtq**t*s according to
6683 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
6684 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
6685 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
6689 @kindex W w (Summary)
6690 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
6691 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
6693 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
6697 @kindex W q (Summary)
6698 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
6699 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
6702 @kindex W C (Summary)
6703 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentencse
6704 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
6705 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
6708 @kindex W c (Summary)
6709 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
6710 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
6711 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
6712 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
6713 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
6716 @kindex W q (Summary)
6717 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
6718 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
6719 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
6720 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
6721 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
6722 readable to me. Note that the this is usually done automatically by
6723 Gnus if the message in question has a @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding}
6724 header that says that this encoding has been done.
6727 @kindex W f (Summary)
6729 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
6730 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
6731 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
6732 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
6738 Look for and display any X-Face headers
6739 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
6740 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
6741 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
6742 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
6743 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
6744 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
6745 The default action under Emacs is to fork off an @code{xv} to view the
6746 face; under XEmacs the default action is to display the face before the
6747 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
6748 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
6749 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
6750 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and friends.) If you
6751 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
6755 @kindex W b (Summary)
6756 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
6757 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
6758 @xref{Article Buttons}.
6761 @kindex W B (Summary)
6762 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
6763 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
6764 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
6767 @kindex W W H (Summary)
6768 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body
6769 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
6770 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body}).
6773 @kindex W E l (Summary)
6774 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
6775 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
6776 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
6779 @kindex W E m (Summary)
6780 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
6781 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
6782 lines with a single empty line.
6783 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
6786 @kindex W E t (Summary)
6787 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
6788 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
6789 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
6792 @kindex W E a (Summary)
6793 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
6794 Do all the three commands above
6795 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
6798 @kindex W E A (Summary)
6799 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
6800 Remove all blank lines
6801 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
6804 @kindex W E s (Summary)
6805 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
6806 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
6807 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
6810 @kindex W E e (Summary)
6811 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
6812 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
6813 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
6817 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
6820 @node Article Buttons
6821 @subsection Article Buttons
6824 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
6825 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
6826 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
6827 button on these references.
6829 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
6830 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
6831 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
6836 @item gnus-button-alist
6837 @vindex gnus-button-alist
6838 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
6841 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6847 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
6848 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
6849 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
6852 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
6853 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
6854 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
6857 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
6858 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
6859 avoid false matches.
6862 This function will be called when you click on this button.
6865 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
6866 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
6870 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
6873 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
6876 @item gnus-header-button-alist
6877 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
6878 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
6879 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
6880 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
6883 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6886 @var{HEADER} is a regular expression.
6888 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
6889 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
6890 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
6891 default values of the variables above.
6893 @item gnus-article-button-face
6894 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
6895 Face used on buttons.
6897 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
6898 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
6899 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
6903 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
6907 @subsection Article Date
6909 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
6910 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
6911 when the article was sent.
6916 @kindex W T u (Summary)
6917 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
6918 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
6919 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
6922 @kindex W T i (Summary)
6923 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
6925 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
6926 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
6929 @kindex W T l (Summary)
6930 @findex gnus-article-date-local
6931 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
6934 @kindex W T s (Summary)
6935 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
6936 @findex gnus-article-date-user
6937 @findex format-time-string
6938 Display the date using a user-defined format
6939 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
6940 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
6941 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
6942 for a list of possible format specs.
6945 @kindex W T e (Summary)
6946 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
6947 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
6948 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
6949 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
6950 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
6953 X-Sent: 9 years, 6 weeks, 4 days, 9 hours, 3 minutes, 28 seconds ago
6956 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
6957 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
6960 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
6961 into wonderful absurdities.
6963 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
6966 (gnus-start-date-timer)
6969 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
6970 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
6974 @kindex W T o (Summary)
6975 @findex gnus-article-date-original
6976 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
6977 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
6978 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
6979 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
6980 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
6984 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
6985 preferred format automatically.
6988 @node Article Signature
6989 @subsection Article Signature
6991 @cindex article signature
6993 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6994 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
6995 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
6996 that says what is to be considered a signature is
6997 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
6998 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
6999 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
7000 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
7001 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
7004 (setq gnus-signature-separator
7005 '("^-- $" ; The standard
7006 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
7007 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
7008 ; line of dashes. Shame!
7009 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
7010 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
7011 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
7014 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
7017 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
7018 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
7019 signature when displaying articles.
7023 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
7026 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
7029 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
7030 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
7032 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
7033 in question is not a signature.
7036 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
7037 listed above. Here's an example:
7040 (setq gnus-signature-limit
7041 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
7044 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
7045 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
7046 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
7047 signature after all.
7050 @node Article Miscellania
7051 @subsection Article Miscellania
7055 @kindex A t (Summary)
7056 @findex gnus-article-babel
7057 Translate the article from one language to another
7058 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
7064 @section @sc{mime} Commands
7065 @cindex MIME decoding
7069 @kindex X m (Summary)
7070 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
7071 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
7072 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
7073 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7076 @kindex M-t (Summary)
7077 @findex gnus-summary-display-buttonized
7078 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
7079 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
7082 @kindex W M w (Summary)
7083 Decode RFC2047-encoded words in the article headers
7084 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
7087 @kindex W M c (Summary)
7088 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
7089 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
7091 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
7092 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
7093 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
7094 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not include
7095 MIME headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic parameter to
7096 the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
7099 @kindex W M v (Summary)
7100 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
7101 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
7108 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
7109 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
7110 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
7111 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
7114 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
7117 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
7121 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
7122 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
7123 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
7124 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
7125 displayed. The default value is @code{(".*/.*")}.
7127 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
7128 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
7129 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
7130 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
7131 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
7132 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
7133 save all jpegs into some directory).
7135 Here's an example function the does the latter:
7138 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
7139 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
7141 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
7142 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
7143 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
7144 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
7145 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
7148 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
7149 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
7150 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
7159 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
7160 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
7161 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
7162 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
7163 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
7164 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
7165 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
7167 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
7168 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
7169 variable, which is an alist of regexps (to match group names) and
7170 default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
7172 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
7173 aren't. These blitely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1} even
7174 if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
7175 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
7176 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be set
7177 on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
7178 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit)}, which is
7179 something some agents insist on having in there.
7182 @node Article Commands
7183 @section Article Commands
7190 @kindex A P (Summary)
7191 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
7192 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
7193 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
7194 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
7195 run just before printing the buffer.
7200 @node Summary Sorting
7201 @section Summary Sorting
7202 @cindex summary sorting
7204 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
7205 can't really see why you'd want that.
7210 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
7211 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
7212 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
7215 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
7216 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
7217 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
7220 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
7221 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
7222 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
7225 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
7226 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
7227 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
7230 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
7231 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
7232 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
7235 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
7236 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
7237 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
7240 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
7241 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
7242 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
7245 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
7246 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
7247 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
7248 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
7249 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
7253 @node Finding the Parent
7254 @section Finding the Parent
7255 @cindex parent articles
7256 @cindex referring articles
7261 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
7262 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
7263 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
7264 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
7265 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
7266 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
7267 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
7268 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
7269 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
7271 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
7272 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
7273 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
7274 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
7275 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
7279 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
7280 @kindex A R (Summary)
7281 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
7282 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
7285 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
7286 @kindex A T (Summary)
7287 Display the full thread where the current article appears
7288 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
7289 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
7290 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
7291 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
7292 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
7293 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
7295 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
7296 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
7297 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
7298 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
7299 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
7300 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
7303 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
7304 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
7306 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
7307 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
7308 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
7309 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
7310 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
7311 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
7312 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
7315 The current select method will be used when fetching by
7316 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
7317 by giving this command a prefix.
7319 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
7320 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
7321 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
7322 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
7323 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
7324 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
7327 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
7328 not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
7329 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
7330 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
7331 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
7332 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
7335 @node Alternative Approaches
7336 @section Alternative Approaches
7338 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
7339 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
7342 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
7343 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
7348 @subsection Pick and Read
7349 @cindex pick and read
7351 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
7352 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
7353 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
7354 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
7356 @findex gnus-pick-mode
7357 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
7358 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
7359 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
7360 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
7361 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
7363 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
7368 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
7369 Pick the article or thread on the current line
7370 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
7371 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
7372 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
7373 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
7374 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
7375 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
7378 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
7379 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
7380 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
7381 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
7385 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
7386 Unpick the thread or article
7387 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
7388 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
7389 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
7390 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
7391 the thread or article at that line.
7395 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
7396 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
7397 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
7398 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
7399 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
7400 will still be visible when you are reading.
7404 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
7405 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
7406 which is mapped to the same function
7407 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
7409 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
7412 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
7415 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
7416 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
7418 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
7419 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
7420 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
7422 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
7423 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
7424 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
7425 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
7426 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
7427 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
7428 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
7432 @subsection Binary Groups
7433 @cindex binary groups
7435 @findex gnus-binary-mode
7436 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
7437 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
7438 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
7439 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
7440 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
7441 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
7444 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
7445 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
7446 command, when you have turned on this mode
7447 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
7449 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
7450 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
7454 @section Tree Display
7457 @vindex gnus-use-trees
7458 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
7459 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
7460 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
7463 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
7466 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
7467 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
7468 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
7470 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
7471 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
7472 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
7473 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
7474 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
7476 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
7477 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
7478 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
7479 default is @code{modeline}.
7481 @item gnus-tree-line-format
7482 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
7483 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
7484 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
7485 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
7486 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
7487 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
7493 The name of the poster.
7495 The @code{From} header.
7497 The number of the article.
7499 The opening bracket.
7501 The closing bracket.
7506 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
7508 Variables related to the display are:
7511 @item gnus-tree-brackets
7512 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
7513 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
7514 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @var{((real-open . real-close)
7515 (sparse-open . sparse-close) (dummy-open . dummy-close))}, and the
7516 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
7518 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
7519 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
7520 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
7521 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
7525 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
7526 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
7527 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
7528 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
7529 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
7530 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
7531 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
7532 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
7533 other windows displayed next to it.
7535 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
7536 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
7537 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
7538 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
7539 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
7540 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
7541 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
7545 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
7548 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
7558 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
7562 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
7563 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
7565 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
7567 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
7572 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
7573 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
7574 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
7577 (setq gnus-use-trees t
7578 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
7579 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
7580 (gnus-add-configuration
7584 (summary 0.75 point)
7589 @xref{Windows Configuration}.
7592 @node Mail Group Commands
7593 @section Mail Group Commands
7594 @cindex mail group commands
7596 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
7597 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
7599 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
7600 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7605 @kindex B e (Summary)
7606 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
7607 Expire all expirable articles in the group
7608 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}).
7611 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
7612 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
7613 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
7614 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
7615 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
7616 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
7619 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
7620 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
7621 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
7622 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
7623 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
7624 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
7627 @kindex B m (Summary)
7629 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
7630 Move the article from one mail group to another
7631 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
7634 @kindex B c (Summary)
7636 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
7637 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
7638 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
7639 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}).
7642 @kindex B B (Summary)
7643 @cindex crosspost mail
7644 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
7645 Crosspost the current article to some other group
7646 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
7647 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
7648 be properly updated.
7651 @kindex B i (Summary)
7652 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
7653 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
7654 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
7655 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
7658 @kindex B r (Summary)
7659 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
7660 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
7661 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
7662 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
7663 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
7667 @kindex B w (Summary)
7669 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
7670 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
7671 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
7672 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
7673 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
7674 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
7677 @kindex B q (Summary)
7678 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
7679 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
7680 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
7681 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
7684 @kindex B t (Summary)
7685 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
7686 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
7687 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
7690 @kindex B p (Summary)
7691 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
7692 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
7693 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
7694 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
7695 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
7696 article from your news server (or rather, from
7697 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
7698 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
7699 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
7700 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
7701 just not have arrived yet.
7705 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
7706 @cindex moving articles
7707 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
7708 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
7709 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
7710 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
7711 suggestions you find reasonable.
7714 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
7715 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
7716 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
7717 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
7721 @node Various Summary Stuff
7722 @section Various Summary Stuff
7725 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
7726 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
7727 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
7728 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
7732 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
7733 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
7734 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
7736 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
7737 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
7738 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
7739 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
7740 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
7741 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
7744 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7745 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7746 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
7747 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
7748 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
7750 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
7751 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
7752 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
7755 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7756 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7757 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
7758 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
7759 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
7760 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
7761 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
7762 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
7763 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
7764 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
7769 @node Summary Group Information
7770 @subsection Summary Group Information
7775 @kindex H f (Summary)
7776 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
7777 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
7778 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
7779 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
7780 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
7781 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
7782 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
7783 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
7784 be used for fetching the file.
7787 @kindex H d (Summary)
7788 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
7789 Give a brief description of the current group
7790 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
7791 rereading the description from the server.
7794 @kindex H h (Summary)
7795 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
7796 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
7797 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
7800 @kindex H i (Summary)
7801 @findex gnus-info-find-node
7802 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
7806 @node Searching for Articles
7807 @subsection Searching for Articles
7812 @kindex M-s (Summary)
7813 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
7814 Search through all subsequent articles for a regexp
7815 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
7818 @kindex M-r (Summary)
7819 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
7820 Search through all previous articles for a regexp
7821 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
7825 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
7826 This command will prompt you for a header field, a regular expression to
7827 match on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
7828 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If given a prefix, search
7832 @kindex M-& (Summary)
7833 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
7834 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
7835 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
7838 @node Summary Generation Commands
7839 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
7844 @kindex Y g (Summary)
7845 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
7846 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
7849 @kindex Y c (Summary)
7850 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
7851 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
7852 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
7857 @node Really Various Summary Commands
7858 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
7864 @kindex C-d (Summary)
7865 @kindex A D (Summary)
7866 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
7867 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
7868 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
7869 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
7870 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
7871 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
7872 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
7873 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
7877 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
7878 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
7879 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
7880 several documents into one biiig group
7881 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
7882 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
7883 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
7884 command understands the process/prefix convention
7885 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7888 @kindex C-t (Summary)
7889 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
7890 Toggle truncation of summary lines
7891 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
7892 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
7893 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
7897 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
7898 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
7899 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
7902 @kindex M-C-e (Summary)
7903 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
7904 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
7905 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
7908 @kindex M-C-g (Summary)
7909 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
7910 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
7911 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
7916 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
7917 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
7918 @cindex summary exit
7919 @cindex exiting groups
7921 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
7922 group and return you to the group buffer.
7928 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
7930 @findex gnus-summary-exit
7931 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
7932 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
7933 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
7934 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
7935 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
7936 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
7937 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
7938 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
7939 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
7940 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
7944 @kindex Z E (Summary)
7946 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
7947 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
7948 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
7952 @kindex Z c (Summary)
7954 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
7955 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
7956 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
7957 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
7960 @kindex Z C (Summary)
7961 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
7962 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
7963 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
7966 @kindex Z n (Summary)
7967 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
7968 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
7969 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
7972 @kindex Z R (Summary)
7973 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
7974 Exit this group, and then enter it again
7975 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
7976 all articles, both read and unread.
7980 @kindex Z G (Summary)
7981 @kindex M-g (Summary)
7982 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
7983 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
7984 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
7985 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
7986 articles, both read and unread.
7989 @kindex Z N (Summary)
7990 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
7991 Exit the group and go to the next group
7992 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
7995 @kindex Z P (Summary)
7996 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
7997 Exit the group and go to the previous group
7998 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
8001 @kindex Z s (Summary)
8002 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
8003 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
8004 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
8005 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
8006 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
8009 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
8010 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current
8013 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
8014 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
8015 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
8016 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
8017 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
8018 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
8019 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
8020 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
8021 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
8022 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
8023 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
8024 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
8026 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
8028 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
8029 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
8030 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
8031 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
8032 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
8033 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
8034 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
8035 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
8036 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
8039 @node Crosspost Handling
8040 @section Crosspost Handling
8044 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
8045 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
8046 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
8047 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
8048 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
8049 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
8052 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
8053 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
8054 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
8055 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
8056 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
8058 @cindex cross-posting
8061 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
8062 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
8063 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
8064 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
8065 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
8066 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
8067 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
8068 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
8069 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
8070 the cross reference mechanism.
8072 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
8073 @cindex overview.fmt
8074 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
8075 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
8076 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
8077 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
8078 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
8079 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
8082 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
8083 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
8084 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
8089 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
8092 @node Duplicate Suppression
8093 @section Duplicate Suppression
8095 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
8096 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
8097 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
8098 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
8103 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
8104 is evil and not very common.
8107 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
8108 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
8111 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
8112 different @sc{nntp} servers.
8115 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
8118 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
8119 well, but these four are the most common situations.
8121 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
8122 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
8123 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
8124 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
8125 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
8126 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
8127 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
8130 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
8131 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
8132 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
8133 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
8134 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
8138 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
8139 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
8140 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
8142 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
8143 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
8144 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
8145 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
8146 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
8147 session are suppressed.
8149 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
8150 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
8151 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
8152 suppression list. The default is 10000.
8154 @item gnus-duplicate-file
8155 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
8156 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
8157 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
8160 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
8161 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
8162 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
8163 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
8164 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
8165 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
8166 to you to figure out, I think.
8169 @node The Article Buffer
8170 @chapter The Article Buffer
8171 @cindex article buffer
8173 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
8174 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
8175 tell Gnus otherwise.
8178 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
8179 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
8180 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
8181 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
8182 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
8186 @node Hiding Headers
8187 @section Hiding Headers
8188 @cindex hiding headers
8189 @cindex deleting headers
8191 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
8192 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
8194 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
8195 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
8196 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
8197 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
8198 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
8199 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
8200 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
8201 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
8202 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
8204 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
8208 @item gnus-visible-headers
8209 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
8210 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
8211 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
8212 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
8214 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
8215 the article and the subject, you'd say:
8218 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
8221 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
8224 @item gnus-ignored-headers
8225 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
8226 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
8227 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
8228 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
8229 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
8231 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
8232 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
8235 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
8238 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
8241 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
8242 variable will have no effect.
8246 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
8247 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
8248 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
8249 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
8250 the headers are to be displayed.
8252 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
8253 and then the subject, you might say something like:
8256 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
8259 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
8260 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
8262 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
8263 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
8264 You can hide further boring headers by setting
8265 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-header} to @code{head}. What this function
8266 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
8267 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
8268 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
8271 These conditions are:
8274 Remove all empty headers.
8276 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
8277 @code{Newsgroups} header.
8279 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
8282 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
8285 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
8288 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
8290 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
8293 To include the four three elements, you could say something like;
8296 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
8297 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
8300 This is also the default value for this variable.
8304 @section Using @sc{mime}
8307 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
8308 while people stand around yawning.
8310 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
8311 while all newsreaders die of fear.
8313 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
8314 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
8315 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
8317 @vindex gnus-display-mime-function
8318 @findex gnus-display-mime
8319 Gnus pushes @sc{mime} articles through @code{gnus-display-mime-function}
8320 to display the @sc{mime} parts. This is @code{gnus-display-mime} by
8321 default, which creates a bundle of clickable buttons that can be used to
8322 display, save and manipulate the @sc{mime} objects.
8324 The following commands are available when you have placed point over a
8328 @findex gnus-article-press-button
8330 @itemx BUTTON-2 (Article)
8331 Toggle displaying of the @sc{mime} object
8332 (@code{gnus-article-press-button}).
8334 @findex gnus-mime-view-part
8335 @item M-RET (Article)
8337 Prompt for a method, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
8338 method (@code{gnus-mime-view-part}).
8340 @findex gnus-mime-save-part
8342 Prompt for a file name, and then save the @sc{mime} object
8343 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part}).
8345 @findex gnus-mime-copy-part
8347 Copy the @sc{mime} object to a fresh buffer and display this buffer
8348 (@code{gnus-mime-copy-part}).
8350 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-type
8352 View the @sc{mime} object as if it were a different @sc{mime} media type
8353 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-type}.
8355 @findex gnus-mime-pipe-part
8357 Output the @sc{mime} object to a process (@code{gnus-mime-pipe-part}).
8360 Gnus will display some @sc{mime} objects automatically. The way Gnus
8361 determines which parts to do this with is described in the Emacs MIME
8364 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the article
8365 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
8366 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
8367 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
8368 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume button,
8369 because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you, and you
8370 try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the program
8371 to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly decides
8372 to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
8374 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
8376 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
8379 @node Customizing Articles
8380 @section Customizing Articles
8381 @cindex article customization
8383 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
8384 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
8385 called automatically when you select the articles.
8387 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
8388 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
8389 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
8390 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
8394 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
8397 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
8400 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
8403 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
8406 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
8410 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
8411 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
8412 regexps in the list.
8415 A list where the first element is not a string:
8417 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
8418 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
8419 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
8423 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
8428 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
8429 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
8430 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
8431 considered to contain just a single part.
8433 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
8434 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
8435 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
8436 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
8437 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
8438 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
8439 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
8441 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
8442 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
8446 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature
8447 @item gnus-treat-buttonize
8448 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head
8449 @item gnus-treat-emphasize
8450 @item gnus-treat-fill-article
8451 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr
8452 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers
8453 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers
8454 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature
8455 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation
8456 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp
8457 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem
8458 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers
8459 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation
8460 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature
8461 @item gnus-treat-date-ut
8462 @item gnus-treat-date-local
8463 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed
8464 @item gnus-treat-date-original
8465 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body
8466 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines
8467 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines
8468 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines
8469 @item gnus-treat-overstrike
8470 @item gnus-treat-display-xface
8471 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys
8472 @item gnus-treat-display-picons
8473 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences
8474 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines
8475 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
8476 @item gnus-treat-translate
8479 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
8480 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
8481 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
8482 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
8483 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
8484 everything. However, you shouldn't delete any headers. Instead make
8485 them invisible if you want to make them go away.
8488 @node Article Keymap
8489 @section Article Keymap
8491 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
8492 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
8493 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
8494 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
8497 A few additional keystrokes are available:
8502 @kindex SPACE (Article)
8503 @findex gnus-article-next-page
8504 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
8507 @kindex DEL (Article)
8508 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
8509 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
8512 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
8513 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
8514 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
8515 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
8516 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
8519 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
8520 @findex gnus-article-mail
8521 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
8522 given a prefix, include the mail.
8526 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
8527 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
8528 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
8532 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
8533 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
8534 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
8537 @kindex TAB (Article)
8538 @findex gnus-article-next-button
8539 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
8540 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
8543 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
8544 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
8545 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
8551 @section Misc Article
8555 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
8556 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
8557 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
8558 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
8561 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
8562 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
8564 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
8565 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
8567 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
8568 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
8569 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
8570 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
8571 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
8572 the contents of the article buffer.
8574 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
8575 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
8576 Hook called in article mode buffers.
8578 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
8579 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
8580 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
8581 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
8583 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
8584 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
8585 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
8586 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
8587 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with one
8592 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
8593 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
8596 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
8599 @vindex gnus-break-pages
8601 @item gnus-break-pages
8602 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
8603 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
8604 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
8605 paging will not be done.
8607 @item gnus-page-delimiter
8608 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
8609 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
8614 @node Composing Messages
8615 @chapter Composing Messages
8616 @cindex composing messages
8619 @cindex sending mail
8624 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
8625 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
8626 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the article
8627 by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The Message
8628 Manual}. If you are in a foreign news group, and you wish to post the
8629 article using the foreign server, you can give a prefix to @kbd{C-c C-c}
8630 to make Gnus try to post using the foreign server.
8633 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
8634 * Post:: Posting and following up.
8635 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
8636 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
8637 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
8638 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
8639 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
8640 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
8643 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
8644 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
8650 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
8653 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
8654 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
8655 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
8656 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
8658 @item gnus-add-to-list
8659 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
8660 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
8661 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
8669 Variables for composing news articles:
8672 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-file
8673 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-file
8674 Gnus will keep a @code{Message-ID} history file of all the mails it has
8675 sent. If it discovers that it has already sent a mail, it will ask the
8676 user whether to re-send the mail. (This is primarily useful when
8677 dealing with @sc{soup} packets and the like where one is apt to send the
8678 same packet multiple times.) This variable says what the name of this
8679 history file is. It is @file{~/News/Sent-Message-IDs} by default. Set
8680 this variable to @code{nil} if you don't want Gnus to keep a history
8683 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-length
8684 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-length
8685 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the history
8686 file. It is 1000 by default.
8691 @node Posting Server
8692 @section Posting Server
8694 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
8695 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
8697 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
8699 @vindex gnus-post-method
8701 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will use the same native
8702 server. However. If your native server doesn't allow posting, just
8703 reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
8704 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
8705 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
8708 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
8711 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
8712 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
8713 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
8714 the ``current'' server for posting.
8716 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
8717 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
8719 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
8720 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
8723 Finally, if you want to always post using the same select method as
8724 you're reading from (which might be convenient if you're reading lots of
8725 groups from different private servers), you can set this variable to
8730 @section Mail and Post
8732 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
8736 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
8737 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
8738 @cindex mailing lists
8740 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
8741 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
8742 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
8743 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
8744 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
8745 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
8746 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
8747 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
8748 still a pain, though.
8752 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
8753 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
8754 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
8757 @findex ispell-message
8759 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
8763 @node Archived Messages
8764 @section Archived Messages
8765 @cindex archived messages
8766 @cindex sent messages
8768 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
8769 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
8770 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
8771 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
8774 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
8775 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
8776 use to store sent messages. The default is:
8780 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
8781 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
8782 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
8783 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
8786 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
8787 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likeable select method
8788 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
8789 directory chosen, you could say something like:
8792 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
8793 '(nnfolder "archive"
8794 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
8795 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
8796 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
8799 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
8801 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
8802 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
8803 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
8805 This variable can be used to do the following:
8809 Messages will be saved in that group.
8810 @item a list of strings
8811 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
8812 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
8813 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
8815 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
8820 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
8822 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
8825 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
8827 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
8830 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
8832 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8833 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
8834 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
8835 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
8840 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8841 '((if (message-news-p)
8846 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
8847 messages in one file per month:
8850 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8851 '((if (message-news-p)
8853 (concat "mail." (format-time-string
8854 "%Y-%m" (current-time))))))
8857 (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
8858 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
8860 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
8861 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
8862 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
8863 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
8864 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
8865 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
8866 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
8867 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
8868 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
8869 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
8871 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
8872 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
8873 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
8874 this will disable archiving.
8877 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
8878 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
8879 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
8880 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
8881 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
8884 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
8885 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
8886 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
8889 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
8890 but the latter is the preferred method.
8894 @node Posting Styles
8895 @section Posting Styles
8896 @cindex posting styles
8899 All them variables, they make my head swim.
8901 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
8902 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
8903 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
8906 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
8907 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
8908 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
8909 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
8910 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
8915 (signature "Peace and happiness")
8916 (organization "What me?"))
8918 (signature "Death to everybody"))
8919 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
8920 (organization "Emacs is it")))
8923 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
8924 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
8925 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
8926 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
8927 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
8928 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
8929 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
8930 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
8932 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
8933 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
8934 If it's a function symbol, that function will be called with no
8935 arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
8936 referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
8937 any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is said
8940 Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
8941 attribute consists of a @var{(name value)} pair. The attribute name
8942 can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
8943 @code{organization}, @code{address}, @code{name} or @code{body}. The
8944 attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
8945 a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
8948 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
8949 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
8950 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
8951 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
8952 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
8953 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable.
8955 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
8956 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
8957 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
8959 @findex message-mail-p
8960 @findex message-news-p
8962 So here's a new example:
8965 (setq gnus-posting-styles
8967 (signature-file "~/.signature")
8969 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
8970 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
8972 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
8973 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
8974 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
8976 (signature my-news-signature))
8977 ((posting-from-work-p)
8978 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
8979 (address "user@@bar.foo")
8980 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
8981 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
8983 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
8991 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
8992 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
8993 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
8994 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
8995 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
8997 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
8998 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
8999 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
9000 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
9001 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
9005 @vindex nndraft-directory
9006 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
9007 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
9008 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
9009 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
9010 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
9011 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
9013 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
9014 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
9017 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
9018 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
9019 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
9020 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
9021 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
9022 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
9023 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
9024 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
9025 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
9026 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
9027 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
9028 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
9029 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
9030 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
9032 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
9033 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
9034 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
9036 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
9038 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
9039 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
9040 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
9042 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
9045 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
9046 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
9047 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
9048 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
9049 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
9050 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
9051 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
9054 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
9055 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
9056 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
9059 @node Rejected Articles
9060 @section Rejected Articles
9061 @cindex rejected articles
9063 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
9064 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
9065 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
9066 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
9068 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
9069 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
9070 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
9071 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
9072 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
9074 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
9075 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
9076 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
9079 @node Select Methods
9080 @chapter Select Methods
9081 @cindex foreign groups
9082 @cindex select methods
9084 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
9085 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
9086 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
9087 personal mail group.
9089 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
9090 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
9091 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
9092 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
9093 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
9094 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
9096 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
9097 we do just that (@pxref{The Server Buffer}).
9099 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
9102 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
9103 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
9104 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
9105 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
9106 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
9108 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
9111 * The Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
9112 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
9113 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
9114 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
9115 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
9116 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
9120 @node The Server Buffer
9121 @section The Server Buffer
9123 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
9124 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
9125 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
9126 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
9127 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
9128 backend represents a virtual server.
9130 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
9131 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
9132 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
9133 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
9135 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
9136 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
9137 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
9138 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
9139 Anyways, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
9140 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
9141 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
9143 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
9144 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
9147 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
9148 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
9149 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
9150 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
9151 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
9152 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
9153 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
9156 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
9157 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
9160 @node Server Buffer Format
9161 @subsection Server Buffer Format
9162 @cindex server buffer format
9164 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
9165 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
9166 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
9167 variable, with some simple extensions:
9172 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
9175 The name of this server.
9178 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
9181 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
9184 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
9185 The mode line can also be customized by using the
9186 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
9187 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
9197 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
9200 @node Server Commands
9201 @subsection Server Commands
9202 @cindex server commands
9208 @findex gnus-server-add-server
9209 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
9213 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
9214 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
9217 @kindex SPACE (Server)
9218 @findex gnus-server-read-server
9219 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
9223 @findex gnus-server-exit
9224 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
9228 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
9229 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
9233 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
9234 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
9238 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
9239 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
9243 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
9244 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
9248 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
9249 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
9250 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
9255 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
9256 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
9257 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
9258 a mail backend that has gotten out of synch.
9263 @node Example Methods
9264 @subsection Example Methods
9266 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
9269 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
9272 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
9278 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
9279 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
9282 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
9283 @var{(variable form)} pairs.
9285 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
9286 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
9290 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
9293 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
9294 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
9296 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
9297 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
9298 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
9302 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
9305 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
9308 Here's the method for a public spool:
9312 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
9313 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
9316 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
9317 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
9318 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
9319 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
9320 should probably look something like this:
9324 (nntp-address "the.firewall.machine")
9325 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
9326 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
9327 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
9328 ("telnet" "the.real.nntp.host" "nntp")))
9331 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
9332 compressed connection over the modem line, you could create a virtual
9333 server that would look something like this:
9337 (nntp-address "copper.uio.no")
9338 (nntp-rlogin-program "ssh")
9339 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
9340 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
9341 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
9342 ("telnet" "news.uio.no" "nntp")))
9345 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
9346 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
9347 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
9348 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
9351 @node Creating a Virtual Server
9352 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
9354 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
9355 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
9357 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
9358 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
9359 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
9361 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
9363 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
9364 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
9365 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
9366 will contain the following:
9376 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
9377 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
9378 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
9381 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
9382 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
9383 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
9386 @node Server Variables
9387 @subsection Server Variables
9389 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
9390 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
9391 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
9392 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
9393 won't change the "derived" variables.
9395 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
9396 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
9397 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
9398 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
9399 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
9400 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
9401 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
9402 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
9403 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
9407 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
9408 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
9409 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
9413 @node Servers and Methods
9414 @subsection Servers and Methods
9416 Wherever you would normally use a select method
9417 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
9418 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
9419 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
9423 @node Unavailable Servers
9424 @subsection Unavailable Servers
9426 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
9427 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
9428 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
9429 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
9430 actually the case or not.
9432 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
9433 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
9434 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
9435 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
9436 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
9437 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
9438 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
9439 it will regard that server as ``down''.
9441 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
9442 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
9444 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{The Server Buffer}) and poke it
9445 with the following commands:
9451 @findex gnus-server-open-server
9452 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
9453 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
9457 @findex gnus-server-close-server
9458 Close the connection (if any) to the server
9459 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
9463 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
9464 Mark the current server as unreachable
9465 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
9468 @kindex M-o (Server)
9469 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
9470 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
9471 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
9474 @kindex M-c (Server)
9475 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
9476 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
9477 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
9481 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
9482 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
9483 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
9489 @section Getting News
9490 @cindex reading news
9491 @cindex news backends
9493 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
9494 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
9495 or it can read from a local spool.
9498 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
9499 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
9504 @subsection @sc{nntp}
9507 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
9508 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
9509 server as the, uhm, address.
9511 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
9512 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
9513 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
9514 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
9516 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
9517 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
9518 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
9520 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
9525 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
9526 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
9527 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
9529 @cindex authentification
9530 @cindex nntp authentification
9531 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
9532 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
9533 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
9534 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
9535 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
9536 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
9537 present in this hook.
9539 @item nntp-authinfo-function
9540 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
9541 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
9542 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
9543 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
9544 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
9545 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
9546 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
9547 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
9548 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
9549 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
9550 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
9554 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
9557 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs. The
9558 valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
9559 @samp{default} and @samp{force}. (The latter is not a valid
9560 @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} token, which is the only way the
9561 @file{.authinfo} file format deviates from the @file{.netrc} file
9566 Here's an example file:
9569 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
9570 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
9573 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
9574 have to be first, for instance.
9576 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
9577 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
9578 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
9579 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
9580 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
9581 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
9582 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
9584 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
9585 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
9591 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
9592 previously mentioned.
9594 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
9596 @item nntp-server-action-alist
9597 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
9598 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
9599 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
9600 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
9603 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
9607 You probably don't want to do that, though.
9609 The default value is
9612 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
9613 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
9616 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
9617 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
9619 @item nntp-maximum-request
9620 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
9621 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
9622 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
9623 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
9624 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
9625 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
9626 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
9628 @item nntp-connection-timeout
9629 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
9630 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
9631 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
9632 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
9633 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
9634 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
9635 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
9636 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
9637 no timeouts are done.
9639 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
9640 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
9641 @c @cindex PPP connections
9642 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
9643 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
9644 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
9645 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
9646 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
9647 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
9648 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
9649 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
9650 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
9651 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
9653 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
9654 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
9655 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
9656 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
9659 @item nntp-server-hook
9660 @vindex nntp-server-hook
9661 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
9664 @findex nntp-open-rlogin
9665 @findex nntp-open-telnet
9666 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
9667 @item nntp-open-connection-function
9668 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
9669 This function is used to connect to the remote system. Four pre-made
9670 functions are supplied:
9673 @item nntp-open-network-stream
9674 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
9677 @item nntp-open-rlogin
9678 Does an @samp{rlogin} on the
9679 remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet} to the @sc{nntp} server
9682 @code{nntp-open-rlogin}-related variables:
9686 @item nntp-rlogin-program
9687 @vindex nntp-rlogin-program
9688 Program used to log in on remote machines. The default is @samp{rsh},
9689 but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
9691 @item nntp-rlogin-parameters
9692 @vindex nntp-rlogin-parameters
9693 This list will be used as the parameter list given to @code{rsh}.
9695 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
9696 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
9697 User name on the remote system.
9701 @item nntp-open-telnet
9702 Does a @samp{telnet} to the remote system and then another @samp{telnet}
9703 to get to the @sc{nntp} server.
9705 @code{nntp-open-telnet}-related variables:
9708 @item nntp-telnet-command
9709 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
9710 Command used to start @code{telnet}.
9712 @item nntp-telnet-switches
9713 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
9714 List of strings to be used as the switches to the @code{telnet} command.
9716 @item nntp-telnet-user-name
9717 @vindex nntp-telnet-user-name
9718 User name for log in on the remote system.
9720 @item nntp-telnet-passwd
9721 @vindex nntp-telnet-passwd
9722 Password to use when logging in.
9724 @item nntp-telnet-parameters
9725 @vindex nntp-telnet-parameters
9726 A list of strings executed as a command after logging in
9729 @item nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
9730 @vindex nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
9731 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the remote machine. The default is
9732 @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
9734 @item nntp-open-telnet-envuser
9735 @vindex nntp-open-telnet-envuser
9736 If non-@code{nil}, the @code{telnet} session (client and server both)
9737 will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for login name.
9738 This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
9742 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
9743 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
9744 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
9745 you must have SSLay installed
9746 (@file{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also need
9747 @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distributeion, for instance). You then
9748 define a server as follows:
9751 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
9753 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
9755 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
9756 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
9757 (nntp-port-number "snews")
9758 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
9763 @item nntp-end-of-line
9764 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
9765 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
9766 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
9767 using @code{rlogin} to talk to the server.
9769 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
9770 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
9771 User name on the remote system when using the @code{rlogin} connect
9775 @vindex nntp-address
9776 The address of the remote system running the @sc{nntp} server.
9778 @item nntp-port-number
9779 @vindex nntp-port-number
9780 Port number to connect to when using the @code{nntp-open-network-stream}
9783 @item nntp-buggy-select
9784 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
9785 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
9787 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
9788 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
9789 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
9790 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
9793 @item nntp-xover-commands
9794 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
9797 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
9798 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
9802 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
9803 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
9804 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
9805 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
9806 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
9807 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
9808 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
9809 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
9810 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
9811 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
9812 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
9814 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
9815 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
9816 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
9818 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
9819 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
9820 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
9821 server closes connection.
9823 @item nntp-record-commands
9824 @vindex nntp-record-commands
9825 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
9826 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestep) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
9827 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
9828 that doesn't seem to work.
9834 @subsection News Spool
9838 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
9839 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
9840 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
9843 Anyways, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
9844 anything else) as the address.
9846 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
9847 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
9848 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
9849 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
9853 @item nnspool-inews-program
9854 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
9855 Program used to post an article.
9857 @item nnspool-inews-switches
9858 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
9859 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
9861 @item nnspool-spool-directory
9862 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
9863 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
9864 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
9866 @item nnspool-nov-directory
9867 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
9868 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
9869 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
9871 @item nnspool-lib-dir
9872 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
9873 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
9875 @item nnspool-active-file
9876 @vindex nnspool-active-file
9877 The path to the active file.
9879 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
9880 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
9881 The path to the group descriptions file.
9883 @item nnspool-history-file
9884 @vindex nnspool-history-file
9885 The path to the news history file.
9887 @item nnspool-active-times-file
9888 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
9889 The path to the active date file.
9891 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
9892 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
9893 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
9896 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
9897 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
9899 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
9900 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
9901 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
9907 @section Getting Mail
9908 @cindex reading mail
9911 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
9915 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
9916 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
9917 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
9918 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
9919 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
9920 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
9921 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
9922 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
9923 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
9924 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
9925 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
9926 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
9930 @node Mail in a Newsreader
9931 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
9933 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
9934 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
9937 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
9938 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
9940 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
9941 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
9942 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
9943 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
9945 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
9947 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
9950 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
9951 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
9952 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
9953 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
9956 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
9957 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
9958 they want to treat a message.
9960 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
9961 via SMTP, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
9962 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
9963 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
9964 archived somewhere else.
9966 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
9967 These are transported via NNTP, and are therefore news. But we may need
9968 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
9969 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
9970 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
9972 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
9973 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
9974 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
9976 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
9977 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
9980 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
9981 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
9982 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
9983 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
9984 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
9986 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
9987 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
9988 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
9989 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
9990 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
9991 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
9995 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
9996 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
9998 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
9999 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
10000 and things will happen automatically.
10002 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
10003 mail" backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
10006 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
10007 '((nnml "private")))
10010 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
10011 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
10012 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
10013 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
10014 like any other group.
10016 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
10019 (setq nnmail-split-methods
10020 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
10021 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
10025 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
10026 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
10027 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
10030 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
10031 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
10032 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
10035 @node Splitting Mail
10036 @subsection Splitting Mail
10037 @cindex splitting mail
10038 @cindex mail splitting
10040 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
10041 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
10042 to be split into groups.
10045 (setq nnmail-split-methods
10046 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
10047 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
10048 ("mail.other" "")))
10051 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
10052 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
10053 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
10054 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
10055 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
10056 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
10057 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
10060 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
10063 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
10064 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
10065 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
10066 mail belongs in that group.
10068 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
10069 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
10070 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
10071 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
10072 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
10073 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
10075 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
10076 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
10077 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
10078 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
10079 thinks should carry this mail message.
10081 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
10082 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
10083 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
10084 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
10086 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
10087 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
10088 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
10089 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
10090 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
10092 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
10095 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
10096 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
10097 links. If that's the case for you, set
10098 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
10099 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
10101 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
10102 @kindex nnmail-split-history
10103 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
10104 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command.
10106 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
10107 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
10108 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
10109 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
10110 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
10111 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
10112 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
10113 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
10114 month's rent money.
10118 @subsection Mail Sources
10120 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
10121 POP mail server, or from a procmail directory, for instance.
10124 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
10125 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
10126 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
10130 @node Mail Source Specifiers
10131 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
10133 @cindex mail server
10136 @cindex mail source
10138 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
10139 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
10144 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
10147 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
10148 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
10149 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
10152 The following mail source types are available:
10156 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
10162 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
10163 environment variable or @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}.
10166 An example file mail source:
10169 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
10172 Or using the default path:
10179 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used when
10180 you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files.
10186 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
10190 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
10194 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
10195 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
10196 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
10197 predicate are considered.
10201 Script run before/after fetching mail.
10205 An example directory mail source:
10208 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
10213 Get mail from a POP server.
10219 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
10220 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
10223 The port number of the POP server. The default is @samp{pop3}.
10226 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
10230 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
10234 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This is should be
10235 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
10238 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
10241 The valid format specifier characters are:
10245 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
10246 included in this string.
10249 The name of the server.
10252 The port number of the server.
10255 The user name to use.
10258 The password to use.
10261 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
10262 corresponding keywords.
10265 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
10266 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
10269 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
10270 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
10273 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
10274 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
10277 @item :authentication
10278 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
10279 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
10284 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
10285 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
10287 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
10288 default user name, and default fetcher:
10294 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
10297 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
10298 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
10301 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
10304 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
10308 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox currently only
10309 supported by qmail, where each file in a special directory contains
10316 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
10317 @samp{~/Maildir/new}.
10319 If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
10320 them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
10321 @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the following example.
10325 An example maildir mail source:
10328 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/cur")
10334 @node Mail Source Customization
10335 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
10337 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
10338 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
10342 @item mail-source-crash-box
10343 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
10344 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
10345 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
10347 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
10348 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
10349 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
10351 @item mail-source-directory
10352 @vindex mail-source-directory
10353 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
10354 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
10355 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
10358 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
10359 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
10360 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
10365 @node Fetching Mail
10366 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
10368 @vindex mail-sources
10369 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
10370 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
10371 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
10372 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
10374 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
10375 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
10378 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
10379 mail server, you'd say something like:
10384 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
10385 :password "secret")))
10388 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
10392 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
10393 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
10396 :password "secret")))
10400 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
10401 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
10402 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
10403 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
10404 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
10405 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
10409 @node Mail Backend Variables
10410 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
10412 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
10416 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
10417 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
10418 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
10419 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
10421 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
10422 @item nnmail-split-hook
10423 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
10424 @findex RFC1522 decoding
10425 @findex RFC2047 decoding
10426 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
10427 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
10428 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
10429 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
10430 in the buffer will show up in any files.
10431 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
10434 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
10435 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
10436 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
10437 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
10438 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
10439 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
10440 starting to handle the new mail) and
10441 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
10442 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
10443 default file modes the new mail files get:
10446 (add-hook 'gnus-pre-get-new-mail-hook
10447 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
10449 (add-hook 'gnus-post-get-new-mail-hook
10450 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
10453 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
10454 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
10455 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
10456 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
10457 (assuming use of @code{nnml} backend) or files (assuming use of
10458 @code{nnfolder} backend) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
10459 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
10461 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
10462 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
10463 @findex delete-file
10464 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
10466 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
10467 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
10468 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
10469 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
10470 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
10475 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
10476 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
10477 @cindex mail splitting
10478 @cindex fancy mail splitting
10480 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
10481 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
10482 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
10483 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
10484 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
10485 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
10487 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
10490 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
10491 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
10492 ;; from real errors.
10493 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
10495 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
10496 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
10497 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
10498 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
10499 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
10500 ;; Other mailing lists...
10501 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
10502 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
10503 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
10504 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
10505 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
10506 ;; message was really cross-posted.
10507 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
10508 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
10510 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
10511 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
10515 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
10516 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
10517 the five possible split syntaxes:
10522 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
10523 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
10527 @var{(FIELD VALUE [- RESTRICT [- RESTRICT [...]]] SPLIT)}: If the split
10528 is a list, the first element of which is a string, then store the
10529 message as specified by SPLIT, if header FIELD (a regexp) contains VALUE
10530 (also a regexp). If RESTRICT (yet another regexp) matches some string
10531 after FIELD and before the end of the matched VALUE, the SPLIT is
10532 ignored. If none of the RESTRICT clauses match, SPLIT is processed.
10535 @var{(| SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
10536 @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each SPLIT until one of them
10537 matches. A SPLIT is said to match if it will cause the mail message to
10538 be stored in one or more groups.
10541 @var{(& SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
10542 @code{&}, then process all SPLITs in the list.
10545 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
10546 this message. Use with extreme caution.
10549 @var{(: function arg1 arg2 ...)}: If the split is a list, and the first
10550 element is @code{:}, then the second element will be called as a
10551 function with @var{args} given as arguments. The function should return
10555 @var{(! FUNC SPLIT)}: If the split is a list, and the first element
10556 is @code{!}, then SPLIT will be processed, and FUNC will be called as a
10557 function with the result of SPLIT as argument. FUNC should return a split.
10560 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
10564 In these splits, @var{FIELD} must match a complete field name.
10565 @var{VALUE} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
10566 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
10567 field names or words. In other words, all @var{VALUE}'s are wrapped in
10568 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
10570 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
10571 @var{FIELD} and @var{VALUE} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
10572 are expanded as specified by the variable
10573 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
10574 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
10577 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
10578 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
10579 when all this splitting is performed.
10581 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
10582 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
10583 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
10586 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
10589 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
10590 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
10592 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
10593 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
10594 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
10595 groupings 1 through 9.
10598 @node Incorporating Old Mail
10599 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
10601 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
10602 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
10603 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
10606 Doing so can be quite easy.
10608 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
10609 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
10610 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
10611 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
10612 your @code{nnml} groups.
10618 Go to the group buffer.
10621 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
10622 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
10625 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
10628 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
10629 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
10632 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
10633 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
10636 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
10637 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
10638 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
10639 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
10640 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
10642 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
10643 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
10644 using the new mail backend.
10647 @node Expiring Mail
10648 @subsection Expiring Mail
10649 @cindex article expiry
10651 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
10652 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
10653 different approach to mail reading.
10655 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
10656 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
10657 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
10658 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
10659 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
10660 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
10663 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
10664 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
10665 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
10666 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
10667 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
10668 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
10669 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
10670 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
10672 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
10673 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
10674 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
10675 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
10676 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
10677 column in the summary buffer.
10679 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
10680 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
10681 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
10682 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
10685 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
10687 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
10688 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
10689 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
10692 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
10693 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
10694 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
10695 groups expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
10696 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
10698 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
10699 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
10702 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
10703 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
10706 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
10707 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
10709 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
10710 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
10711 don't really mix very well.
10713 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
10714 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
10715 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
10716 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
10719 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
10720 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
10721 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
10722 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
10725 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
10727 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
10729 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
10731 ((string= group "mail.junk")
10733 ((string= group "important")
10739 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
10740 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
10742 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
10743 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
10744 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
10747 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
10748 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
10750 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
10751 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
10752 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
10753 easier for procmail users.
10755 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
10756 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
10757 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
10758 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
10759 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
10760 caution. Even more dangerous is the
10761 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
10762 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
10763 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
10764 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
10765 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
10766 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
10767 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
10770 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
10772 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
10773 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
10774 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
10775 auto-expire turned on.
10779 @subsection Washing Mail
10780 @cindex mail washing
10781 @cindex list server brain damage
10782 @cindex incoming mail treatment
10784 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
10785 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC822 doesn't explicitly
10786 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
10787 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
10788 Yes, but RFC822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
10789 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
10791 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
10792 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
10793 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
10796 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
10797 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
10798 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
10799 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
10802 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
10803 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
10804 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
10805 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
10806 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
10809 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
10810 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
10811 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
10812 Emacs running on MS machines.
10816 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
10817 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
10818 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
10819 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
10822 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
10823 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
10824 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
10825 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
10827 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
10828 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
10829 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
10830 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
10831 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
10832 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
10833 also be a list of regexp.
10835 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
10836 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
10839 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
10840 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
10843 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
10844 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
10845 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
10847 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
10848 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
10850 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
10851 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
10852 @code{References} headers.
10856 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
10857 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
10858 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
10862 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
10863 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
10864 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
10871 @subsection Duplicates
10873 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
10874 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
10875 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
10876 @cindex duplicate mails
10877 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
10878 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
10879 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
10880 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
10881 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
10882 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
10883 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
10884 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
10885 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
10886 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
10887 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
10888 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
10889 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
10891 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
10892 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
10893 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
10894 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
10896 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
10899 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
10900 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
10904 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
10905 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
10906 ("gnus-warning" "duplication of message" "duplicate")
10907 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
10908 (any mail "mail.misc")
10915 (setq nnmail-split-methods
10916 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:")
10921 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
10922 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
10923 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
10924 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
10925 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
10928 @node Not Reading Mail
10929 @subsection Not Reading Mail
10931 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
10932 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
10933 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
10935 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
10936 @code{nil}, none of the backends will ever attempt to read incoming
10937 mail, which should help.
10939 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10940 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
10941 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
10942 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
10943 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
10944 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
10945 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
10946 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
10947 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
10948 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
10949 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
10951 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
10952 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
10956 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
10957 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
10959 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
10960 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
10961 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
10963 There are five different mail backends in the standard Gnus, and more
10964 backends are available separately. The mail backend most people use
10965 (because it is the fastest and most flexible) is @code{nnml}
10966 (@pxref{Mail Spool}).
10969 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
10970 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
10971 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
10972 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
10973 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
10974 * Comparing Mail Backends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
10978 @node Unix Mail Box
10979 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
10981 @cindex unix mail box
10983 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
10984 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
10985 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
10986 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
10987 which group it belongs in.
10989 Virtual server settings:
10992 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
10993 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
10994 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory.
10996 @item nnmbox-active-file
10997 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
10998 The name of the active file for the mail box.
11000 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
11001 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
11002 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
11008 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
11012 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
11013 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
11014 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
11015 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each mail
11016 article to say which group it belongs in.
11018 Virtual server settings:
11021 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
11022 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
11023 The name of the rmail mbox file.
11025 @item nnbabyl-active-file
11026 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
11027 The name of the active file for the rmail box.
11029 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
11030 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
11031 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail.
11036 @subsubsection Mail Spool
11038 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
11040 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
11041 format. It should be used with some caution.
11043 @vindex nnml-directory
11044 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
11045 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
11046 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
11047 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
11049 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
11052 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
11053 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
11054 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
11055 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
11056 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
11057 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
11058 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
11059 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
11061 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
11062 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
11063 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
11064 backend when it comes to reading mail.
11066 Virtual server settings:
11069 @item nnml-directory
11070 @vindex nnml-directory
11071 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
11073 @item nnml-active-file
11074 @vindex nnml-active-file
11075 The active file for the @code{nnml} server.
11077 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
11078 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
11079 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
11082 @item nnml-get-new-mail
11083 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
11084 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail.
11086 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
11087 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
11088 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
11090 @item nnml-nov-file-name
11091 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
11092 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
11094 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
11095 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
11096 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
11100 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
11101 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
11102 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
11103 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
11104 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
11105 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
11106 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
11111 @subsubsection MH Spool
11113 @cindex mh-e mail spool
11115 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
11116 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
11117 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
11118 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
11120 Virtual server settings:
11123 @item nnmh-directory
11124 @vindex nnmh-directory
11125 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory.
11127 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
11128 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
11129 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail.
11132 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
11133 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
11134 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
11135 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
11136 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
11137 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
11138 to set this variable to @code{t}.
11143 @subsubsection Mail Folders
11145 @cindex mbox folders
11146 @cindex mail folders
11148 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
11149 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
11150 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
11153 Virtual server settings:
11156 @item nnfolder-directory
11157 @vindex nnfolder-directory
11158 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
11160 @item nnfolder-active-file
11161 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
11162 The name of the active file.
11164 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
11165 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
11166 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File Format}.
11168 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
11169 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
11170 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail.
11172 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
11173 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
11174 @cindex backup files
11175 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
11176 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
11177 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
11178 your @file{.emacs} file:
11181 (defun turn-off-backup ()
11182 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
11184 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
11187 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
11188 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
11189 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
11190 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
11191 extract some information from it before removing it.
11196 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
11197 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
11198 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
11199 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
11200 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
11201 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
11204 @node Comparing Mail Backends
11205 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Backends
11207 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{backend} is the common word for a
11208 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
11209 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
11210 and so selection of a suitable backend is required in order to get that
11211 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
11213 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
11214 typically done by NNTP these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
11215 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
11216 articles lay (the machine which today we call an NNTP server), and
11217 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
11218 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
11219 @code{nnspool} backends, to select between these methods, if one happens
11220 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
11223 The goal in selecting a mail backend is to pick one which
11224 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
11225 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
11226 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
11231 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
11232 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
11233 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
11234 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
11235 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
11236 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
11237 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
11238 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
11239 this backend, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
11240 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
11241 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
11242 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
11243 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
11248 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
11249 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
11250 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
11251 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
11252 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
11253 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
11254 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
11255 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
11256 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
11257 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
11258 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
11259 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
11260 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
11261 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
11263 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
11264 filesystem, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
11269 @code{nnml} is the backend which smells the most as though you were
11270 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
11271 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
11272 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
11273 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
11274 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
11275 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
11276 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
11277 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
11278 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
11279 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
11280 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
11281 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
11282 provided by the active file and overviews.
11284 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
11285 resource which defines available places in the filesystem to put new
11286 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
11287 tight, shared filesystems. But if you live on a personal machine where
11288 the filesystem is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
11291 It is also problematic using this backend if you are living in a
11292 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
11297 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
11298 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
11299 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
11300 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
11301 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
11302 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
11303 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
11307 Basically the effetc of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
11308 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
11309 itself puts *all* one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
11310 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
11311 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
11312 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
11313 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
11314 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
11315 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
11317 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
11318 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
11319 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
11320 friendly mail backend all over.
11326 @node Other Sources
11327 @section Other Sources
11329 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
11330 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
11334 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
11335 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
11336 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
11337 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{SOUP} packets ``offline''.
11338 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
11339 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
11343 @node Directory Groups
11344 @subsection Directory Groups
11346 @cindex directory groups
11348 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
11349 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
11352 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
11353 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
11354 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
11355 backend to read directories. Big deal.
11357 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
11358 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
11359 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
11360 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
11361 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
11363 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
11365 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
11366 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
11367 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
11368 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
11371 @node Anything Groups
11372 @subsection Anything Groups
11375 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
11376 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
11377 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
11380 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
11381 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
11382 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
11383 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're
11384 forgetting. @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it
11385 snoops each file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e.,
11386 the first few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head.
11387 If this is just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source
11388 file), @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It
11389 will use file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
11392 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
11393 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
11394 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
11395 in the article buffer, just as usual.
11397 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
11398 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
11399 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
11400 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
11402 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
11403 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
11404 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
11405 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
11406 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
11407 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
11408 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
11409 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
11414 @item nneething-map-file-directory
11415 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
11416 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
11417 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
11419 @item nneething-exclude-files
11420 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
11421 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
11422 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
11424 @item nneething-include-files
11425 @vindex nneething-include-files
11426 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
11427 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
11429 @item nneething-map-file
11430 @vindex nneething-map-file
11431 Name of the map files.
11435 @node Document Groups
11436 @subsection Document Groups
11438 @cindex documentation group
11441 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
11442 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
11449 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
11454 The standard Unix mbox file.
11456 @cindex MMDF mail box
11458 The MMDF mail box format.
11461 Several news articles appended into a file.
11464 @cindex rnews batch files
11465 The rnews batch transport format.
11466 @cindex forwarded messages
11469 Forwarded articles.
11472 Netscape mail boxes.
11475 MIME multipart messages.
11477 @item standard-digest
11478 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
11481 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
11484 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
11485 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
11486 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
11489 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
11490 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
11491 group. And that's it.
11493 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
11494 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
11495 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
11496 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
11497 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
11498 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
11499 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
11500 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
11501 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
11502 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
11504 Virtual server variables:
11507 @item nndoc-article-type
11508 @vindex nndoc-article-type
11509 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
11510 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
11511 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
11512 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail} or @code{guess}.
11514 @item nndoc-post-type
11515 @vindex nndoc-post-type
11516 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
11517 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
11522 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
11526 @node Document Server Internals
11527 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
11529 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
11530 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
11531 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
11532 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
11534 First, here's an example document type definition:
11538 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
11539 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
11542 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
11543 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
11544 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
11545 types can be defined with very few settings:
11548 @item first-article
11549 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
11550 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
11553 @item article-begin
11554 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
11555 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
11557 @item head-begin-function
11558 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
11561 @item nndoc-head-begin
11562 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
11565 @item nndoc-head-end
11566 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
11567 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
11569 @item body-begin-function
11570 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
11574 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
11577 @item body-end-function
11578 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
11582 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
11585 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
11586 regexp will be totally ignored.
11590 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
11591 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
11592 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
11593 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
11594 something that's palatable for Gnus:
11597 @item prepare-body-function
11598 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
11599 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
11600 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
11602 @item article-transform-function
11603 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
11604 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
11605 body of the article.
11607 @item generate-head-function
11608 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
11609 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
11610 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
11611 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
11615 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
11620 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
11621 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
11622 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
11623 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
11624 (head-end . "^ ?$")
11625 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
11626 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
11627 (subtype digest guess))
11630 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
11631 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
11632 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
11633 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
11634 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
11636 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
11637 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
11638 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
11639 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
11640 traversed sequentially, and @code{nndoc-TYPE-type-p} is called for a given type @code{TYPE}. So @code{nndoc-mmdf-type-p} is called to see whether a document
11641 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
11642 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
11643 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
11644 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
11645 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
11653 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
11654 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
11655 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
11657 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
11658 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
11659 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
11662 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something a that's a bit
11663 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
11664 that interested in doing things properly.
11666 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
11667 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
11670 First some terminology:
11675 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
11676 get news and/or mail from.
11679 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
11680 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
11683 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
11687 @item message packets
11688 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
11689 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
11690 default, where @var{X} is a number.
11692 @item response packets
11693 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
11694 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
11695 default, where @var{X} is a number.
11705 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
11706 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
11707 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
11708 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
11711 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
11714 You put the packet in your home directory.
11717 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
11718 the native or secondary server.
11721 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
11722 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
11725 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
11729 You transfer this packet to the server.
11732 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
11735 You then repeat until you die.
11739 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
11740 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
11743 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
11744 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
11745 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
11749 @node SOUP Commands
11750 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
11752 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
11756 @kindex G s b (Group)
11757 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
11758 Pack all unread articles in the current group
11759 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
11760 process/prefix convention.
11763 @kindex G s w (Group)
11764 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
11765 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
11768 @kindex G s s (Group)
11769 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
11770 Send all replies from the replies packet
11771 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
11774 @kindex G s p (Group)
11775 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
11776 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
11779 @kindex G s r (Group)
11780 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
11781 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
11784 @kindex O s (Summary)
11785 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
11786 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
11787 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
11788 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
11793 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
11798 @item gnus-soup-directory
11799 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
11800 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
11801 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
11803 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
11804 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
11805 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
11806 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
11808 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
11809 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
11810 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
11811 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
11813 @item gnus-soup-packer
11814 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
11815 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
11816 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
11818 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
11819 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
11820 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
11821 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
11823 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
11824 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
11825 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
11827 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
11828 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
11829 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
11830 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
11836 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
11839 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
11840 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
11841 you can read them at leisure.
11843 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
11847 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
11848 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
11849 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
11850 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
11852 @item nnsoup-directory
11853 @vindex nnsoup-directory
11854 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
11855 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
11857 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
11858 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
11859 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
11860 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
11862 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
11863 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
11864 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
11865 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
11866 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
11868 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
11869 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
11870 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
11871 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
11873 @item nnsoup-active-file
11874 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
11875 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
11876 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
11877 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
11878 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
11880 @item nnsoup-packer
11881 @vindex nnsoup-packer
11882 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
11883 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
11885 @item nnsoup-unpacker
11886 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
11887 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
11888 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
11890 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
11891 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
11892 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
11895 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
11896 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
11897 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
11900 @item nnsoup-always-save
11901 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
11902 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
11908 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
11910 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
11911 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
11912 more for that to happen.
11914 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
11915 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
11916 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
11919 In specific, this is what it does:
11922 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
11923 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
11926 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
11927 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
11928 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
11932 @subsection Web Searches
11936 @cindex InReference
11937 @cindex Usenet searches
11938 @cindex searching the Usenet
11940 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
11941 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
11942 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
11943 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
11944 searches without having to use a browser.
11946 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
11947 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
11948 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
11949 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
11950 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
11952 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
11953 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
11954 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
11955 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
11956 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
11957 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
11958 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
11959 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
11960 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
11961 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
11964 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
11965 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
11966 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
11967 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
11968 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
11969 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
11971 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
11972 to use @code{nnweb}.
11974 Virtual server variables:
11979 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
11980 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
11984 @vindex nnweb-search
11985 The search string to feed to the search engine.
11987 @item nnweb-max-hits
11988 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
11989 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
11992 @item nnweb-type-definition
11993 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
11994 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
11995 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
12000 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
12004 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
12007 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
12010 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
12014 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
12021 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
12022 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
12023 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
12026 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
12027 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
12028 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
12030 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
12036 @item nngateway-address
12037 @vindex nngateway-address
12038 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
12040 @item nngateway-header-transformation
12041 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
12042 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
12043 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
12044 transformation should be called, and defaults to
12045 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
12046 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
12049 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
12050 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
12051 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
12054 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
12057 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
12060 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
12063 The following pre-defined functions exist:
12065 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
12068 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
12069 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
12070 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
12072 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
12074 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
12075 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
12076 @code{nngateway-address}.
12081 (setq gnus-post-method
12082 '(nngateway "mail2news@@replay.com"
12083 (nngateway-header-transformation
12084 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
12092 So, to use this, simply say something like:
12095 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
12099 @node Combined Groups
12100 @section Combined Groups
12102 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
12106 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
12107 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
12111 @node Virtual Groups
12112 @subsection Virtual Groups
12114 @cindex virtual groups
12115 @cindex merging groups
12117 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
12120 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
12121 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
12122 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
12124 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
12125 regexp to match component groups.
12127 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
12128 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
12129 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
12130 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
12131 the virtual group.)
12133 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
12134 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
12137 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
12140 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
12141 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
12143 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
12144 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
12145 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
12146 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
12149 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
12152 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
12153 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
12154 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
12156 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
12157 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
12158 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
12159 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
12160 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
12162 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
12163 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
12164 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
12166 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
12167 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
12168 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
12169 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
12170 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
12171 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
12172 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
12173 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
12174 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
12175 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
12176 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
12178 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
12179 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
12180 has to ask the backend of the component group the article comes from
12181 whether it is a news or mail backend. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
12182 there is typically no sure way for the component backend to know this,
12183 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
12184 not-news backend. (Just to be on the safe side.)
12186 @kbd{C-c C-t} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
12187 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
12191 @node Kibozed Groups
12192 @subsection Kibozed Groups
12196 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
12197 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
12198 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
12199 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
12201 @kindex G k (Group)
12202 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
12205 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
12206 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
12207 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
12208 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
12210 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
12211 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
12212 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
12214 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
12215 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
12216 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
12217 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
12218 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
12219 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
12220 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
12221 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
12223 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
12224 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
12225 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
12226 Stranger things have happened.
12228 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
12229 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
12231 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
12232 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
12233 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
12234 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
12235 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
12236 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
12238 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
12239 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
12242 @node Gnus Unplugged
12243 @section Gnus Unplugged
12248 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
12250 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
12251 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
12252 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
12253 read news. Believe it or not.
12255 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
12256 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
12257 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
12258 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
12259 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
12261 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
12262 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
12263 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
12264 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
12265 reading news on a machine.
12267 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
12271 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
12272 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
12276 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
12277 @file{.gnus.el} file:
12284 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
12286 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
12289 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
12290 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
12291 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
12292 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
12293 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
12294 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
12295 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
12296 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
12297 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
12302 @subsection Agent Basics
12304 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
12306 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
12307 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
12308 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
12309 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
12311 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
12312 connected to the net continuously.
12314 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
12315 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
12317 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
12322 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
12323 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
12324 already fetched while in this mode.
12327 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
12328 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
12329 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged}.
12332 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
12333 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{J
12334 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
12335 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
12338 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
12339 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
12340 then you read the news offline.
12343 And then you go to step 2.
12346 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
12352 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
12353 backend, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
12354 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
12355 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
12356 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
12357 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
12360 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
12367 @node Agent Categories
12368 @subsection Agent Categories
12370 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
12371 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
12372 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
12373 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
12374 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
12375 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
12376 you're interested in the articles anyway.
12378 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
12379 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
12380 Groups that do not belong in any other category belong to the
12381 @code{default} category. Gnus has its own buffer for creating and
12382 managing categories.
12385 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
12386 * The Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
12387 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
12391 @node Category Syntax
12392 @subsubsection Category Syntax
12394 A category consists of two things.
12398 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
12399 are eligible for downloading; and
12402 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
12403 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
12404 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
12407 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
12408 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
12409 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
12410 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
12412 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
12413 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
12414 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as descibed below.
12416 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
12417 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
12418 operators sprinkled in between.
12420 Perhaps some examples are in order.
12422 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
12423 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
12429 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
12430 short (for some value of ``short'').
12432 Here's a more complex predicate:
12441 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
12442 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
12445 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
12446 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
12447 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
12449 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
12450 you want to do, you can write your own.
12454 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
12455 lines; default 100.
12458 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
12459 lines; default 200.
12462 True iff the article has a download score less than
12463 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
12466 True iff the article has a download score greater than
12467 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
12470 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
12471 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
12472 checksum and sees whether articles match.
12481 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
12482 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
12483 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
12486 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
12487 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
12488 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
12489 something along the lines of the following:
12492 (defun my-article-old-p ()
12493 "Say whether an article is old."
12494 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
12495 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
12498 with the predicate then defined as:
12501 (not my-article-old-p)
12504 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
12505 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
12506 wherever. (Note: this would have to be at a point *after*
12507 @code{gnus-agent} has been loaded via @code{(gnus-agentize)})
12510 (defvar gnus-category-predicate-alist
12511 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
12512 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
12515 and simply specify your predicate as:
12521 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
12522 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
12523 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
12524 just don't give a damm.
12527 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
12528 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
12529 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
12530 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
12531 parameters like so:
12534 (agent-predicate . short)
12537 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category
12538 default. Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this,
12539 the @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair
12542 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
12545 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
12548 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
12549 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
12550 predicate is assumed to be a list.
12553 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
12554 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
12555 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
12556 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
12557 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
12558 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
12560 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
12561 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
12562 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
12563 if it's to be specific to that group.
12565 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
12572 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
12573 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
12579 Category specification
12583 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
12589 Group Parameter specification
12592 (agent-score ("from"
12593 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
12598 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
12604 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
12611 Category specification
12614 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
12620 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
12624 Group Parameter specification
12627 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
12630 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
12635 Use @code{normal} score files
12637 If you dont want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
12638 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
12639 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
12640 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
12642 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
12643 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
12644 files for a group, *filtering out* those those sections that do not
12645 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
12649 Category Specification
12656 Group Parameter specification
12659 (agent-score . file)
12664 @node The Category Buffer
12665 @subsubsection The Category Buffer
12667 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
12668 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
12669 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
12671 The following commands are available in this buffer:
12675 @kindex q (Category)
12676 @findex gnus-category-exit
12677 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
12680 @kindex k (Category)
12681 @findex gnus-category-kill
12682 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
12685 @kindex c (Category)
12686 @findex gnus-category-copy
12687 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
12690 @kindex a (Category)
12691 @findex gnus-category-add
12692 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
12695 @kindex p (Category)
12696 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
12697 Edit the predicate of the current category
12698 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
12701 @kindex g (Category)
12702 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
12703 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
12704 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
12707 @kindex s (Category)
12708 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
12709 Edit the download score rule of the current category
12710 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
12713 @kindex l (Category)
12714 @findex gnus-category-list
12715 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
12719 @node Category Variables
12720 @subsubsection Category Variables
12723 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
12724 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
12725 Hook run in category buffers.
12727 @item gnus-category-line-format
12728 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
12729 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
12730 Variables}). Valid elements are:
12734 The name of the category.
12737 The number of groups in the category.
12740 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
12741 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
12742 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
12744 @item gnus-agent-short-article
12745 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
12746 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
12748 @item gnus-agent-long-article
12749 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
12750 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
12752 @item gnus-agent-low-score
12753 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
12754 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
12757 @item gnus-agent-high-score
12758 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
12759 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
12765 @node Agent Commands
12766 @subsection Agent Commands
12768 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
12769 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged} command works in all modes, and
12770 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
12774 * Group Agent Commands::
12775 * Summary Agent Commands::
12776 * Server Agent Commands::
12779 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
12780 following incantation:
12782 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
12784 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
12789 @node Group Agent Commands
12790 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
12794 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
12795 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
12796 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
12797 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
12800 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
12801 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
12802 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
12805 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
12806 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
12807 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
12808 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
12811 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
12812 @findex gnus-group-send-drafts
12813 Send all sendable messages in the draft group
12814 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}). @xref{Drafts}.
12817 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
12818 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
12819 Add the current group to an Agent category
12820 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
12821 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
12824 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
12825 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
12826 Remove the current group from its category, if any
12827 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
12828 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
12833 @node Summary Agent Commands
12834 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
12838 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
12839 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
12840 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
12843 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
12844 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
12845 Remove the downloading mark from the article
12846 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
12849 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
12850 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
12851 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
12854 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
12855 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
12856 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
12861 @node Server Agent Commands
12862 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
12866 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
12867 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
12868 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
12869 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
12872 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
12873 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
12874 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
12875 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
12881 @subsection Agent Expiry
12883 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
12884 @findex gnus-agent-expire
12885 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
12886 @cindex Agent expiry
12887 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
12890 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
12891 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
12892 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
12893 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
12894 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
12895 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
12897 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
12898 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
12899 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
12900 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
12901 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
12904 @node Outgoing Messages
12905 @subsection Outgoing Messages
12907 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
12908 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
12909 after posting, and edit them at will.
12911 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
12912 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
12913 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
12914 messages in the draft group.
12918 @node Agent Variables
12919 @subsection Agent Variables
12922 @item gnus-agent-directory
12923 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
12924 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
12925 @file{~/News/agent/}.
12927 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
12928 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
12929 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
12930 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
12931 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
12934 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
12935 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
12936 Hook run when connecting to the network.
12938 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
12939 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
12940 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
12945 @node Example Setup
12946 @subsection Example Setup
12948 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
12949 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
12950 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
12953 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over NNTP
12954 ;;; from your ISP's server.
12955 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
12957 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
12958 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
12959 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
12961 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
12962 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
12964 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
12968 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
12969 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
12972 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
12973 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
12974 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
12975 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
12976 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
12979 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
12980 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
12981 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
12982 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
12983 back all the killed groups.)
12985 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
12986 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
12987 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
12990 @node Batching Agents
12991 @subsection Batching Agents
12993 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
12994 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
12995 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
12999 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
13003 @node Agent Caveats
13004 @subsection Agent Caveats
13006 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
13007 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
13011 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the
13016 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists
13017 in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
13023 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
13024 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP.
13031 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
13032 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
13033 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
13036 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
13037 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
13038 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
13039 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
13040 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
13042 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
13043 before generating the summary buffer.
13045 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
13046 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
13047 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
13049 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
13050 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
13051 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
13052 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
13055 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
13056 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
13057 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
13058 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
13059 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
13060 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
13061 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
13062 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
13063 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
13064 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
13065 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
13066 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
13067 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
13068 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
13069 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
13070 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
13074 @node Summary Score Commands
13075 @section Summary Score Commands
13076 @cindex score commands
13078 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
13079 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
13080 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
13081 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
13082 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
13084 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
13085 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
13086 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
13087 score file the current one.
13089 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
13094 @kindex V s (Summary)
13095 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
13096 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
13099 @kindex V S (Summary)
13100 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
13101 Display the score of the current article
13102 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
13105 @kindex V t (Summary)
13106 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
13107 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
13108 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
13111 @kindex V R (Summary)
13112 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
13113 Run the current summary through the scoring process
13114 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
13115 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
13116 effect you're having.
13119 @kindex V c (Summary)
13120 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
13121 Make a different score file the current
13122 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
13125 @kindex V e (Summary)
13126 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
13127 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
13128 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
13132 @kindex V f (Summary)
13133 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
13134 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
13135 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
13138 @kindex V F (Summary)
13139 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
13140 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
13141 after editing score files.
13144 @kindex V C (Summary)
13145 @findex gnus-score-customize
13146 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
13147 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
13151 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
13156 @kindex V m (Summary)
13157 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
13158 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
13159 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
13162 @kindex V x (Summary)
13163 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
13164 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
13165 expunge all articles below this score
13166 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
13169 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
13170 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
13173 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
13174 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
13178 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
13179 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
13181 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
13182 keys are available:
13186 Score on the author name.
13189 Score on the subject line.
13192 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
13195 Score on the @code{References} line.
13201 Score on the number of lines.
13204 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
13207 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
13208 the followups to this author.
13222 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
13223 what headers you are scoring on.
13235 Substring matching.
13238 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
13267 Greater than number.
13272 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
13273 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
13274 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
13278 Temporary score entry.
13281 Permanent score entry.
13284 Immediately scoring.
13289 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
13290 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
13291 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
13292 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
13294 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
13295 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
13296 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
13297 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
13298 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
13300 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
13301 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
13302 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
13303 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
13304 current score file.
13306 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
13307 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
13308 pretend they are keymaps or not.
13311 @node Group Score Commands
13312 @section Group Score Commands
13313 @cindex group score commands
13315 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
13320 @kindex W f (Group)
13321 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
13322 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
13323 all the time. This command will flush the cache
13324 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
13328 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
13330 @findex gnus-batch-score
13331 @cindex batch scoring
13333 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
13337 @node Score Variables
13338 @section Score Variables
13339 @cindex score variables
13343 @item gnus-use-scoring
13344 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
13345 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
13346 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
13348 @item gnus-kill-killed
13349 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
13350 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
13351 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
13352 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
13353 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
13354 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
13355 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
13357 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
13358 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
13359 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
13360 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
13361 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
13363 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
13364 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
13365 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
13366 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
13368 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
13369 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
13370 @cindex score cache
13371 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
13372 score files. However, if this might make you Emacs grow big and
13373 bloated, so this regexp can be used to weed out score files unlikely to be needed again. It would be a bad idea to deny caching of
13374 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
13375 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
13376 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
13379 @item gnus-save-score
13380 @vindex gnus-save-score
13381 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
13382 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
13383 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
13385 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
13386 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
13387 across group visits.
13389 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
13390 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
13391 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
13392 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
13393 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
13394 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
13395 manually entered data.
13397 @item gnus-summary-default-score
13398 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
13399 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
13401 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
13402 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
13403 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
13404 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
13405 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
13406 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
13408 @item gnus-score-over-mark
13409 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
13410 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
13411 default. Default is @samp{+}.
13413 @item gnus-score-below-mark
13414 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
13415 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
13416 default. Default is @samp{-}.
13418 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
13419 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
13420 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
13421 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
13423 Predefined functions available are:
13426 @item gnus-score-find-single
13427 @findex gnus-score-find-single
13428 Only apply the group's own score file.
13430 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
13431 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
13432 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
13433 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
13434 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
13435 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
13436 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
13437 then a regexp match is done.
13439 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
13440 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
13442 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
13443 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
13444 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
13445 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
13447 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
13448 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
13449 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
13450 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
13451 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE}.
13454 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
13455 functions will be called, and all the returned lists of score files will
13456 be applied. These functions can also return lists of score alists
13457 directly. In that case, the functions that return these non-file score
13458 alists should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file
13459 functions, to ensure that the last score file returned is the local
13462 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
13463 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
13464 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
13465 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
13466 are expired. It's 7 by default.
13468 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
13469 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
13470 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
13471 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
13472 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
13473 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
13474 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
13477 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
13478 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
13479 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
13481 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
13482 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
13483 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
13484 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
13485 threading---according to the current value of
13486 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
13487 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
13488 simplified in this manner.
13493 @node Score File Format
13494 @section Score File Format
13495 @cindex score file format
13497 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
13498 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
13499 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
13501 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
13505 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
13507 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
13509 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
13511 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
13516 (mark-and-expunge -10)
13520 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
13521 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
13522 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
13523 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
13527 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
13528 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
13530 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
13531 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
13532 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
13534 Six keys are supported by this alist:
13539 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
13540 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
13541 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
13542 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
13543 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
13544 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
13545 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
13546 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
13547 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
13548 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
13549 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
13550 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
13551 to articles that matches these score entries.
13553 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
13554 score entry has one to four elements.
13558 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
13559 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
13563 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
13564 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
13565 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
13566 is successful. If this element is not present, the
13567 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
13568 instead. This is 1000 by default.
13571 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
13572 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
13573 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
13574 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
13575 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
13578 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
13579 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
13580 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
13581 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
13584 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
13585 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
13586 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
13587 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
13588 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
13589 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
13590 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
13591 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
13592 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
13593 instead, if you feel like.
13596 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
13597 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
13599 These predicates are true if
13602 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
13605 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
13606 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
13613 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
13614 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
13615 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
13616 it's not. I think.)
13618 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some backends (like
13619 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
13620 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
13621 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
13624 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
13625 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
13626 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
13627 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
13628 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
13629 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
13630 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
13634 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
13635 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
13636 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
13637 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
13638 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
13639 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
13640 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
13641 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
13644 @item Head, Body, All
13645 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
13649 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
13650 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
13651 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
13652 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
13653 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
13654 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
13655 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
13659 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
13660 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{X}, then you add a
13661 @samp{thread} match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each
13662 article that has @var{X} in its @code{References} header. (These new
13663 @samp{thread} matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching
13664 articles.) This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an
13665 entire thread, even though some articles in the thread may not have
13666 complete @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
13667 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
13668 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
13672 @cindex Score File Atoms
13674 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
13675 lower than this number will be marked as read.
13678 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
13679 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
13681 @item mark-and-expunge
13682 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
13683 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
13686 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
13687 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
13688 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
13689 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
13690 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
13693 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
13694 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
13697 @item exclude-files
13698 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
13699 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
13703 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
13704 ignored when handling global score files.
13707 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
13708 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
13709 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
13710 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
13713 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
13714 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
13715 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
13716 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
13718 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
13722 (mark-and-expunge -100)
13725 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
13726 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
13727 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
13728 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
13729 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
13731 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where there
13732 exist a few interesting threads which can't be found automatically by
13733 ordinary scoring rules.
13736 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
13737 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
13738 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
13739 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
13740 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
13741 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
13742 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
13743 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
13744 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
13745 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
13746 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
13750 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
13751 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
13752 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
13753 file for a number of groups.
13756 @cindex local variables
13757 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
13758 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
13759 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
13760 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
13761 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
13765 @node Score File Editing
13766 @section Score File Editing
13768 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
13769 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
13770 with a mode for that.
13772 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
13773 additional commands:
13778 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
13779 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
13780 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
13781 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
13784 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
13785 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
13786 Insert the current date in numerical format
13787 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
13788 you were wondering.
13791 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
13792 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
13793 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
13794 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
13795 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
13800 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
13802 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
13803 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
13805 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
13806 e} to begin editing score files.
13809 @node Adaptive Scoring
13810 @section Adaptive Scoring
13811 @cindex adaptive scoring
13813 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
13814 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
13815 stupidity, to be precise.
13817 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
13818 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
13819 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
13820 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
13821 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
13822 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
13823 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
13824 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
13825 variable to @code{(word line)}.
13827 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
13828 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
13829 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
13830 might look something like this:
13833 (defvar gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
13834 '((gnus-unread-mark)
13835 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
13836 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
13837 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
13838 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
13839 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
13840 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
13841 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
13842 (gnus-ancient-mark)
13843 (gnus-low-score-mark)
13844 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
13847 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
13848 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
13849 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
13850 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
13851 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
13852 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
13855 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
13856 will be applied to each article.
13858 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
13859 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
13860 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
13861 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
13863 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
13864 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
13865 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
13866 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
13868 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
13869 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
13870 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
13871 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
13873 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
13874 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
13875 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
13876 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
13877 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
13878 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
13880 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
13881 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
13882 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
13883 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
13884 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
13885 aspirins afterwards.)
13887 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
13888 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
13889 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
13891 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
13892 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
13893 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
13895 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
13896 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
13897 let you use different rules in different groups.
13899 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
13900 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
13901 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
13904 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
13905 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
13906 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
13907 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
13908 the length of the match is less than
13909 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
13910 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
13913 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
13914 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
13915 headers. If you adapt on words, the
13916 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
13917 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
13920 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
13921 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
13922 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
13923 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
13924 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
13927 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
13928 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
13929 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
13930 score with 30 points.
13932 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
13933 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
13934 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
13935 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
13936 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
13938 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
13939 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
13940 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
13941 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
13943 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
13944 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
13945 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
13946 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
13948 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
13949 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
13950 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
13951 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
13952 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
13954 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
13955 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
13956 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
13958 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
13959 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
13960 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
13961 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
13964 @node Home Score File
13965 @section Home Score File
13967 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
13968 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
13969 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
13970 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
13972 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
13973 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
13974 could perhaps use the same home score file.
13976 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
13977 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
13982 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
13986 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
13987 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
13991 A list. The elements in this list can be:
13995 @var{(regexp file-name)}. If the @var{regexp} matches the group name,
13996 the @var{file-name} will will be used as the home score file.
13999 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
14000 the home score file.
14003 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
14006 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
14011 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
14014 (setq gnus-home-score-file
14015 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
14018 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
14019 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
14021 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
14023 (setq gnus-home-score-file
14024 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
14027 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
14028 Other functions include
14031 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
14032 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
14033 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
14034 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
14038 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
14039 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
14040 their own home score files:
14043 (setq gnus-home-score-file
14044 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
14045 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
14046 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
14047 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
14050 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
14051 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
14052 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
14053 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
14054 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
14056 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
14057 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
14058 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
14059 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
14060 precedence over this variable.
14063 @node Followups To Yourself
14064 @section Followups To Yourself
14066 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
14067 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
14068 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
14069 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
14070 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
14071 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
14075 @item gnus-score-followup-article
14076 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
14077 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
14080 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
14081 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
14082 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
14086 @vindex message-sent-hook
14087 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
14088 @code{message-sent-hook}.
14090 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
14091 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
14095 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
14096 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
14099 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
14100 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
14105 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore.no>"
14109 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
14110 is system-dependent.
14114 @section Scoring Tips
14115 @cindex scoring tips
14121 @cindex scoring crossposts
14122 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
14123 the @code{Xref} header.
14125 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
14128 @item Multiple crossposts
14129 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
14130 more than, say, 3 groups:
14132 ("xref" ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+" -1000 nil r))
14135 @item Matching on the body
14136 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
14137 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
14138 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
14139 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
14140 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
14141 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
14142 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
14145 @item Marking as read
14146 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
14147 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
14148 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
14152 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
14154 @item Negated character classes
14155 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
14156 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
14157 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
14161 @node Reverse Scoring
14162 @section Reverse Scoring
14163 @cindex reverse scoring
14165 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
14166 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
14167 like this in your score file:
14171 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
14176 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
14177 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
14180 @node Global Score Files
14181 @section Global Score Files
14182 @cindex global score files
14184 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
14185 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
14186 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
14188 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
14189 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
14190 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
14192 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
14193 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
14194 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
14195 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
14196 files are applicable to which group.
14198 Say you want to use the score file
14199 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
14200 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory:
14203 (setq gnus-global-score-files
14204 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
14205 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
14208 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
14209 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
14210 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
14211 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
14212 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
14214 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
14215 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
14217 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
14218 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
14219 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
14220 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
14221 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
14222 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
14224 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
14230 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
14232 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
14234 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
14236 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
14237 lowered out of existence.
14239 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
14240 articles completely.
14243 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
14244 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
14245 old articles for a long time.
14248 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
14249 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
14250 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
14251 holding our breath yet?
14255 @section Kill Files
14258 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
14259 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
14260 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
14262 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
14263 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
14264 files into score files.
14266 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
14267 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
14268 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
14269 that isn't a very good idea.
14271 Normal kill files look like this:
14274 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
14275 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
14279 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
14280 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
14282 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
14283 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
14286 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
14291 @kindex M-k (Summary)
14292 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
14293 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
14296 @kindex M-K (Summary)
14297 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
14298 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
14301 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
14306 @kindex M-k (Group)
14307 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
14308 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
14311 @kindex M-K (Group)
14312 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
14313 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
14316 Kill file variables:
14319 @item gnus-kill-file-name
14320 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
14321 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
14322 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
14323 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
14324 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
14325 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
14327 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
14328 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
14329 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
14330 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
14333 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
14334 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
14335 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
14336 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
14337 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
14338 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
14339 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
14340 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
14341 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
14343 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
14344 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
14345 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
14350 @node Converting Kill Files
14351 @section Converting Kill Files
14353 @cindex converting kill files
14355 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
14356 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
14357 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
14360 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
14361 You can fetch it from
14362 @file{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-other/gnus-kill-to-score}.
14364 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
14365 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
14366 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
14374 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
14375 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
14376 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
14378 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
14379 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
14380 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
14381 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
14382 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
14383 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
14384 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
14385 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
14389 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
14390 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
14391 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
14392 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
14396 @node Using GroupLens
14397 @subsection Using GroupLens
14399 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
14401 @samp{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
14402 better bit in town at the moment.
14404 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
14408 @item gnus-use-grouplens
14409 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
14410 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
14411 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
14413 @item grouplens-pseudonym
14414 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
14415 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
14416 with the Better Bit Bureau.
14418 @item grouplens-newsgroups
14419 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
14420 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
14424 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
14425 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
14426 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
14427 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
14428 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
14429 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
14432 @node Rating Articles
14433 @subsection Rating Articles
14435 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
14436 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
14437 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
14438 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
14441 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
14446 @kindex r (GroupLens)
14447 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
14448 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
14451 @kindex k (GroupLens)
14452 @findex grouplens-score-thread
14453 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
14454 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
14455 threads in rec.humor.
14459 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
14460 the score of the article you're reading.
14465 @kindex n (GroupLens)
14466 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
14467 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
14470 @kindex , (GroupLens)
14471 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
14472 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
14476 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
14477 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
14480 @node Displaying Predictions
14481 @subsection Displaying Predictions
14483 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
14484 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
14485 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
14486 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
14487 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
14489 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
14490 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
14491 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
14492 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
14493 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
14494 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
14495 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
14496 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
14497 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
14498 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
14499 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
14500 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
14501 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
14503 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
14504 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
14505 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
14506 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
14508 The following are valid values for that variable.
14511 @item prediction-spot
14512 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
14515 @item confidence-interval
14516 A numeric confidence interval.
14518 @item prediction-bar
14519 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
14521 @item confidence-bar
14522 Numerical confidence.
14524 @item confidence-spot
14525 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
14527 @item prediction-num
14528 Plain-old numeric value.
14530 @item confidence-plus-minus
14531 Prediction +/- confidence.
14536 @node GroupLens Variables
14537 @subsection GroupLens Variables
14541 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
14542 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
14543 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
14544 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%)
14547 @item grouplens-bbb-host
14548 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
14551 @item grouplens-bbb-port
14552 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
14554 @item grouplens-score-offset
14555 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
14556 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
14559 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
14560 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
14561 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
14566 @node Advanced Scoring
14567 @section Advanced Scoring
14569 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
14570 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
14571 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
14572 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
14573 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
14575 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
14579 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
14580 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
14581 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
14585 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
14586 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
14588 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
14589 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
14590 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
14591 non-@code{nil} value.
14593 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
14594 operator, and various match operators.
14601 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
14602 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
14603 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
14608 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
14609 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
14610 then this operator will return @code{false}.
14615 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
14616 logical negation of the value of its argument.
14620 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
14621 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
14622 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
14623 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
14624 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
14625 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
14626 the ancestry you want to go.
14628 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
14629 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
14630 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
14631 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
14632 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
14635 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
14636 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
14638 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
14639 when he's talking about Gnus:
14643 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
14644 ("subject" "Gnus"))
14650 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
14654 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
14661 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
14662 really don't want to read what he's written:
14666 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
14667 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
14671 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
14672 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
14673 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
14680 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
14681 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
14682 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
14683 ("body" "white.*socks"))
14687 The possibilities are endless.
14690 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
14691 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
14693 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
14694 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
14695 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
14696 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
14697 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
14698 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
14699 @samp{subject}) first.
14701 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
14702 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
14713 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
14714 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
14720 ("subject" "Gnus")))
14727 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
14728 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
14733 @section Score Decays
14734 @cindex score decays
14737 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
14738 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
14739 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
14740 use them in any sensible way.
14742 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
14743 @findex gnus-decay-score
14744 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
14745 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
14746 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
14747 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
14748 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
14749 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
14750 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
14751 definition of that function:
14754 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
14756 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
14757 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
14760 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
14762 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
14764 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
14767 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
14768 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
14769 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
14770 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
14774 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
14777 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
14780 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
14784 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
14785 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
14786 the new score, which should be an integer.
14788 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
14789 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
14796 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
14797 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
14798 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
14799 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
14800 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
14801 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
14802 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
14803 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
14804 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
14805 * Buttons:: Get tendonitis in ten easy steps!
14806 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
14807 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
14808 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
14809 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
14810 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
14811 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
14812 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
14813 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
14817 @node Process/Prefix
14818 @section Process/Prefix
14819 @cindex process/prefix convention
14821 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
14822 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
14824 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
14825 command to be performed on.
14829 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
14830 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
14831 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
14832 with the current one.
14834 @vindex transient-mark-mode
14835 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
14836 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
14838 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
14839 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
14842 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
14843 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
14845 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
14848 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
14849 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
14850 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
14851 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
14853 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
14854 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
14855 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
14856 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
14857 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
14858 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
14859 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
14860 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
14864 @section Interactive
14865 @cindex interaction
14869 @item gnus-novice-user
14870 @vindex gnus-novice-user
14871 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
14872 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
14873 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
14874 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
14877 @item gnus-expert-user
14878 @vindex gnus-expert-user
14879 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
14880 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
14881 matter how strange.
14883 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
14884 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
14885 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
14886 is @code{t} by default.
14888 @item gnus-interactive-exit
14889 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
14890 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
14895 @node Symbolic Prefixes
14896 @section Symbolic Prefixes
14897 @cindex symbolic prefixes
14899 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
14900 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
14901 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
14902 rule of 900 to the current article.
14904 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
14905 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
14906 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
14907 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
14908 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
14909 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
14910 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
14912 @kindex M-i (Summary)
14913 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
14914 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
14915 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
14916 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
14917 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a M-C-u} means ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u}
14918 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b M-C-u} means
14919 ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
14920 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
14922 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
14923 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
14924 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
14926 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
14930 @node Formatting Variables
14931 @section Formatting Variables
14932 @cindex formatting variables
14934 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
14935 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
14936 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
14937 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
14938 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
14941 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
14942 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
14943 lots of percentages everywhere.
14946 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
14947 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
14948 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
14949 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
14950 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
14953 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
14954 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
14955 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
14956 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
14957 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
14958 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
14959 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
14960 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
14962 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
14963 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
14965 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
14966 @findex gnus-update-format
14967 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
14968 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
14969 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
14970 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
14974 @node Formatting Basics
14975 @subsection Formatting Basics
14977 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
14978 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
14979 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
14981 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
14982 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
14983 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
14984 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
14985 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
14988 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
14989 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
14990 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
14991 less than 4 characters wide.
14994 @node Mode Line Formatting
14995 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
14997 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
14998 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
14999 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
15000 with the following two differences:
15005 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
15008 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
15009 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
15010 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
15011 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
15012 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
15013 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
15014 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
15019 @node Advanced Formatting
15020 @subsection Advanced Formatting
15022 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
15023 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
15024 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
15025 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
15027 These are the valid modifiers:
15032 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
15036 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
15041 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
15044 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
15049 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
15052 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
15055 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
15058 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
15062 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
15063 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
15064 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
15065 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
15066 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
15067 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
15068 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
15070 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
15071 last operation, padding.
15073 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
15074 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
15075 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
15076 @xref{Compilation}.
15079 @node User-Defined Specs
15080 @subsection User-Defined Specs
15082 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
15083 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
15084 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
15085 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
15086 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
15087 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
15088 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
15089 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
15090 should protect against that.
15092 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
15093 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
15094 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
15095 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
15099 @node Formatting Fonts
15100 @subsection Formatting Fonts
15102 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
15103 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
15104 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
15105 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
15108 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
15109 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
15110 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
15111 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
15112 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
15113 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
15115 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
15116 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you say
15117 @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
15118 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or
15119 symbols naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
15120 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
15121 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
15122 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
15124 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
15127 ;; Create three face types.
15128 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
15129 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
15131 ;; We want the article count to be in
15132 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
15133 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
15134 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
15136 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
15137 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
15139 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
15140 (setq gnus-group-line-format
15141 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
15144 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
15145 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
15147 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
15148 mode-line variables.
15151 @node Windows Configuration
15152 @section Windows Configuration
15153 @cindex windows configuration
15155 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
15157 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
15158 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
15159 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
15160 @code{t} by default.
15162 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
15163 glitches. Use at your own peril.
15165 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
15166 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
15167 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
15170 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
15171 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
15172 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
15176 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
15177 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
15178 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
15179 possible names is listed below.
15181 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
15182 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
15185 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
15189 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
15190 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
15191 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
15192 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
15193 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
15194 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
15195 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
15196 size spec per split.
15198 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
15199 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
15200 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
15201 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
15202 present) gets focus.
15204 Here's a more complicated example:
15207 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
15208 (summary 0.25 point)
15209 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
15213 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
15214 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
15215 occupy, not a percentage.
15217 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
15218 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
15219 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
15220 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
15221 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
15224 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
15227 (article (horizontal 1.0
15232 (summary 0.25 point)
15237 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
15238 @code{horizontal} thingie?
15240 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
15241 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
15242 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
15243 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
15244 the screen is to be given to this strip.
15246 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
15247 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
15248 lines from the splits.
15250 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
15254 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
15255 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
15256 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
15257 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
15258 buffer = "(" buffer-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
15259 size = number | frame-params
15260 buffer-name = group | article | summary ...
15263 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
15264 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
15265 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
15266 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
15268 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
15269 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
15270 @cindex window height
15271 @cindex window width
15272 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
15273 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
15274 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
15275 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
15276 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
15277 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
15279 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
15280 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
15281 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
15282 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
15284 @findex gnus-configure-frame
15285 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
15286 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
15287 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
15288 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
15289 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
15290 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
15291 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
15292 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
15293 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
15294 configuration list.
15297 (gnus-configure-frame
15301 (article 0.3 point))
15309 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
15310 @code{frame} split:
15313 (gnus-configure-frame
15316 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
15318 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
15319 (user-position . t)
15320 (left . -1) (top . 1))
15325 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
15326 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
15327 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
15328 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
15329 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
15330 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
15331 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
15332 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
15334 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
15335 be found in its default value.
15337 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
15338 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
15339 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
15343 (message (horizontal 1.0
15344 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
15346 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
15351 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
15352 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
15353 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
15356 (message (frame 1.0
15357 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
15358 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
15359 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
15360 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
15361 (name . "Message"))
15362 (message 1.0 point))))
15365 @findex gnus-add-configuration
15366 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
15367 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
15368 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
15369 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
15372 (gnus-add-configuration
15373 '(article (vertical 1.0
15375 (summary .25 point)
15379 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
15380 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
15381 Gnus has been loaded.
15383 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
15384 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
15385 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
15386 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
15387 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
15389 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
15390 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
15391 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
15395 @node Faces and Fonts
15396 @section Faces and Fonts
15401 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
15402 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
15403 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
15408 @section Compilation
15409 @cindex compilation
15410 @cindex byte-compilation
15412 @findex gnus-compile
15414 Remember all those line format specification variables?
15415 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
15416 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
15417 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
15418 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
15419 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
15422 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
15423 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
15424 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
15425 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
15426 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
15427 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
15428 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
15432 @section Mode Lines
15435 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
15436 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
15437 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
15438 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
15439 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
15440 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
15441 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
15444 @cindex display-time
15446 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
15447 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
15448 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
15449 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
15450 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
15451 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
15452 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
15453 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
15456 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
15458 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
15459 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
15461 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
15462 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
15463 (length display-time-string)))))
15466 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
15467 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
15468 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
15469 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
15470 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
15473 @node Highlighting and Menus
15474 @section Highlighting and Menus
15476 @cindex highlighting
15479 @vindex gnus-visual
15480 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
15481 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
15482 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
15485 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
15486 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
15489 @item group-highlight
15490 Do highlights in the group buffer.
15491 @item summary-highlight
15492 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
15493 @item article-highlight
15494 Do highlights in the article buffer.
15496 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
15498 Create menus in the group buffer.
15500 Create menus in the summary buffers.
15502 Create menus in the article buffer.
15504 Create menus in the browse buffer.
15506 Create menus in the server buffer.
15508 Create menus in the score buffers.
15510 Create menus in all buffers.
15513 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
15514 buffers, you could say something like:
15517 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
15520 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
15523 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
15526 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
15527 in all Gnus buffers.
15529 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
15532 @item gnus-mouse-face
15533 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
15534 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
15535 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
15539 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
15543 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
15544 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
15545 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
15547 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
15548 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
15549 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
15551 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
15552 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
15553 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
15555 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
15556 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
15557 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
15559 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
15560 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
15561 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
15563 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
15564 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
15565 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
15576 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
15577 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
15578 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
15579 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
15580 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
15584 @vindex gnus-carpal
15585 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
15586 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
15587 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
15592 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
15593 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
15594 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
15596 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
15597 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
15598 Face used on buttons.
15600 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
15601 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
15602 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
15604 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
15605 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
15606 Buttons in the group buffer.
15608 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
15609 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
15610 Buttons in the summary buffer.
15612 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
15613 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
15614 Buttons in the server buffer.
15616 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
15617 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
15618 Buttons in the browse buffer.
15621 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
15622 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
15623 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
15631 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
15632 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
15633 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
15634 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
15635 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
15637 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
15638 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
15639 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
15641 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
15642 been idle for thirty minutes:
15645 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
15648 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
15652 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
15655 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
15656 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
15657 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
15659 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
15660 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
15661 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
15662 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
15664 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
15665 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
15666 @var{idle} minutes.
15668 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
15669 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
15672 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
15673 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
15674 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
15676 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
15677 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
15678 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
15679 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
15681 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
15682 your @file{.gnus} file:
15684 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
15686 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
15689 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
15690 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
15691 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
15692 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
15693 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
15694 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
15695 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
15696 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
15697 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
15698 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
15699 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
15701 @findex gnus-demon-init
15702 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
15703 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
15704 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
15705 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
15706 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
15708 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
15709 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
15710 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
15719 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
15720 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
15722 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
15723 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
15724 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
15725 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
15728 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
15729 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
15730 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
15731 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
15733 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
15734 this will make spam disappear.
15736 There are some variables to customize, of course:
15739 @item gnus-use-nocem
15740 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
15741 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
15744 @item gnus-nocem-groups
15745 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
15746 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
15747 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
15748 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
15750 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
15751 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
15752 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
15753 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
15754 "rbraver@@ohww.norman.ok.us" "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca"
15755 "jem@@xpat.com" "snowhare@@xmission.com" "red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us
15756 (Richard E. Depew)")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
15758 Known despammers that you can put in this list include:
15761 @item clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca;
15762 @cindex Chris Lewis
15763 Chris Lewis---Major Canadian despammer who has probably canceled more
15764 usenet abuse than anybody else.
15767 @cindex CancelMoose[tm]
15768 The CancelMoose[tm] on autopilot. The CancelMoose[tm] is reputed to be
15769 Norwegian, and was the person(s) who invented NoCeM.
15771 @item jem@@xpat.com;
15773 John Milburn---despammer located in Korea who is getting very busy these
15776 @item red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us (Richard E. Depew)
15777 Richard E. Depew---lone American despammer. He mostly cancels binary
15778 postings to non-binary groups and removes spews (regurgitated articles).
15781 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
15782 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
15783 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
15784 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
15785 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
15786 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
15787 @var{(issuer conditions ...)} elements in the list. Each condition is
15788 either a string (which is a regexp that matches types you want to use)
15789 or a list on the form @code{(not STRING)}, where @var{string} is a
15790 regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
15792 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
15793 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
15796 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
15799 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
15800 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
15803 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
15806 The specs are applied left-to-right.
15809 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
15810 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
15812 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
15813 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
15814 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
15815 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
15817 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
15818 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
15821 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
15823 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
15831 This might be dangerous, though.
15833 @item gnus-nocem-directory
15834 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
15835 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
15836 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
15838 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
15839 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
15840 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
15841 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
15842 might then see old spam.
15846 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
15847 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
15848 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
15849 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
15856 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
15857 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
15858 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
15860 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
15861 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
15862 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
15863 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
15864 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
15865 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
15866 @code{undo} function.
15868 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
15869 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
15870 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
15871 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
15872 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
15873 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
15874 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
15875 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
15876 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
15877 never be totally undoable.
15879 @findex gnus-undo-mode
15880 @vindex gnus-use-undo
15882 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
15883 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
15884 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo} command
15885 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
15890 @section Moderation
15893 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
15894 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
15895 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
15898 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
15902 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
15905 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
15907 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
15912 You split your incoming mail by matching on
15913 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
15914 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
15917 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
15918 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
15921 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
15922 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
15926 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
15929 (setq gnus-moderated-list
15930 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
15934 @node XEmacs Enhancements
15935 @section XEmacs Enhancements
15938 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
15942 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
15943 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
15944 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
15945 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
15958 So... You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
15959 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
15960 over your shoulder as you read news.
15963 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
15964 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
15965 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
15966 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
15967 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
15972 @subsubsection Picon Basics
15974 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
15983 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
15984 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
15985 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
15986 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
15987 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
15988 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
15989 @code{GIF} formats.
15992 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15993 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
15994 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
15995 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
15996 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
15998 @vindex gnus-picons-database
15999 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
16000 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
16001 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
16002 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
16003 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
16006 @node Picon Requirements
16007 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
16009 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
16010 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
16013 Additionally, you must have @code{x} support compiled into XEmacs. To
16014 display color picons which are much nicer than the black & white one,
16015 you also need one of @code{xpm} or @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
16017 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
16018 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
16019 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
16020 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
16021 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
16025 @subsubsection Easy Picons
16027 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
16028 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
16031 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
16032 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
16035 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
16036 containing the Picons databases.
16038 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
16041 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
16042 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
16047 @subsubsection Hard Picons
16055 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
16056 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
16057 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
16058 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
16059 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
16064 @item gnus-picons-database
16065 @vindex gnus-picons-database
16066 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
16067 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
16068 subdirectories. This is only useful if
16069 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
16070 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
16072 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
16073 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
16074 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
16075 engine is @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
16076 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
16077 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
16078 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
16080 @item gnus-picons-display-where
16081 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
16082 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
16083 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
16084 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
16085 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
16086 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
16087 routines---@pxref{Windows Configuration}.
16089 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
16090 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
16091 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
16096 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
16097 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
16099 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
16100 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
16103 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
16105 @item gnus-article-display-picons
16106 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
16107 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
16108 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
16110 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
16111 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
16112 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
16118 @node Picon Useless Configuration
16119 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
16127 The following variables offer further control over how things are
16128 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
16129 don't need to worry about.
16133 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
16134 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
16135 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
16136 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
16138 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
16139 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
16140 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
16141 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
16143 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
16144 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
16145 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
16146 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
16147 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
16149 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
16150 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
16151 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
16152 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
16153 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
16154 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
16155 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
16157 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
16158 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
16159 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
16160 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
16162 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
16163 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
16164 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
16165 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
16166 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
16167 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
16168 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
16170 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
16171 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
16172 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
16173 Defaults to @code{nil}.
16175 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
16176 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
16177 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
16178 Defaults to @code{t}.
16180 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
16181 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
16182 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
16183 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
16185 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
16186 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
16187 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
16189 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
16190 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
16191 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
16192 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
16194 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
16195 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the defailt.
16197 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
16198 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
16199 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
16200 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
16201 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
16202 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
16203 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
16204 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
16215 @subsection Smileys
16220 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/BigFace.ps,height=20cm}}
16225 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
16226 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
16228 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
16229 @file{.gnus.el} file:
16232 (setq gnus-treat-display-smiley t)
16235 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
16236 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
16237 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
16238 text and maps that to file names.
16240 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
16241 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
16242 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
16243 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
16244 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
16245 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
16247 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
16248 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
16250 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
16251 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
16252 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
16254 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
16255 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
16259 @item smiley-data-directory
16260 @vindex smiley-data-directory
16261 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
16263 @item smiley-flesh-color
16264 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
16265 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
16267 @item smiley-features-color
16268 @vindex smiley-features-color
16269 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
16271 @item smiley-tongue-color
16272 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
16273 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
16275 @item smiley-circle-color
16276 @vindex smiley-circle-color
16277 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
16279 @item smiley-mouse-face
16280 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
16281 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
16287 @subsection Toolbar
16297 @item gnus-use-toolbar
16298 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
16299 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
16300 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
16301 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
16303 @item gnus-group-toolbar
16304 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
16305 The toolbar in the group buffer.
16307 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
16308 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
16309 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
16311 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
16312 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
16313 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
16319 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
16322 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
16323 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
16324 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
16325 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
16326 unusual directory structure.
16328 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
16329 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
16330 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
16331 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
16333 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
16334 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
16335 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
16336 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
16337 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
16338 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
16340 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
16341 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
16342 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
16356 @node Fuzzy Matching
16357 @section Fuzzy Matching
16358 @cindex fuzzy matching
16360 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
16361 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
16363 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
16364 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
16365 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
16367 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
16368 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
16369 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
16370 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
16371 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
16374 @node Thwarting Email Spam
16375 @section Thwarting Email Spam
16379 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
16381 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
16382 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
16383 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
16384 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
16385 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
16386 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
16387 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
16388 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
16391 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
16392 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
16393 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
16394 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
16395 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
16396 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
16400 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
16401 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
16403 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
16404 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
16405 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
16406 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
16407 sysadm whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
16408 part of the mail address.)
16411 (setq message-default-news-headers
16412 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
16415 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
16416 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
16421 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
16422 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
16423 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
16429 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
16430 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
16431 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
16432 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
16434 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
16435 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
16436 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
16437 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
16438 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
16439 your fancy split rule in this way:
16444 (to "larsi" "misc")
16448 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
16449 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
16450 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
16451 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
16452 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
16454 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
16455 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
16456 at @* @file{<URL:http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html>}.
16457 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
16458 cosmic balance somewhat.
16460 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
16461 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
16462 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
16463 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
16466 @node Various Various
16467 @section Various Various
16473 @item gnus-home-directory
16474 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
16475 defaults to @file{~/}.
16477 @item gnus-directory
16478 @vindex gnus-directory
16479 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
16480 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
16481 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
16483 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
16484 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
16485 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
16486 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
16488 @item gnus-default-directory
16489 @vindex gnus-default-directory
16490 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
16491 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
16492 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
16493 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
16494 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
16495 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
16498 @vindex gnus-verbose
16499 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
16500 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
16501 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
16502 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
16503 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
16505 @item gnus-verbose-backends
16506 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
16507 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
16508 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
16510 @item nnheader-max-head-length
16511 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
16512 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
16513 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
16514 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
16515 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
16516 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
16517 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
16518 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
16519 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
16521 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
16522 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
16523 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
16524 read when doing the operation described above.
16526 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
16527 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
16529 @cindex invalid characters in file names
16530 @cindex characters in file names
16531 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
16532 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
16533 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
16536 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
16540 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
16541 Windows (phooey) systems.
16543 @item gnus-hidden-properties
16544 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
16545 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
16546 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
16547 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
16549 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
16550 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
16551 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
16552 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
16553 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
16555 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
16556 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
16557 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
16566 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
16567 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
16569 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
16571 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
16577 Not because of victories @*
16580 but for the common sunshine,@*
16582 the largess of the spring.
16586 but for the day's work done@*
16587 as well as I was able;@*
16588 not for a seat upon the dais@*
16589 but at the common table.@*
16594 @chapter Appendices
16597 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
16598 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
16599 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
16600 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
16601 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
16602 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
16603 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
16611 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
16612 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
16614 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage, you
16615 can point your (feh!) web browser to
16616 @file{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/}. This is also the primary
16617 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is known
16618 as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
16620 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
16621 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
16622 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
16623 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
16624 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
16625 appropriate name, don't you think?)
16627 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
16628 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
16629 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
16630 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
16632 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
16633 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
16634 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
16636 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
16637 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
16639 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
16640 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
16642 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37
16643 releases. If was released as ``Gnus 5.6 on March 8th 1998.
16645 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
16646 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'' --
16647 don't panic. Don't let it know that you're frightened. Back away.
16648 Slowly. Whatever you do, don't run. Walk away, calmly, until you're
16649 out of its reach. Find a proper released version of Gnus and snuggle up
16653 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
16654 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
16655 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
16656 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
16657 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
16658 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
16659 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
16660 * Newest Features:: Features so new that they haven't been written yet.
16667 What's the point of Gnus?
16669 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
16670 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
16671 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
16672 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
16673 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
16674 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
16675 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
16676 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
16677 keep track of millions of people who post?
16679 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
16680 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
16681 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
16682 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
16683 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
16684 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
16685 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
16686 every one of you to explore and invent.
16688 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
16689 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
16692 @node Compatibility
16693 @subsection Compatibility
16695 @cindex compatibility
16696 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
16697 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
16698 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
16703 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
16707 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
16710 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
16713 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
16714 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
16715 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
16716 important variables have their values copied into their global
16717 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
16718 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
16720 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
16721 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
16722 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
16723 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
16724 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
16728 @cindex highlighting
16729 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
16730 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
16731 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
16732 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
16733 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
16734 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
16737 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
16738 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
16739 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
16740 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
16742 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
16743 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
16744 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
16745 to stop doing it the old way.
16747 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
16749 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
16751 @cindex reporting bugs
16753 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
16754 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
16755 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
16757 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
16758 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
16759 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
16760 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
16765 @subsection Conformity
16767 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
16768 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
16775 There are no known breaches of this standard.
16779 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
16781 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
16782 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
16783 We do have some breaches to this one.
16789 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
16790 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
16791 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
16792 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
16793 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
16798 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
16799 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
16800 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
16801 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
16805 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
16806 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
16811 @subsection Emacsen
16817 Gnus should work on :
16825 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
16829 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
16830 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
16833 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
16834 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
16835 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
16839 @node Gnus Development
16840 @subsection Gnus Development
16842 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
16843 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
16844 propose changes and new features, post patches and new backends. This
16845 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
16846 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
16847 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
16848 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
16849 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
16851 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
16852 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
16853 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
16854 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
16855 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
16858 @vindex nnmail-delete-incoming
16859 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
16860 In particular, @code{nnmail-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
16861 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
16862 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
16864 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
16865 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
16866 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
16867 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
16868 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
16869 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
16870 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
16871 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
16872 usually keep up with these rapid changes, whille people on the newsgroup
16873 can't be assumed to do so.
16878 @subsection Contributors
16879 @cindex contributors
16881 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
16882 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
16883 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
16884 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
16885 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
16886 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
16887 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
16888 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
16889 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
16890 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
16892 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
16898 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
16901 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
16902 well as numerous other things).
16905 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
16908 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
16911 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el and many other things
16912 connected with @sc{mime} and other types of en/decoding.
16915 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
16916 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
16919 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
16922 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
16923 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
16926 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
16929 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
16932 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
16935 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
16938 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
16939 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
16942 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
16945 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
16948 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
16951 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
16955 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
16958 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
16961 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
16964 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
16965 well as autoconf support.
16969 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
16970 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
16972 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
16981 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
16985 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
16995 Alexei V. Barantsev,
17010 Massimo Campostrini,
17015 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
17016 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
17020 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
17023 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
17029 Michael Welsh Duggan,
17034 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
17038 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
17046 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
17048 Michelangelo Grigni,
17052 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
17054 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
17056 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
17063 François Felix Ingrand,
17064 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c ?
17065 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
17067 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
17078 Peter Skov Knudsen,
17079 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
17081 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
17082 Thor Kristoffersen,
17085 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
17103 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
17104 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
17111 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
17116 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
17120 John McClary Prevost,
17126 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
17131 Christian von Roques,
17134 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
17141 Philippe Schnoebelen,
17143 Randal L. Schwartz,
17158 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
17163 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
17179 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
17184 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
17185 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
17186 (550kB and counting).
17188 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
17191 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
17192 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
17196 @subsection New Features
17197 @cindex new features
17200 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
17201 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.3/5.3.
17202 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
17203 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
17206 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
17207 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
17208 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
17212 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
17214 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
17219 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
17220 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
17223 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
17224 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
17227 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
17230 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
17231 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
17232 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
17235 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
17236 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
17237 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
17238 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
17241 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
17242 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
17245 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
17246 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
17247 (@pxref{The Active File}).
17250 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
17251 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
17254 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
17255 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
17256 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
17259 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
17260 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
17261 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
17264 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
17265 the @file{.emacs} file.
17268 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
17269 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
17272 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
17273 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
17276 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
17277 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
17280 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
17281 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
17284 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
17285 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
17288 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
17291 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
17292 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
17295 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
17296 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
17299 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
17300 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
17303 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
17306 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
17307 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
17310 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
17314 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
17318 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
17319 configuration (@pxref{Windows Configuration}).
17322 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
17328 @node September Gnus
17329 @subsubsection September Gnus
17333 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/september.ps,height=20cm}}
17337 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
17342 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
17343 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
17347 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
17348 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
17352 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
17356 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
17357 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
17360 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
17364 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
17367 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
17370 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
17373 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
17377 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
17378 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
17381 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
17385 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
17389 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
17393 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
17397 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
17400 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
17401 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
17404 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
17408 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
17409 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
17412 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
17415 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
17416 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
17417 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
17420 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
17424 The Gnus cache is much faster.
17427 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
17431 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
17432 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
17435 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
17436 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
17439 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
17440 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
17443 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
17444 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
17445 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
17448 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
17449 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
17452 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
17455 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
17458 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
17461 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
17464 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
17465 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
17468 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Windows
17472 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
17475 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}}
17480 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
17483 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
17487 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
17490 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
17494 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
17497 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
17500 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
17501 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
17504 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
17505 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
17509 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
17510 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
17513 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
17517 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
17518 buffer to allow easier treatment.
17521 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
17524 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
17528 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
17532 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
17533 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
17536 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
17540 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
17541 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
17544 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
17545 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
17548 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
17552 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
17555 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
17558 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
17564 @subsubsection Red Gnus
17566 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
17570 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/red.ps,height=20cm}}
17577 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
17580 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
17581 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
17584 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
17585 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
17589 Article washing status can be displayed in the
17590 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
17593 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
17596 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
17597 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
17600 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
17604 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
17605 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
17609 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
17610 Server Internals}).
17613 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
17617 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
17620 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
17621 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
17624 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
17625 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
17626 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
17629 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
17630 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
17633 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
17634 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
17637 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
17641 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
17642 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
17645 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
17646 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
17649 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
17653 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
17656 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
17660 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
17661 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
17664 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
17665 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
17668 A new command for reading collections of documents
17669 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
17670 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
17673 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
17677 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the NNTP
17678 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
17681 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
17682 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
17683 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
17686 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
17687 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
17691 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
17695 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
17699 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}}
17704 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
17708 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
17712 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
17713 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
17716 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
17722 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
17724 New features in Gnus 5.6:
17729 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
17730 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
17731 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
17734 The @code{nndraft} backend has returned, but works differently than
17735 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
17736 group, which is created automatically.
17739 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
17743 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
17746 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
17747 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
17750 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
17754 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
17757 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
17758 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
17761 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
17764 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
17765 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
17768 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
17769 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
17772 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
17773 control over simplification.
17776 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
17779 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
17783 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
17786 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
17789 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
17790 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
17791 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
17794 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
17795 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
17798 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
17802 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
17803 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
17806 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
17807 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
17810 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
17814 A history of where mails have been split is available.
17817 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
17820 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
17821 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
17824 A new function for citing in Message has been
17825 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
17828 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
17831 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
17835 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
17836 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
17839 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
17840 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
17843 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} backend.
17846 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
17851 @node Newest Features
17852 @subsection Newest Features
17855 Also known as the @dfn{todo list}. Sure to be implemented before the
17858 Be afraid. Be very afraid.
17860 (That a feature appears in this list doesn't necessarily mean that I've
17861 decided to actually implement it. It just means that I think it sounds
17864 (Yes, this is the actual, up-to-the-second todo list.)
17869 I would like the zombie-page to contain an URL to the source of the
17870 latest version of gnus or some explanation on where to find it.
17873 A way to continue editing the latest Message composition.
17876 http://www.sonicnet.com/feature/ari3/
17879 facep is not declared.
17882 Include a section in the manual on why the number of articles
17883 isn't the same in the group buffer and on the SPC prompt.
17886 Interacting with rmail fcc isn't easy.
17891 <URL:http://www.falch.no/people/pepper/DSSSL-Lite/archives/>
17892 <URL:http://www.eit.com/software/hypermail/hypermail.html>
17893 <URL:http://homer.ncm.com/>
17894 <URL:http://www.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Internet/World_Wide_Web/HTML_Converters/>
17895 http://www.uwsg.indiana.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9610/index.html
17896 <URL:http://union.ncsa.uiuc.edu/HyperNews/get/www/html/converters.html>
17897 http://www.miranova.com/gnus-list/
17902 @samp{^-- } is made into - in LaTeX.
17905 gnus-kill is much slower than it was in GNUS 4.1.3.
17908 when expunging articles on low score, the sparse nodes keep hanging on?
17910 starting the first time seems to hang Gnus on some systems. Does
17911 NEWGROUPS answer too fast?
17913 nndir doesn't read gzipped files.
17915 FAQ doesn't have an up node?
17917 when moving mail from a procmail spool to the crash-box,
17918 the crash-box is only appropriate to one specific group.
17920 `t' `t' makes X-Faces disappear.
17922 nnmh-be-safe means that crossposted articles will
17923 be marked as unread.
17925 Orphan score entries don't show on "V t" score trace
17927 when clearing out data, the cache data should also be reset.
17929 rewrite gnus-summary-limit-children to be non-recursive
17930 to avoid exceeding lisp nesting on huge groups.
17932 expunged articles are counted when computing scores.
17934 implement gnus-batch-brew-soup
17936 ticked articles aren't easy to read in pick mode -- `n' and
17937 stuff just skips past them. Read articles are the same.
17939 topics that contain just groups with ticked
17940 articles aren't displayed.
17942 nndoc should always allocate unique Message-IDs.
17944 If there are mail groups the first time you use Gnus, Gnus'll
17945 make the mail groups killed.
17947 no "no news is good news" when using topics.
17949 when doing crosspost marking, the cache has to be consulted
17950 and articles have to be removed.
17952 nnweb should fetch complete articles when they are split into several
17955 scoring on head immediate doesn't work.
17957 finding short score file names takes forever.
17959 canceling articles in foreign groups.
17961 nntp-open-rlogin no longer works.
17963 C-u C-x C-s (Summary) switches to the group buffer.
17965 move nnmail-split-history out to the backends.
17967 nnweb doesn't work properly.
17969 using a virtual server name as `gnus-select-method' doesn't work?
17971 when killing/yanking a group from one topic to another in a slave, the
17972 master will yank it first to one topic and then add it to another.
17976 warn user about `=' redirection of a group in the active file?
17978 take over the XEmacs menubar and offer a toggle between the XEmacs
17979 bar and the Gnus bar.
17982 push active file and NOV file parsing down into C code.
17983 `(canonize-message-id id)'
17984 `(mail-parent-message-id references n)'
17985 `(parse-news-nov-line &optional dependency-hashtb)'
17986 `(parse-news-nov-region beg end &optional dependency-hashtb fullp)'
17987 `(parse-news-active-region beg end hashtb)'
17992 nnml .overview directory with splits.
17996 postponed commands.
17998 the selected article show have its Subject displayed in its summary line.
18000 when entering groups, get the real number of unread articles from
18003 sort after gathering threads -- make false roots have the
18004 headers of the oldest orphan with a 0 article number?
18006 nndoc groups should inherit the score files of their parents? Also
18007 inherit copy prompts and save files.
18009 command to start up Gnus (if not running) and enter a mail mode buffer.
18011 allow editing the group description from the group buffer
18012 for backends that support that.
18014 gnus-hide,show-all-topics
18016 groups and sub-topics should be allowed to mingle inside each topic,
18017 and not just list all subtopics at the end.
18019 a command to remove all read articles that are not needed to connect
18020 threads -- `gnus-summary-limit-to-sparse-unread'?
18022 a variable to turn off limiting/cutting of threads in the tree buffer.
18024 a variable to limit how many files are uudecoded.
18026 add zombie groups to a special "New Groups" topic.
18028 server mode command: close/open all connections
18030 put a file date in gnus-score-alist and check whether the file
18031 has been changed before using it.
18033 on exit from a digest group, go to the next article in the parent group.
18035 hide (sub)threads with low score.
18037 when expiring, remove all marks from expired articles.
18039 gnus-summary-limit-to-body
18041 a regexp alist that says what level groups are to be subscribed
18042 on. Eg. -- `(("nnml:" . 1))'.
18044 easier interface to nnkiboze to create ephemeral groups that
18045 contain groups that match a regexp.
18047 allow newlines in <URL:> urls, but remove them before using
18050 If there is no From line, the mail backends should fudge one from the
18053 fuzzy simplifying should strip all non-alpha-numerical info
18054 from subject lines.
18056 gnus-soup-brew-soup-with-high-scores.
18058 nntp-ping-before-connect
18060 command to check whether NOV is evil. "list overview.fmt".
18062 when entering a group, Gnus should look through the score
18063 files very early for `local' atoms and set those local variables.
18065 message annotations.
18067 topics are always yanked before groups, and that's not good.
18069 (set-extent-property extent 'help-echo "String to display in minibuf")
18070 to display help in the minibuffer on buttons under XEmacs.
18072 allow group line format spec to say how many articles there
18077 `run-with-idle-timer' in gnus-demon.
18079 stop using invisible text properties and start using overlays instead
18081 C-c C-f C-e to add an Expires header.
18083 go from one group to the next; everything is expunged; go to the
18084 next group instead of going to the group buffer.
18086 gnus-renumber-cache -- to renumber the cache using "low" numbers.
18088 record topic changes in the dribble buffer.
18090 `nnfolder-generate-active-file' should look at the folders it
18091 finds and generate proper active ranges.
18093 nneething-look-in-files-for-article-heads variable to control
18094 whether nneething should sniff all files in the directories.
18096 gnus-fetch-article -- start Gnus, enter group, display article
18098 gnus-dont-move-articles-to-same-group variable when respooling.
18100 when messages are crossposted between several auto-expirable groups,
18101 articles aren't properly marked as expirable.
18103 nneething should allow deletion/moving.
18105 TAB on the last button should go to the first button.
18107 if the car of an element in `mail-split-methods' is a function,
18108 and the function returns non-nil, use that as the name of the group(s) to
18111 command for listing all score files that have been applied.
18113 a command in the article buffer to return to `summary' config.
18115 `gnus-always-post-using-current-server' -- variable to override
18116 `C-c C-c' when posting.
18118 nnmail-group-spool-alist -- says where each group should use
18121 when an article is crossposted to an auto-expirable group, the article
18122 should be marker as expirable.
18124 article mode command/menu for "send region as URL to browser".
18126 on errors, jump to info nodes that explain the error. For instance,
18127 on invalid From headers, or on error messages from the nntp server.
18129 when gathering threads, make the article that has no "Re: " the parent.
18130 Also consult Date headers.
18132 a token in splits to call shrink-window-if-larger-than-buffer
18134 `1 0 A M' to do matches on the active hashtb.
18136 duplicates -- command to remove Gnus-Warning header, use the read
18137 Message-ID, delete the "original".
18139 when replying to several messages at once, put the "other" message-ids
18140 into a See-Also header.
18142 support setext: URL:http://www.bsdi.com/setext/
18144 support ProleText: <URL:http://proletext.clari.net/prole/proletext.html>
18146 when browsing a foreign server, the groups that are already subscribed
18147 should be listed as such and not as "K".
18149 generate font names dynamically.
18151 score file mode auto-alist.
18153 allow nndoc to change/add/delete things from documents. Implement
18154 methods for each format for adding an article to the document.
18156 `gnus-fetch-old-headers' `all' value to incorporate
18157 absolutely all headers there is.
18159 function like `|', but concatenate all marked articles
18160 and pipe them to the process.
18162 cache the list of killed (or active) groups in a separate file. Update
18163 the file whenever we read the active file or the list
18164 of killed groups in the .eld file reaches a certain length.
18166 function for starting to edit a file to put into
18167 the current mail group.
18169 score-find-trace should display the total score of the article.
18171 "ghettozie" -- score on Xref header and nix it out after using it
18172 to avoid marking as read in other groups it has been crossposted to.
18174 look at procmail splitting. The backends should create
18175 the groups automatically if a spool file exists for that group.
18177 function for backends to register themselves with Gnus.
18179 when replying to several process-marked articles,
18180 have all the From end up in Cc headers? Variable to toggle.
18182 command to delete a crossposted mail article from all
18183 groups it has been mailed to.
18185 `B c' and `B m' should be crosspost aware.
18187 hide-pgp should also hide PGP public key blocks.
18189 Command in the group buffer to respool process-marked groups.
18191 `gnus-summary-find-matching' should accept
18192 pseudo-"headers" like "body", "head" and "all"
18194 When buttifying <URL: > things, all white space (including
18195 newlines) should be ignored.
18197 Process-marking all groups in a topic should process-mark
18198 groups in subtopics as well.
18200 Add non-native groups to the list of killed groups when killing them.
18202 nntp-suggest-kewl-config to probe the nntp server and suggest
18205 add edit and forward secondary marks.
18207 nnml shouldn't visit its .overview files.
18209 allow customizing sorting within gathered threads.
18211 `B q' shouldn't select the current article.
18213 nnmbox should support a newsgroups file for descriptions.
18215 allow fetching mail from several pop servers.
18217 Be able to specify whether the saving commands save the original
18218 or the formatted article.
18220 a command to reparent with the child process-marked (cf. `T ^'.).
18222 I think the possibility to send a password with nntp-open-rlogin
18223 should be a feature in Red Gnus.
18225 The `Z n' command should be possible to execute from a mouse click.
18227 more limiting functions -- date, etc.
18229 be able to limit on a random header; on body; using reverse matches.
18231 a group parameter (`absofucking-total-expiry') that will make Gnus expire
18232 even unread articles.
18234 a command to print the article buffer as postscript.
18236 variable to disable password fetching when opening by nntp-open-telnet.
18238 manual: more example servers -- nntp with rlogin, telnet
18240 checking for bogus groups should clean topic alists as well.
18242 canceling articles in foreign groups.
18244 article number in folded topics isn't properly updated by
18247 Movement in the group buffer to the next unread group should go to the
18248 next closed topic with unread messages if no group can be found.
18250 Extensive info pages generated on the fly with help everywhere --
18251 in the "*Gnus edit*" buffers, for instance.
18253 Topic movement commands -- like thread movement. Up, down, forward, next.
18255 a way to tick/mark as read Gcc'd articles.
18257 a way to say that all groups within a specific topic comes
18258 from a particular server? Hm.
18260 `gnus-article-fill-if-long-lines' -- a function to fill
18261 the article buffer if there are any looong lines there.
18263 `T h' should jump to the parent topic and fold it.
18265 a command to create an ephemeral nndoc group out of a file,
18266 and then splitting it/moving it to some other group/backend.
18268 a group parameter for nnkiboze groups that says that
18269 all kibozed articles should be entered into the cache.
18271 It should also probably be possible to delimit what
18272 `gnus-jog-cache' does -- for instance, work on just some groups, or on
18273 some levels, and entering just articles that have a score higher than
18276 nnfolder should append to the folder instead of re-writing
18277 the entire folder to disk when accepting new messages.
18279 allow all backends to do the proper thing with .gz files.
18281 a backend for reading collections of babyl files nnbabylfolder?
18283 a command for making the native groups into foreign groups.
18285 server mode command for clearing read marks from all groups
18288 when following up multiple articles, include all To, Cc, etc headers
18291 a command for deciding what the total score of the current
18292 thread is. Also a way to highlight based on this.
18294 command to show and edit group scores
18296 a gnus-tree-minimize-horizontal to minimize tree buffers
18299 command to generate nnml overview file for one group.
18301 `C-u C-u a' -- prompt for many crossposted groups.
18303 keep track of which mail groups have received new articles (in this session).
18304 Be able to generate a report and perhaps do some marking in the group
18307 gnus-build-sparse-threads to a number -- build only sparse threads
18308 that are of that length.
18310 have nnmh respect mh's unseen sequence in .mh_profile.
18312 cache the newsgroups descriptions locally.
18314 asynchronous posting under nntp.
18316 be able to control word adaptive scoring from the score files.
18318 a variable to make `C-c C-c' post using the "current" select method.
18320 `limit-exclude-low-scored-articles'.
18322 if `gnus-summary-show-thread' is a number, hide threads that have
18323 a score lower than this number.
18325 split newsgroup subscription variable up into "order" and "method".
18327 buttonize ange-ftp file names.
18329 a command to make a duplicate copy of the current article
18330 so that each copy can be edited separately.
18332 nnweb should allow fetching from the local nntp server.
18334 record the sorting done in the summary buffer so that
18335 it can be repeated when limiting/regenerating the buffer.
18337 nnml-generate-nov-databses should generate for
18340 when the user does commands in the group buffer, check
18341 the modification time of the .newsrc.eld file and use
18342 ask-user-about-supersession-threat. Also warn when trying
18343 to save .newsrc.eld and it has changed.
18345 M-g on a topic will display all groups with 0 articles in
18348 command to remove all topic stuff.
18350 allow exploding incoming digests when reading incoming mail
18351 and splitting the resulting digests.
18353 nnsoup shouldn't set the `message-' variables.
18355 command to nix out all nnoo state information.
18357 nnmail-process-alist that calls functions if group names
18358 matches an alist -- before saving.
18360 use buffer-invisibility-spec everywhere for hiding text.
18362 variable to activate each group before entering them
18363 to get the (new) number of articles. `gnus-activate-before-entering'.
18365 command to fetch a Message-ID from any buffer, even
18366 starting Gnus first if necessary.
18368 when posting and checking whether a group exists or not, just
18369 ask the nntp server instead of relying on the active hashtb.
18371 buttonize the output of `C-c C-a' in an apropos-like way.
18373 `G p' should understand process/prefix, and allow editing
18374 of several groups at once.
18376 command to create an ephemeral nnvirtual group that
18377 matches some regexp(s).
18379 nndoc should understand "Content-Type: message/rfc822" forwarded messages.
18381 it should be possible to score "thread" on the From header.
18383 hitting RET on a "gnus-uu-archive" pseudo article should unpack it.
18385 `B i' should display the article at once in the summary buffer.
18387 remove the "*" mark at once when unticking an article.
18389 `M-s' should highlight the matching text.
18391 when checking for duplicated mails, use Resent-Message-ID if present.
18393 killing and yanking groups in topics should be better. If killing one copy
18394 of a group that exists in multiple topics, only that copy should
18395 be removed. Yanking should insert the copy, and yanking topics
18396 should be possible to be interspersed with the other yankings.
18398 command for enter a group just to read the cached articles. A way to say
18399 "ignore the nntp connection; just read from the cache."
18401 `X u' should decode base64 articles.
18403 a way to hide all "inner" cited text, leaving just the most
18404 recently cited text.
18406 nnvirtual should be asynchronous.
18408 after editing an article, gnus-original-article-buffer should
18411 there should probably be a way to make Gnus not connect to the
18412 server and just read the articles in the server
18414 allow a `set-default' (or something) to change the default
18415 value of nnoo variables.
18417 a command to import group infos from a .newsrc.eld file.
18419 groups from secondary servers have the entire select method
18420 listed in each group info.
18422 a command for just switching from the summary buffer to the group
18425 a way to specify that some incoming mail washing functions
18426 should only be applied to some groups.
18428 Message `C-f C-t' should ask the user whether to heed
18429 mail-copies-to: never.
18431 new group parameter -- `post-to-server' that says to post
18432 using the current server. Also a variable to do the same.
18434 the slave dribble files should auto-save to the slave file names.
18436 a group parameter that says what articles to display on group entry, based
18439 a way to visually distinguish slave Gnusae from masters. (Whip instead
18442 Use DJ Bernstein "From " quoting/dequoting, where applicable.
18444 Why is hide-citation-maybe and hide-citation different? Also
18447 group user-defined meta-parameters.
18451 From: John Griffith <griffith@@sfs.nphil.uni-tuebingen.de>
18453 I like the option for trying to retrieve the FAQ for a group and I was
18454 thinking it would be great if for those newsgroups that had archives
18455 you could also try to read the archive for that group. Part of the
18456 problem is that archives are spread all over the net, unlike FAQs.
18457 What would be best I suppose is to find the one closest to your site.
18459 In any case, there is a list of general news group archives at @*
18460 ftp://ftp.neosoft.com/pub/users/claird/news.lists/newsgroup_archives.html
18467 From: Jason L Tibbitts III <tibbs@@hpc.uh.edu>
18468 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
18470 (gnus-group-add-parameter group
18471 (cons 'gnus-group-date-last-entered (list (current-time-string))))))
18473 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
18474 "Return the date the group was last read."
18475 (cond ((car (gnus-group-get-parameter gnus-tmp-group 'gnus-group-date-last-entered)))
18480 tanken var at når du bruker `gnus-startup-file' som prefix (FOO) til å lete
18481 opp en fil FOO-SERVER, FOO-SERVER.el, FOO-SERVER.eld, kan du la den være en
18482 liste hvor du bruker hvert element i listen som FOO, istedet. da kunne man
18483 hatt forskjellige serveres startup-filer forskjellige steder.
18487 LMI> Well, nnbabyl could alter the group info to heed labels like
18488 LMI> answered and read, I guess.
18490 It could also keep them updated (the same for the Status: header of
18493 They could be used like this:
18497 `M l <name> RET' add label <name> to current message.
18498 `M u <name> RET' remove label <name> from current message.
18499 `/ l <expr> RET' limit summary buffer according to <expr>.
18501 <expr> would be a boolean expression on the labels, e.g.
18503 `/ l bug & !fixed RET'
18506 would show all the messages which are labeled `bug' but not labeled
18509 One could also imagine the labels being used for highlighting, or
18510 affect the summary line format.
18514 Sender: abraham@@dina.kvl.dk
18516 I'd like a gnus-find-file which work like find file, except that it
18517 would recognize things that looks like messages or folders:
18519 - If it is a directory containing numbered files, create an nndir
18522 - For other directories, create a nneething summary buffer.
18524 - For files matching "\\`From ", create a nndoc/mbox summary.
18526 - For files matching "\\`BABYL OPTIONS:", create a nndoc/baby summary.
18528 - For files matching "\\`[^ \t\n]+:", create an *Article* buffer.
18530 - For other files, just find them normally.
18532 I'd like `nneething' to use this function, so it would work on a
18533 directory potentially containing mboxes or babyl files.
18536 Please send a mail to bwarsaw@@cnri.reston.va.us (Barry A. Warsaw) and
18537 tell him what you are doing.
18540 Currently, I get prompted:
18544 decend into sci.something ?
18548 The problem above is that since there is really only one subsection of
18549 science, shouldn't it prompt you for only descending sci.something? If
18550 there was a sci.somethingelse group or section, then it should prompt
18551 for sci? first the sci.something? then sci.somethingelse?...
18554 Ja, det burde være en måte å si slikt. Kanskje en ny variabel?
18555 `gnus-use-few-score-files'? SÃ¥ kunne score-regler legges til den
18556 "mest" lokale score-fila. F. eks. ville no-gruppene betjenes av
18557 "no.all.SCORE", osv.
18560 What i want is for Gnus to treat any sequence or combination of the following
18561 as a single spoiler warning and hide it all, replacing it with a "Next Page"
18567 more than n blank lines
18569 more than m identical lines
18570 (which should be replaced with button to show them)
18572 any whitespace surrounding any of the above
18576 Well, we could allow a new value to `gnus-thread-ignore-subject' --
18577 `spaces', or something. (We could even default to that.) And then
18578 subjects that differ in white space only could be considered the
18579 "same" subject for threading purposes.
18582 Modes to preprocess the contents (e.g. jka-compr) use the second form
18583 "(REGEXP FUNCTION NON-NIL)" while ordinary modes (e.g. tex) use the first
18584 form "(REGEXP . FUNCTION)", so you could use it to distinguish between
18585 those two types of modes. (auto-modes-alist, insert-file-contents-literally.)
18588 Under XEmacs -- do funny article marks:
18591 soup - bowl of soup
18592 score below - dim light bulb
18593 score over - bright light bulb
18596 Yes. I think the algorithm is as follows:
18601 show-list-of-articles-in-group
18602 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
18603 if (no-more-articles-in-group-to-select)
18604 if (articles-selected)
18605 start-reading-selected-articles;
18606 junk-unread-articles;
18611 else if (key-pressed = '.')
18612 if (consolidated-menus) # same as hide-thread in Gnus
18613 select-thread-under-cursor;
18615 select-article-under-cursor;
18619 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
18620 if (more-pages-in-article)
18622 else if (more-selected-articles-to-read)
18629 My precise need here would have been to limit files to Incoming*.
18630 One could think of some `nneething-only-files' variable, but I guess
18631 it would have been unacceptable if one was using many unrelated such
18634 A more useful approach would be to, in response to the `G D' prompt, be
18635 allowed to say something like: `~/.mail/Incoming*', somewhat limiting
18636 the top-level directory only (in case directories would be matched by
18637 the wildcard expression).
18640 It would be nice if it also handled
18642 <URL:news://sunsite.auc.dk/>
18644 which should correspond to `B nntp RET sunsite.auc.dk' in *Group*.
18649 Take a look at w3-menu.el in the Emacs-W3 distribution - this works out
18650 really well. Each menu is 'named' by a symbol that would be on a
18651 gnus-*-menus (where * would be whatever, but at least group, summary, and
18652 article versions) variable.
18654 So for gnus-summary-menus, I would set to '(sort mark dispose ...)
18656 A value of '1' would just put _all_ the menus in a single 'GNUS' menu in
18657 the main menubar. This approach works really well for Emacs-W3 and VM.
18661 nndoc should take care to create unique Message-IDs for all its
18664 gnus-score-followup-article only works when you have a summary buffer
18665 active. Make it work when posting from the group buffer as well.
18666 (message-sent-hook).
18668 rewrite gnus-demon to use run-with-idle-timers.
18671 * Enhancements to Gnus:
18675 * gnus-servers (gnus-start-server-buffer?)--enters Gnus and goes
18676 straight to the server buffer, without opening any connections to
18679 * gnus-server-read-server-newsrc--produces a buffer very similar to
18680 the group buffer, but with only groups from that server listed;
18681 quitting this buffer returns to the server buffer.
18684 add a command to check the integrity of an nnfolder folder --
18685 go through the article numbers and see that there are no duplicates,
18689 `unsmileyfy-buffer' to undo smileification.
18692 a command to give all relevant info on an article, including all
18696 when doing `-request-accept-article', the backends should do
18697 the nnmail duplicate checking.
18700 allow `message-signature-file' to be a function to return the
18701 value of the signature file.
18704 In addition, I would love it if I could configure message-tab so that it
18705 could call `bbdb-complete-name' in other headers. So, some sort of
18708 (setq message-tab-alist
18709 '((message-header-regexp message-expand-group)
18710 ("^\\(To\\|[cC]c\\|[bB]cc\\)" bbdb-complete-name)))
18712 then you could run the relevant function to complete the information in
18716 cache the newsgroups file locally to avoid reloading it all the time.
18719 a command to import a buffer into a group.
18722 nnweb should allow fetching by Message-ID from servers.
18725 point in the article buffer doesn't always go to the
18726 beginning of the buffer when selecting new articles.
18729 a command to process mark all unread articles.
18732 `gnus-gather-threads-by-references-and-subject' -- first
18733 do gathering by references, and then go through the dummy roots and
18734 do more gathering by subject.
18737 gnus-uu-mark-in-numerical-order -- process mark articles in
18738 article numerical order.
18741 (gnus-thread-total-score
18742 (gnus-id-to-thread (mail-header-id (gnus-summary-article-header))))
18746 sorting by score is wrong when using sparse threads.
18749 a command to fetch an arbitrary article -- without having to be
18750 in the summary buffer.
18753 a new nncvs backend. Each group would show an article, using
18754 version branches as threading, checkin date as the date, etc.
18757 http://www.dejanews.com/forms/dnsetfilter_exp.html ?
18758 This filter allows one to construct advance queries on the Dejanews
18759 database such as specifying start and end dates, subject, author,
18760 and/or newsgroup name.
18763 new Date header scoring type -- older, newer
18766 use the summary toolbar in the article buffer.
18769 a command to fetch all articles that are less than X days old.
18772 in pick mode, `q' should save the list of selected articles in the
18773 group info. The next time the group is selected, these articles
18774 will automatically get the process mark.
18777 Isn't it possible to (also?) allow M-^ to automatically try the
18778 default server if it fails on the current server? (controlled by a
18779 user variable, (nil, t, 'ask)).
18782 make it possible to cancel articles using the select method for the
18786 `gnus-summary-select-article-on-entry' or something. It'll default
18787 to t and will select whatever article decided by `gnus-auto-select-first'.
18790 a new variable to control which selection commands should be unselecting.
18791 `first', `best', `next', `prev', `next-unread', `prev-unread' are
18795 be able to select groups that have no articles in them
18796 to be able to post in them (using the current select method).
18799 be able to post via DejaNews.
18802 `x' should retain any sortings that have been performed.
18805 allow the user to specify the precedence of the secondary marks. Also
18806 allow them to be displayed separately.
18809 gnus-summary-save-in-pipe should concatenate the results from
18810 the processes when doing a process marked pipe.
18813 a new match type, like Followup, but which adds Thread matches on all
18814 articles that match a certain From header.
18817 a function that can be read from kill-emacs-query-functions to offer
18818 saving living summary buffers.
18821 a function for selecting a particular group which will contain
18822 the articles listed in a list of article numbers/id's.
18825 a battery of character translation functions to translate common
18826 Mac, MS (etc) characters into ISO 8859-1.
18829 (defun article-fix-m$word ()
18830 "Fix M$Word smartquotes in an article."
18833 (let ((buffer-read-only nil))
18834 (goto-char (point-min))
18835 (while (search-forward "\221" nil t)
18836 (replace-match "`" t t))
18837 (goto-char (point-min))
18838 (while (search-forward "\222" nil t)
18839 (replace-match "'" t t))
18840 (goto-char (point-min))
18841 (while (search-forward "\223" nil t)
18842 (replace-match "\"" t t))
18843 (goto-char (point-min))
18844 (while (search-forward "\224" nil t)
18845 (replace-match "\"" t t)))))
18850 (add-hook 'gnus-exit-query-functions
18852 (if (and (file-exists-p nnmail-spool-file)
18853 (> (nnheader-file-size nnmail-spool-file) 0))
18854 (yes-or-no-p "New mail has arrived. Quit Gnus anyways? ")
18855 (y-or-n-p "Are you sure you want to quit Gnus? "))))
18859 allow message-default-headers to be a function.
18862 new Date score match types -- < > = (etc) that take floating point
18863 numbers and match on the age of the article.
18867 > > > If so, I've got one gripe: It seems that when I fire up gnus 5.2.25
18868 > > > under xemacs-19.14, it's creating a new frame, but is erasing the
18869 > > > buffer in the frame that it was called from =:-O
18871 > > Hm. How do you start up Gnus? From the toolbar or with
18872 > > `M-x gnus-other-frame'?
18874 > I normally start it up from the toolbar; at
18875 > least that's the way I've caught it doing the
18880 all commands that react to the process mark should push
18881 the current process mark set onto the stack.
18884 gnus-article-hide-pgp
18885 Selv ville jeg nok ha valgt å slette den dersom teksten matcher
18887 "\\(This\s+\\)?[^ ]+ has been automatically signed by"
18889 og det er maks hundre tegn mellom match-end og ----linja. Men -det-
18890 er min type heuristikk og langt fra alles.
18893 `gnus-subscribe-sorted' -- insert new groups where they would have been
18894 sorted to if `gnus-group-sort-function' were run.
18897 gnus-(group,summary)-highlight should respect any `face' text props set
18901 use run-with-idle-timer for gnus-demon instead of the
18902 home-brewed stuff for better reliability.
18905 add a way to select which NoCeM type to apply -- spam, troll, etc.
18908 nndraft-request-group should tally auto-save files.
18911 implement nntp-retry-on-break and nntp-command-timeout.
18914 gnus-article-highlight-limit that says when not to highlight (long)
18918 (nnoo-set SERVER VARIABLE VALUE)
18924 interrupitng agent fetching of articles should save articles.
18927 command to open a digest group, and copy all the articles there to the
18931 a variable to disable article body highlights if there's more than
18932 X characters in the body.
18935 handle 480/381 authinfo requests separately.
18938 include the texi/dir file in the distribution.
18941 format spec to "tab" to a position.
18944 Move all prompting to the new `M-n' default style.
18947 command to display all dormant articles.
18950 gnus-auto-select-next makeover -- list of things it should do.
18953 a score match type that adds scores matching on From if From has replied
18954 to something someone else has said.
18957 Read Netscape discussion groups:
18958 snews://secnews.netscape.com/netscape.communicator.unix
18961 One command to edit the original version if an article, and one to edit
18962 the displayed version.
18965 @kbd{T v} -- make all process-marked articles the children of the
18969 Switch from initial text to the new default text mechanism.
18972 How about making it possible to expire local articles? Will it be
18973 possible to make various constraints on when an article can be
18974 expired, e.g. (read), (age > 14 days), or the more interesting (read
18978 New limit command---limit to articles that have a certain string
18979 in the head or body.
18982 Allow breaking lengthy NNTP commands.
18985 gnus-article-highlight-limit, to disable highlighting in big articles.
18988 Editing an article should put the article to be edited
18989 in a special, unique buffer.
18992 A command to send a mail to the admin-address group param.
18995 A Date scoring type that will match if the article
18996 is less than a certain number of days old.
18999 New spec: %~(tab 56) to put point on column 56
19002 Allow Gnus Agent scoring to use normal score files.
19005 Rething the Agent active file thing. `M-g' doesn't update the active
19006 file, for instance.
19009 With dummy roots, `^' and then selecing the first article
19010 in any other dummy thread will make Gnus highlight the
19011 dummy root instead of the first article.
19014 Propagate all group properties (marks, article numbers, etc) up to the
19015 topics for displaying.
19018 `n' in the group buffer with topics should go to the next group
19019 with unread articles, even if that group is hidden in a topic.
19022 gnus-posting-styles doesn't work in drafts.
19025 gnus-summary-limit-include-cached is slow when there are
19026 many articles in the cache, since it regenerates big parts of the
19027 summary buffer for each article.
19030 Implement gnus-batch-brew-soup.
19033 Group parameters and summary commands for un/subscribing to mailing
19037 Introduce nnmail-home-directory.
19040 gnus-fetch-group and friends should exit Gnus when the user
19044 The jingle is only played on the second invocation of Gnus.
19047 Bouncing articles should do MIME.
19050 Crossposted articles should "inherit" the % or @ mark from the other
19051 groups it has been crossposted to, or something. (Agent.)
19054 `S D r' should allow expansion of aliases.
19057 If point is on a group that appears multiple times in topics, and
19058 you press `l', point will move to the first instance of the group.
19061 Fetch by Message-ID from dejanews.
19063 <URL:http://search.dejanews.com/msgid.xp?MID=%3C62h9l9$hm4@@basement.replay.com%3E&fmt=raw>
19066 A spec for the group line format to display the number of
19067 agent-downloaded articles in the group.
19070 Some nntp servers never respond when posting, so there should be a
19071 timeout for all commands.
19074 When stading on a topic line and `t'-ing, point goes to the last line.
19075 It should go somewhere else.
19078 I'm having trouble accessing a newsgroup with a "+" in its name with
19079 Gnus. There is a new newsgroup on msnews.microsoft.com named
19080 "microsoft.public.multimedia.directx.html+time" that I'm trying to
19082 "nntp+msnews.microsoft.com:microsoft.public.multimedia.directx.html+time"
19083 but it gives an error that it cant access the group.
19085 Is the "+" character illegal in newsgroup names? Is there any way in
19086 Gnus to work around this? (gnus 5.6.45 - XEmacs 20.4)
19093 Subject: Answer to your mails 01.01.1999-01.05.1999
19094 --text follows this line--
19095 Sorry I killfiled you...
19097 Under the subject "foo", you wrote on 01.01.1999:
19099 Under the subject "foo1", you wrote on 01.01.1999:
19104 Allow "orphan" scores in the Agent scoring.
19108 - Edit article's summary line.
19110 - Sort lines in buffer by subject
19112 --> the old subject line appears in Summary buffer, not the one that was
19117 Solve the halting problem.
19126 @section The Manual
19130 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
19131 either @code{texi2dvi}
19133 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
19134 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
19136 to get what you hold in your hands now.
19138 The following conventions have been used:
19143 This is a @samp{string}
19146 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
19149 This is a @file{file}
19152 This is a @code{symbol}
19156 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
19160 (setq flargnoze "yes")
19163 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
19166 (setq flumphel 'yes)
19169 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
19170 ever get them confused.
19174 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
19175 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
19176 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
19177 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
19178 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
19179 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
19180 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
19188 @section Terminology
19190 @cindex terminology
19195 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
19196 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
19197 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
19198 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
19199 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
19203 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
19204 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
19205 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
19206 not posting, and replying is not following up.
19210 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
19214 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
19219 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
19220 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
19221 is all done by the backends.
19225 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
19226 default, way of getting news.
19230 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
19231 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary backends for getting
19236 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
19237 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
19241 A message that has been posted as news.
19244 @cindex mail message
19245 A message that has been mailed.
19249 A mail message or news article
19253 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
19258 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
19263 A line from the head of an article.
19267 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
19268 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
19272 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
19273 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
19274 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
19275 normal @sc{head} format.
19279 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
19280 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
19281 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
19282 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
19283 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
19284 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
19286 @item killed groups
19287 @cindex killed groups
19288 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
19289 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
19291 @item zombie groups
19292 @cindex zombie groups
19293 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
19296 @cindex active file
19297 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
19298 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
19299 is rather large, as you might surmise.
19302 @cindex bogus groups
19303 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
19304 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
19305 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
19308 @cindex activating groups
19309 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
19310 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
19311 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
19315 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
19317 @item select method
19318 @cindex select method
19319 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
19322 @item virtual server
19323 @cindex virtual server
19324 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
19325 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
19326 whole is a virtual server.
19330 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
19331 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
19334 @item ephemeral groups
19335 @cindex ephemeral groups
19336 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
19337 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
19338 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
19341 @cindex solid groups
19342 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
19343 group buffer are solid groups.
19345 @item sparse articles
19346 @cindex sparse articles
19347 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
19348 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
19352 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
19353 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
19357 @cindex thread root
19358 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
19359 articles in the thread.
19363 An article that has responses.
19367 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
19371 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
19372 specified by RFC1153.
19378 @node Customization
19379 @section Customization
19380 @cindex general customization
19382 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
19383 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
19384 for some quite common situations.
19387 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
19388 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
19389 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
19390 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
19394 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
19395 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
19397 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
19398 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
19399 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
19403 @item gnus-read-active-file
19404 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
19405 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
19406 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
19407 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
19408 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
19410 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
19411 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
19412 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
19413 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
19417 @node Slow Terminal Connection
19418 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
19420 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
19421 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
19422 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
19426 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
19427 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
19428 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
19429 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
19430 horizontal and vertical recentering.
19432 @item gnus-visible-headers
19433 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
19434 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
19435 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
19436 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
19438 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
19440 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
19441 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
19442 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
19445 @item gnus-use-full-window
19446 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
19447 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
19448 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
19449 want to read them anyway.
19451 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
19452 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
19455 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
19456 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
19457 lines, which might save some time.
19461 @node Little Disk Space
19462 @subsection Little Disk Space
19465 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
19466 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
19470 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
19471 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
19472 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
19473 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
19476 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
19477 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
19478 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
19479 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
19482 @item gnus-save-killed-list
19483 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
19484 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
19485 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
19486 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
19492 @subsection Slow Machine
19493 @cindex slow machine
19495 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
19496 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
19498 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
19499 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
19501 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
19502 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
19503 summary buffer faster.
19507 @node Troubleshooting
19508 @section Troubleshooting
19509 @cindex troubleshooting
19511 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
19519 Make sure your computer is switched on.
19522 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
19523 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
19527 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
19528 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
19529 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
19530 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
19533 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
19537 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
19538 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
19539 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
19540 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
19541 something like that.
19544 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
19547 @cindex reporting bugs
19549 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
19551 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
19552 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
19553 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
19554 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
19556 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
19557 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
19558 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
19559 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
19562 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
19563 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
19564 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
19565 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
19566 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
19567 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
19569 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
19570 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
19571 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
19574 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
19575 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
19577 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
19578 @cindex ding mailing list
19579 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
19580 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
19584 @node Gnus Reference Guide
19585 @section Gnus Reference Guide
19587 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
19588 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
19589 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
19590 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
19593 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
19594 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
19595 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
19596 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
19597 and general methods of operation.
19600 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
19601 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
19602 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
19603 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
19604 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
19605 * Group Info:: The group info format.
19606 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
19607 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
19608 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
19612 @node Gnus Utility Functions
19613 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
19614 @cindex Gnus utility functions
19615 @cindex utility functions
19617 @cindex internal variables
19619 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
19620 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
19621 Below is a list of the most common ones.
19625 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
19626 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
19627 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
19629 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
19630 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
19631 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
19633 @item gnus-group-real-name
19634 @findex gnus-group-real-name
19635 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
19638 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
19639 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
19640 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
19641 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
19643 @item gnus-get-info
19644 @findex gnus-get-info
19645 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
19647 @item gnus-group-unread
19648 @findex gnus-group-unread
19649 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
19653 @findex gnus-active
19654 The active entry for @var{group}.
19656 @item gnus-set-active
19657 @findex gnus-set-active
19658 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
19660 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
19661 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
19662 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
19665 @item gnus-continuum-version
19666 @findex gnus-continuum-version
19667 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
19668 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
19671 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
19672 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
19673 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
19675 @item gnus-news-group-p
19676 @findex gnus-news-group-p
19677 Says whether @var{group} came from a news backend.
19679 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
19680 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
19681 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
19683 @item gnus-server-to-method
19684 @findex gnus-server-to-method
19685 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
19687 @item gnus-server-equal
19688 @findex gnus-server-equal
19689 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
19691 @item gnus-group-native-p
19692 @findex gnus-group-native-p
19693 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
19695 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
19696 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
19697 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
19699 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
19700 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
19701 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
19703 @item group-group-find-parameter
19704 @findex group-group-find-parameter
19705 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
19706 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
19708 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
19709 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
19710 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
19712 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
19713 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
19714 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
19716 @item gnus-check-backend-function
19717 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
19718 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the backend
19719 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
19722 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
19726 @item gnus-read-method
19727 @findex gnus-read-method
19728 Prompts the user for a select method.
19733 @node Backend Interface
19734 @subsection Backend Interface
19736 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
19737 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
19738 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
19739 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
19740 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
19741 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
19743 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
19744 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
19745 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
19746 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
19747 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
19748 been opened, the function should fail.
19750 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
19751 name. Take this example:
19755 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
19756 (nntp-port-number 4324))
19759 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
19760 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
19762 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
19763 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
19764 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
19766 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
19767 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
19768 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
19770 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
19771 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
19772 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
19773 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
19774 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
19775 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
19778 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
19779 some might be said not to be. The latter are backends that generally
19780 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
19781 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
19784 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
19787 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
19790 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
19791 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
19792 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
19793 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
19794 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
19795 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
19799 @node Required Backend Functions
19800 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
19804 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
19806 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
19807 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
19808 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
19809 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
19811 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
19812 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
19813 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
19814 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
19816 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
19817 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
19818 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
19819 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
19820 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
19821 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
19822 number, do maximum fetches.
19824 Here's an example HEAD:
19827 221 1056 Article retrieved.
19828 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
19829 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
19830 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
19831 Subject: Re: Something very droll
19832 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
19833 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
19835 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
19836 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
19837 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
19841 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
19842 these in the data buffer.
19844 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
19848 head = error / valid-head
19849 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
19850 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
19851 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
19852 header = <text> eol
19855 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
19856 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
19860 nov-buffer = *nov-line
19861 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
19862 field = <text except TAB>
19865 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
19869 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
19871 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
19872 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
19874 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
19875 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
19876 server. In fact, it should do so.
19878 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
19879 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
19882 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
19884 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
19885 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
19888 There should be no data returned.
19891 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
19893 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
19894 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
19895 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
19896 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
19898 There should be no data returned.
19901 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
19903 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
19904 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
19905 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
19906 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
19908 There should be no data returned.
19911 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
19913 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
19915 There should be no data returned.
19918 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
19920 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
19921 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
19922 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
19923 it would be nice if that were possible.
19925 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
19926 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
19927 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
19928 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
19929 into its article buffer.
19931 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
19932 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
19933 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
19934 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
19935 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
19936 on successful article retrieval.
19939 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
19941 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
19942 making @var{group} the current group.
19944 If @var{FAST}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
19947 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
19950 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
19953 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
19954 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
19955 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
19956 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
19957 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
19958 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
19959 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
19960 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
19963 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
19964 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
19965 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
19969 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
19971 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
19972 a no-op on most backends.
19974 There should be no data returned.
19977 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
19979 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
19982 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
19985 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
19986 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
19989 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
19990 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
19993 active-file = *active-line
19994 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
19996 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
19999 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
20000 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
20001 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
20004 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
20006 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
20007 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
20008 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
20009 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
20010 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
20011 clear if the posting could not be completed.
20013 There should be no result data from this function.
20018 @node Optional Backend Functions
20019 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
20023 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
20025 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
20026 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
20027 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
20029 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
20030 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
20031 former is in the same format as the data from
20032 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
20033 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
20036 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
20040 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
20042 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
20043 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
20044 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
20045 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
20046 should return the (altered) group info.
20048 There should be no result data from this function.
20051 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
20053 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
20054 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
20055 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
20056 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
20057 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
20058 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
20059 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
20060 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
20062 There should be no result data from this function.
20065 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
20067 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
20068 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
20069 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some backends (such as IMAP) however carry all
20070 information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to propagate
20071 the mark information to the server.
20073 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
20076 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
20079 Range is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. Action is
20080 @code{set}, @code{add} or @code{del}, respectively used for removing all
20081 existing marks and setting them as specified, adding (preserving the
20082 marks not mentioned) mark and removing (preserving the marks not
20083 mentioned) marks. Mark is a list of marks; where each mark is a
20084 symbol. Currently used marks are @code{read}, @code{tick}, @code{reply},
20085 @code{expire}, @code{killed}, @code{dormant}, @code{save},
20086 @code{download} and @code{unsend}, but your backend should, if possible,
20087 not limit itself to theese.
20089 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
20090 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
20091 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
20092 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
20094 An example action list:
20097 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
20098 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
20099 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
20102 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
20103 mark on (currently not used for anything).
20105 There should be no result data from this function.
20107 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
20109 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
20110 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
20111 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
20112 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
20113 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
20115 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
20116 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
20117 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
20120 There should be no result data from this function.
20123 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
20125 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
20126 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
20127 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
20128 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
20129 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
20130 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
20131 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
20133 There should be no result data from this function.
20136 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
20138 The result data from this function should be a description of
20142 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
20144 description = <text>
20147 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
20149 The result data from this function should be the description of all
20150 groups available on the server.
20153 description-buffer = *description-line
20157 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
20159 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
20160 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
20161 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
20164 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
20166 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
20168 There should be no return data.
20171 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
20173 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
20174 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
20175 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
20176 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
20177 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
20180 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
20183 There should be no result data returned.
20186 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
20189 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
20190 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
20192 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
20193 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
20194 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
20195 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
20196 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
20197 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
20199 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
20200 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
20203 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
20204 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
20206 There should be no data returned.
20209 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
20211 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
20212 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
20213 this function in short order.
20215 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
20216 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
20218 There should be no data returned.
20221 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
20223 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
20224 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
20226 There should be no data returned.
20229 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
20231 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
20232 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
20233 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
20235 There should be no data returned.
20238 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
20240 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
20241 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
20243 There should be no data returned.
20248 @node Error Messaging
20249 @subsubsection Error Messaging
20251 @findex nnheader-report
20252 @findex nnheader-get-report
20253 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
20254 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
20255 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
20256 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
20257 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
20258 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
20261 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
20263 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
20266 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
20267 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
20268 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
20269 takes one argument---the server symbol.
20271 Internally, these functions access @var{backend}@code{-status-string},
20272 so the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
20273 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
20276 @node Writing New Backends
20277 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
20279 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
20280 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
20281 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
20282 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
20283 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
20286 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
20287 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
20288 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
20290 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
20291 package called @code{nnoo}.
20293 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
20294 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
20300 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
20301 parameters. For instance:
20304 (nnoo-declare nndir
20308 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
20309 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
20312 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
20313 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
20314 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
20316 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
20317 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
20318 a function in those backends.
20321 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
20322 "Where nndir will look for groups."
20323 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
20326 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
20327 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
20328 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
20330 @item nnoo-define-basics
20331 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
20335 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
20339 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
20340 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
20341 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
20343 @item nnoo-map-functions
20344 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
20345 functions from the parent backends.
20348 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
20349 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
20350 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
20353 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
20354 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
20355 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
20356 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
20359 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
20360 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
20361 haven't already been defined.
20367 nnmh-request-newgroups)
20371 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
20372 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
20373 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
20378 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
20381 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
20382 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
20386 (require 'nnheader)
20390 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
20392 (nnoo-declare nndir
20395 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
20396 "Where nndir will look for groups."
20397 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
20399 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
20400 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
20403 (defvoo nndir-current-group "" nil nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
20404 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
20405 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
20407 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
20408 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
20410 ;;; Interface functions.
20412 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
20414 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
20415 (setq nndir-directory
20416 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
20418 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
20419 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
20420 (push `(nndir-current-group
20421 ,(file-name-nondirectory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
20423 (push `(nndir-top-directory
20424 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
20426 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
20428 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
20429 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
20430 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
20431 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
20432 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
20436 nnmh-status-message
20438 nnmh-request-newgroups))
20444 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
20445 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
20447 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
20448 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
20449 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
20450 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
20452 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
20453 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
20458 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
20461 The abilities can be:
20465 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
20467 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
20469 This backend supports both mail and news.
20471 This is neither a post nor mail backend---it's something completely
20474 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
20475 articles and groups.
20477 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
20478 true for almost all backends.
20479 @item prompt-address
20480 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
20481 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
20482 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
20486 @node Mail-like Backends
20487 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
20489 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
20490 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
20491 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
20492 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
20495 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
20496 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
20497 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
20500 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
20501 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
20504 This function takes four parameters.
20508 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
20511 @item exit-function
20512 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
20514 @item temp-directory
20515 Where the temporary files should be stored.
20518 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
20519 performed for one group only.
20522 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
20523 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
20524 find the article number assigned to this article.
20526 The function also uses the following variables:
20527 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
20528 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
20529 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
20530 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
20534 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
20535 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
20539 @node Score File Syntax
20540 @subsection Score File Syntax
20542 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
20543 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
20544 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
20546 Here's a typical score file:
20550 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
20557 BNF definition of a score file:
20560 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
20561 element = rule / atom
20562 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
20563 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
20564 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
20565 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
20567 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
20568 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
20569 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
20570 date-header = "date"
20571 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
20572 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
20573 score = "nil" / <integer>
20574 date = "nil" / <natural number>
20575 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
20576 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
20577 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
20578 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
20579 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
20580 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
20581 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
20582 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
20583 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
20584 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
20585 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
20586 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
20587 exclude-files / read-only / touched
20588 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
20589 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
20590 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
20591 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
20592 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
20593 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
20594 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
20595 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
20596 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
20597 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
20598 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
20599 eval = "eval" space <form>
20600 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
20603 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
20606 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
20607 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
20608 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
20609 one looong line, then that's ok.
20611 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
20612 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
20616 @subsection Headers
20618 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
20619 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
20620 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
20621 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
20623 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
20624 RFC1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
20625 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
20626 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
20627 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
20628 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
20629 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
20631 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
20632 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
20633 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
20634 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
20635 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
20637 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
20638 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
20644 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
20645 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
20647 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
20648 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
20649 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
20650 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
20652 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
20656 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
20659 is transformed into
20662 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
20665 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
20666 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
20669 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
20672 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
20673 is slightly tricky:
20676 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
20682 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
20685 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
20691 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
20698 and is equal to the previous range.
20700 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
20701 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
20702 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
20706 range = simple-range / normal-range
20707 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
20708 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
20709 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
20710 number *[ " " contents ]
20713 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
20714 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
20715 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
20716 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
20717 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
20722 @subsection Group Info
20724 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
20725 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
20726 describes the group.
20728 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
20729 second is a more complex one:
20732 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
20734 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
20735 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
20737 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
20740 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
20741 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
20742 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
20743 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
20744 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
20745 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
20746 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
20747 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
20748 this section is about.
20750 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
20751 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
20752 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
20754 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
20757 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
20758 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
20759 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
20760 group = quote <string> quote
20761 ralevel = rank / level
20762 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
20763 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
20764 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
20766 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
20767 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
20768 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
20769 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
20772 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
20773 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
20776 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
20777 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
20780 @item gnus-info-group
20781 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
20782 @findex gnus-info-group
20783 @findex gnus-info-set-group
20784 Get/set the group name.
20786 @item gnus-info-rank
20787 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
20788 @findex gnus-info-rank
20789 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
20790 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
20792 @item gnus-info-level
20793 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
20794 @findex gnus-info-level
20795 @findex gnus-info-set-level
20796 Get/set the group level.
20798 @item gnus-info-score
20799 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
20800 @findex gnus-info-score
20801 @findex gnus-info-set-score
20802 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
20804 @item gnus-info-read
20805 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
20806 @findex gnus-info-read
20807 @findex gnus-info-set-read
20808 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
20810 @item gnus-info-marks
20811 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
20812 @findex gnus-info-marks
20813 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
20814 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
20816 @item gnus-info-method
20817 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
20818 @findex gnus-info-method
20819 @findex gnus-info-set-method
20820 Get/set the group select method.
20822 @item gnus-info-params
20823 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
20824 @findex gnus-info-params
20825 @findex gnus-info-set-params
20826 Get/set the group parameters.
20829 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
20830 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
20832 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
20833 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
20834 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
20835 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
20838 @node Extended Interactive
20839 @subsection Extended Interactive
20840 @cindex interactive
20841 @findex gnus-interactive
20843 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
20844 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
20845 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
20848 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
20849 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
20854 The best thing to do would have been to implement
20855 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
20856 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
20857 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
20858 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
20859 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
20860 @code{interactive}.
20862 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
20867 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
20868 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
20872 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
20873 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
20874 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
20877 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
20881 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
20885 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
20891 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
20892 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
20896 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
20897 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
20898 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
20900 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
20901 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
20902 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
20903 Gnus, that's very useful.
20905 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
20906 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
20907 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
20908 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
20909 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
20910 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
20911 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
20912 following function:
20915 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
20919 (,function ,@@args))
20923 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
20924 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
20925 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
20928 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
20929 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
20930 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
20932 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
20933 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
20934 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
20937 @node Various File Formats
20938 @subsection Various File Formats
20941 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
20942 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
20946 @node Active File Format
20947 @subsubsection Active File Format
20949 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
20950 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
20953 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
20956 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
20957 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
20958 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
20959 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
20960 no.general 1000 900 y
20963 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
20966 active = *group-line
20967 group-line = group space high-number space low-number space flag <NEWLINE>
20968 group = <non-white-space string>
20970 high-number = <non-negative integer>
20971 low-number = <positive integer>
20972 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
20975 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
20976 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
20979 @node Newsgroups File Format
20980 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
20982 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
20983 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
20984 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
20987 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
20988 Here's the definition:
20992 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
20993 group = <non-white-space string>
20995 description = <string>
21000 @node Emacs for Heathens
21001 @section Emacs for Heathens
21003 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
21004 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
21005 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
21006 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
21007 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
21008 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
21009 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
21013 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
21014 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
21019 @subsection Keystrokes
21023 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
21026 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
21029 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
21030 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
21031 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
21032 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
21033 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
21034 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
21036 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
21037 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
21038 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
21039 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
21040 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
21041 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
21042 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
21044 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
21045 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
21046 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
21047 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
21048 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
21049 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
21050 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
21052 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
21053 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
21054 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
21055 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
21056 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
21062 @subsection Emacs Lisp
21064 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
21065 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
21066 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
21067 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
21069 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
21070 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
21071 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
21072 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
21073 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
21074 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
21075 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
21078 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
21079 write the following:
21082 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
21085 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
21086 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
21087 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
21090 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
21091 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
21092 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
21093 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
21094 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
21096 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
21097 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
21098 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
21102 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
21106 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
21109 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
21110 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
21113 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
21116 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
21117 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
21120 @include gnus-faq.texi