comparison man/gnus.texi @ 59764:472e5513512f

Revision: [e-mail]--gnu-2005/emacs--cvs-trunk--0--patch-58 Merge from gnus--rel--5.10 Patches applied: * [e-mail]--gnu-2005/gnus--rel--5.10--patch-7 Merge from emacs--cvs-trunk--0 * [e-mail]--gnu-2005/gnus--rel--5.10--patch-8 - [e-mail]--gnu-2005/gnus--rel--5.10--patch-11 Update from CVS 2005-01-28 Katsumi Yamaoka <[e-mail]> * lisp/gnus/gnus-art.el (gnus-article-setup-buffer): Kill and re-create the article buffer when editing of the article is discarded. (gnus-article-prepare): Revert. 2005-01-28 Katsumi Yamaoka <[e-mail]> * lisp/gnus/gnus-art.el (gnus-article-prepare): Remove message-strip-forbidden-properties from the local hook. 2005-01-24 Katsumi Yamaoka <[e-mail]> * lisp/gnus/mml.el (mml-generate-mime-1): Convert string into unibyte when inserting " *mml*" buffer's contents into a unibyte temp buffer. 2005-01-28 Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <[e-mail]> * man/gnus.texi: Some edits based on comments from David Abrahams. 2005-01-24 Katsumi Yamaoka <[e-mail]> * man/gnus.texi (RSS): Fix the keystroke.

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the program.

@end iftex

@menu
* Starting Up::                 Finding news can be a pain.
* Group Buffer::                Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
* Summary Buffer::              Reading, saving and posting articles.
* Article Buffer::              Displaying and handling articles.
* Composing Messages::          Information on sending mail and news.
* Select Methods::              Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
* Scoring::                     Assigning values to articles.
* Various::                     General purpose settings.
* The End::                     Farewell and goodbye.
* Appendices::                  Terminology, Emacs intro, @acronym{FAQ}, History, Internals.
* Index::                       Variable, function and concept index.
* Key Index::                   Key Index.

Other related manuals

* Message:(message).            Composing messages.
* Emacs-MIME:(emacs-mime).      Composing messages; @acronym{MIME}-specific parts.
* Sieve:(sieve).                Managing Sieve scripts in Emacs.
* PGG:(pgg).                    @acronym{PGP/MIME} with Gnus.

@detailmenu
 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---

Starting Gnus

If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).

@menu
* Finding the News::            Choosing a method for getting news.
* The First Time::              What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
* The Server is Down::          How can I read my mail then?
* Slave Gnusae::                You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
* Fetching a Group::            Starting Gnus just to read a group.
* New Groups::                  What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
* Changing Servers::            You may want to move from one server to another.
* Startup Files::               Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
* Auto Save::                   Recovering from a crash.
* The Active File::             Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
* Startup Variables::           Other variables you might change.
@end menu


@node Finding the News
@section Finding the News

(setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
@end lisp

If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
certainly be much faster.  But do not use the local spool if your
server is running Leafnode; in this case, use @code{(nntp "localhost")}.

@vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
@cindex NNTPSERVER
@cindex @acronym{NNTP} server
If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the

@node The First Time
@section The First Time
@cindex first time usage

If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
be subscribed by default.

@vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
killed.  Your system administrator should have set this variable to

slave starts, you may be prompted as to whether to read an auto-save
file.  If you answer ``yes'', the unsaved changes to the master will be
incorporated into the slave.  If you answer ``no'', the slave may see some
messages as unread that have been read in the master.

@node Fetching a Group
@section Fetching a Group
@cindex fetching a group

@findex gnus-fetch-group
It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''.  This is
perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
It takes the group name as a parameter.


@node New Groups
@section New Groups
@cindex new groups

@cindex startup files
@cindex .newsrc
@cindex .newsrc.el
@cindex .newsrc.eld

Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file.  All subscription
information is traditionally stored in this file.

Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}.  In addition to
keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
@file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
the @file{.newsrc} file.  (Actually, it also duplicated everything in

@code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
Gnus.  But hey, who would want to, right?  Similarly, setting
@code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
@file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.

@vindex gnus-save-killed-list
If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file.  This will
save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk).  It

@kindex G R (Summary)
Use @kbd{G R} from the summary buffer to subscribe to a feed---you
will be prompted for the location of the feed.

An easy way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something like
the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET y}, then
subscribe to groups.

The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:

@table @code

* Daemons::                     Gnus can do things behind your back.
* NoCeM::                       How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
* Undo::                        Some actions can be undone.
* Predicate Specifiers::        Specifying predicates.
* Moderation::                  What to do if you're a moderator.
* Image Enhancements::          Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
* Fuzzy Matching::              What's the big fuzz?
* Thwarting Email Spam::        A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
* Other modes::                 Interaction with other modes.
* Various Various::             Things that are really various.

@lisp
(setq gnus-moderated-list
      "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
@end lisp


@node Image Enhancements
@section Image Enhancements

@cindex activating groups
The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.

@item server
@cindex server
A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.

@item select method

59764:472e5513512f

the program.

@end iftex

@menu
* Starting Up::              Finding news can be a pain.
* Group Buffer::             Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
* Summary Buffer::           Reading, saving and posting articles.
* Article Buffer::           Displaying and handling articles.
* Composing Messages::       Information on sending mail and news.
* Select Methods::           Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
* Scoring::                  Assigning values to articles.
* Various::                  General purpose settings.
* The End::                  Farewell and goodbye.
* Appendices::               Terminology, Emacs intro, @acronym{FAQ}, History, Internals.
* Index::                    Variable, function and concept index.
* Key Index::                Key Index.

Other related manuals

* Message:(message).         Composing messages.
* Emacs-MIME:(emacs-mime).   Composing messages; @acronym{MIME}-specific parts.
* Sieve:(sieve).             Managing Sieve scripts in Emacs.
* PGG:(pgg).                 @acronym{PGP/MIME} with Gnus.

@detailmenu
 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---

Starting Gnus

If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).

@menu
* Finding the News::      Choosing a method for getting news.
* The First Time::        What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
* The Server is Down::    How can I read my mail then?
* Slave Gnusae::          You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
* New Groups::            What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
* Changing Servers::      You may want to move from one server to another.
* Startup Files::         Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
* Auto Save::             Recovering from a crash.
* The Active File::       Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
* Startup Variables::     Other variables you might change.
@end menu


@node Finding the News
@section Finding the News

(setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
@end lisp

If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
certainly be much faster.  But do not use the local spool if your
server is running Leafnode (which is a simple, standalone private news
server); in this case, use @code{(nntp "localhost")}.

@vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
@cindex NNTPSERVER
@cindex @acronym{NNTP} server
If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the

@node The First Time
@section The First Time
@cindex first time usage

If no startup files exist (@pxref{Startup Files}), Gnus will try to
determine what groups should be subscribed by default.

@vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
killed.  Your system administrator should have set this variable to

slave starts, you may be prompted as to whether to read an auto-save
file.  If you answer ``yes'', the unsaved changes to the master will be
incorporated into the slave.  If you answer ``no'', the slave may see some
messages as unread that have been read in the master.



@node New Groups
@section New Groups
@cindex new groups

@cindex startup files
@cindex .newsrc
@cindex .newsrc.el
@cindex .newsrc.eld

Most common Unix news readers use a shared startup file called
@file{.newsrc}.  This file contains all the information about what
groups are subscribed, and which articles in these groups have been
read. 

Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}.  In addition to
keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
@file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
the @file{.newsrc} file.  (Actually, it also duplicated everything in

@code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
Gnus.  But hey, who would want to, right?  Similarly, setting
@code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
@file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which can be
convenient if you use a different news reader occasionally, and you
want to read a different subset of the available groups with that
news reader.

@vindex gnus-save-killed-list
If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file.  This will
save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk).  It

@kindex G R (Summary)
Use @kbd{G R} from the summary buffer to subscribe to a feed---you
will be prompted for the location of the feed.

An easy way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something like
the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET RET y}, then
subscribe to groups.

The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:

@table @code

* Daemons::                     Gnus can do things behind your back.
* NoCeM::                       How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
* Undo::                        Some actions can be undone.
* Predicate Specifiers::        Specifying predicates.
* Moderation::                  What to do if you're a moderator.
* Fetching a Group::            Starting Gnus just to read a group.
* Image Enhancements::          Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
* Fuzzy Matching::              What's the big fuzz?
* Thwarting Email Spam::        A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
* Other modes::                 Interaction with other modes.
* Various Various::             Things that are really various.

@lisp
(setq gnus-moderated-list
      "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
@end lisp


@node Fetching a Group
@section Fetching a Group
@cindex fetching a group

@findex gnus-fetch-group
It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''.  This is
perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
It takes the group name as a parameter.


@node Image Enhancements
@section Image Enhancements

@cindex activating groups
The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.

@item spool
@cindex spool
News servers store their articles locally in one fashion or other.
One old-fashioned storage method is to have just one file per
article.  That's called a ``traditional spool''.

@item server
@cindex server
A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.

@item select method