@c This is part of the Emacs manual.@c Copyright (C) 1985,86,87,93,94,95,1997,2001 Free Software Foundation, Inc.@c See file emacs.texi for copying conditions.@node Rmail, Dired, Sending Mail, Top@chapter Reading Mail with Rmail@cindex Rmail@cindex reading mail@findex rmail@findex rmail-mode@vindex rmail-mode-hook Rmail is an Emacs subsystem for reading and disposing of mail that youreceive. Rmail stores mail messages in files called Rmail files.Reading the message in an Rmail file is done in a special major mode,Rmail mode, which redefines most letters to run commands for managingmail. The command @code{rmail-mode} is used to switch into Rmail mode,and it runs the hook @code{rmail-mode-hook} as usual, but don't run thiscommand by hand; it can't do a reasonable job unless the buffer isvisiting a proper Rmail file.@menu* Basic: Rmail Basics. Basic concepts of Rmail, and simple use.* Scroll: Rmail Scrolling. Scrolling through a message.* Motion: Rmail Motion. Moving to another message.* Deletion: Rmail Deletion. Deleting and expunging messages.* Inbox: Rmail Inbox. How mail gets into the Rmail file.* Files: Rmail Files. Using multiple Rmail files.* Output: Rmail Output. Copying message out to files.* Labels: Rmail Labels. Classifying messages by labeling them.* Attrs: Rmail Attributes. Certain standard labels, called attributes.* Reply: Rmail Reply. Sending replies to messages you are viewing.* Summary: Rmail Summary. Summaries show brief info on many messages.* Sort: Rmail Sorting. Sorting messages in Rmail.* Display: Rmail Display. How Rmail displays a message; customization.* Coding: Rmail Coding. How Rmail handles decoding character sets.* Editing: Rmail Editing. Editing message text and headers in Rmail.* Digest: Rmail Digest. Extracting the messages from a digest message.* Out of Rmail:: Converting an Rmail file to mailbox format.* Rot13: Rmail Rot13. Reading messages encoded in the rot13 code.* Movemail: Movemail. More details of fetching new mail.@end menu@node Rmail Basics@section Basic Concepts of Rmail@cindex primary Rmail file@vindex rmail-file-name Using Rmail in the simplest fashion, you have one Rmail file@file{~/RMAIL} in which all of your mail is saved. It is called your@dfn{primary Rmail file}. The command @kbd{M-x rmail} reads your primaryRmail file, merges new mail in from your inboxes, displays the firstmessage you haven't read yet, and lets you begin reading. The variable@code{rmail-file-name} specifies the name of the primary Rmail file. Rmail uses narrowing to hide all but one message in the Rmail file.The message that is shown is called the @dfn{current message}. Rmailmode's special commands can do such things as delete the currentmessage, copy it into another file, send a reply, or move to anothermessage. You can also create multiple Rmail files and use Rmail to movemessages between them.@cindex message number Within the Rmail file, messages are normally arranged sequentially inorder of receipt; you can specify other ways to sort them. Messages areassigned consecutive integers as their @dfn{message numbers}. Thenumber of the current message is displayed in Rmail's mode line,followed by the total number of messages in the file. You can move to amessage by specifying its message number with the @kbd{j} key(@pxref{Rmail Motion}).@kindex s @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-expunge-and-save Following the usual conventions of Emacs, changes in an Rmail filebecome permanent only when the file is saved. You can save it with@kbd{s} (@code{rmail-expunge-and-save}), which also expunges deletedmessages from the file first (@pxref{Rmail Deletion}). To save thefile without expunging, use @kbd{C-x C-s}. Rmail also saves the Rmailfile after merging new mail from an inbox file (@pxref{Rmail Inbox}).@kindex q @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-quit@kindex b @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-bury You can exit Rmail with @kbd{q} (@code{rmail-quit}); this expunges andsaves the Rmail file and then switches to another buffer. But there isno need to ``exit'' formally. If you switch from Rmail to editing inother buffers, and never happen to switch back, you have exited. (TheRmail command @kbd{b}, @code{rmail-bury}, does this for you.) Just makesure to save the Rmail file eventually (like any other file you havechanged). @kbd{C-x s} is a good enough way to do this(@pxref{Saving}).@node Rmail Scrolling@section Scrolling Within a Message When Rmail displays a message that does not fit on the screen, youmust scroll through it to read the rest. You could do this with @kbd{C-v}, @kbd{M-v} and @kbd{M-<}, but in Rmail scrolling is sofrequent that it deserves to be easier to type.@table @kbd@item @key{SPC}Scroll forward (@code{scroll-up}).@item @key{DEL}Scroll backward (@code{scroll-down}).@item .Scroll to start of message (@code{rmail-beginning-of-message}).@end table@kindex SPC @r{(Rmail)}@kindex DEL @r{(Rmail)} Since the most common thing to do while reading a message is to scrollthrough it by screenfuls, Rmail makes @key{SPC} and @key{DEL} synonyms of@kbd{C-v} (@code{scroll-up}) and @kbd{M-v} (@code{scroll-down})@kindex . @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-beginning-of-message The command @kbd{.} (@code{rmail-beginning-of-message}) scrolls back to thebeginning of the selected message. This is not quite the same as @kbd{M-<}:for one thing, it does not set the mark; for another, it resets the bufferboundaries to the current message if you have changed them.@node Rmail Motion@section Moving Among Messages The most basic thing to do with a message is to read it. The way todo this in Rmail is to make the message current. The usual practice isto move sequentially through the file, since this is the order ofreceipt of messages. When you enter Rmail, you are positioned at thefirst message that you have not yet made current (that is, the first onethat has the @samp{unseen} attribute; @pxref{Rmail Attributes}). Moveforward to see the other new messages; move backward to re-examine oldmessages.@table @kbd@item nMove to the next nondeleted message, skipping any intervening deletedmessages (@code{rmail-next-undeleted-message}).@item pMove to the previous nondeleted message(@code{rmail-previous-undeleted-message}).@item M-nMove to the next message, including deleted messages(@code{rmail-next-message}).@item M-pMove to the previous message, including deleted messages(@code{rmail-previous-message}).@item jMove to the first message. With argument @var{n}, move tomessage number @var{n} (@code{rmail-show-message}).@item >Move to the last message (@code{rmail-last-message}).@item <Move to the first message (@code{rmail-first-message}).@item M-s @var{regexp} @key{RET}Move to the next message containing a match for @var{regexp}(@code{rmail-search}).@item - M-s @var{regexp} @key{RET}Move to the previous message containing a match for @var{regexp}.@end table@kindex n @r{(Rmail)}@kindex p @r{(Rmail)}@kindex M-n @r{(Rmail)}@kindex M-p @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-next-undeleted-message@findex rmail-previous-undeleted-message@findex rmail-next-message@findex rmail-previous-message @kbd{n} and @kbd{p} are the usual way of moving among messages inRmail. They move through the messages sequentially, but skip overdeleted messages, which is usually what you want to do. Their commanddefinitions are named @code{rmail-next-undeleted-message} and@code{rmail-previous-undeleted-message}. If you do not want to skipdeleted messages---for example, if you want to move to a message toundelete it---use the variants @kbd{M-n} and @kbd{M-p}(@code{rmail-next-message} and @code{rmail-previous-message}). Anumeric argument to any of these commands serves as a repeatcount.@refill In Rmail, you can specify a numeric argument by typing just thedigits. You don't need to type @kbd{C-u} first.@kindex M-s @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-search@cindex searching in Rmail The @kbd{M-s} (@code{rmail-search}) command is Rmail's version ofsearch. The usual incremental search command @kbd{C-s} works in Rmail,but it searches only within the current message. The purpose of@kbd{M-s} is to search for another message. It reads a regularexpression (@pxref{Regexps}) nonincrementally, then searches starting atthe beginning of the following message for a match. It then selectsthat message. If @var{regexp} is empty, @kbd{M-s} reuses the regexpused the previous time. To search backward in the file for another message, give @kbd{M-s} anegative argument. In Rmail you can do this with @kbd{- M-s}. It is also possible to search for a message based on labels.@xref{Rmail Labels}.@kindex j @r{(Rmail)}@kindex > @r{(Rmail)}@kindex < @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-show-message@findex rmail-last-message@findex rmail-first-message To move to a message specified by absolute message number, use @kbd{j}(@code{rmail-show-message}) with the message number as argument. Withno argument, @kbd{j} selects the first message. @kbd{<}(@code{rmail-first-message}) also selects the first message. @kbd{>}(@code{rmail-last-message}) selects the last message.@node Rmail Deletion@section Deleting Messages@cindex deletion (Rmail) When you no longer need to keep a message, you can @dfn{delete} it. Thisflags it as ignorable, and some Rmail commands pretend it is no longerpresent; but it still has its place in the Rmail file, and still has itsmessage number.@cindex expunging (Rmail) @dfn{Expunging} the Rmail file actually removes the deleted messages.The remaining messages are renumbered consecutively. Expunging is the onlyaction that changes the message number of any message, except forundigestifying (@pxref{Rmail Digest}).@table @kbd@item dDelete the current message, and move to the next nondeleted message(@code{rmail-delete-forward}).@item C-dDelete the current message, and move to the previous nondeletedmessage (@code{rmail-delete-backward}).@item uUndelete the current message, or move back to a deleted message andundelete it (@code{rmail-undelete-previous-message}).@item xExpunge the Rmail file (@code{rmail-expunge}).@end table@kindex d @r{(Rmail)}@kindex C-d @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-delete-forward@findex rmail-delete-backward There are two Rmail commands for deleting messages. Both delete thecurrent message and select another message. @kbd{d}(@code{rmail-delete-forward}) moves to the following message, skippingmessages already deleted, while @kbd{C-d} (@code{rmail-delete-backward})moves to the previous nondeleted message. If there is no nondeletedmessage to move to in the specified direction, the message that was justdeleted remains current. A numeric argument to either command reversesthe direction of motion after deletion.@vindex rmail-delete-message-hook Whenever Rmail deletes a message, it runs the hook@code{rmail-delete-message-hook}. When the hook functions are invoked,the message has been marked deleted, but it is still the current messagein the Rmail buffer.@cindex undeletion (Rmail)@kindex x @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-expunge@kindex u @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-undelete-previous-message To make all the deleted messages finally vanish from the Rmail file,type @kbd{x} (@code{rmail-expunge}). Until you do this, you can still@dfn{undelete} the deleted messages. The undeletion command, @kbd{u}(@code{rmail-undelete-previous-message}), is designed to cancel theeffect of a @kbd{d} command in most cases. It undeletes the currentmessage if the current message is deleted. Otherwise it moves backwardto previous messages until a deleted message is found, and undeletesthat message. You can usually undo a @kbd{d} with a @kbd{u} because the @kbd{u}moves back to and undeletes the message that the @kbd{d} deleted. Butthis does not work when the @kbd{d} skips a few already-deleted messagesthat follow the message being deleted; then the @kbd{u} commandundeletes the last of the messages that were skipped. There is no cleanway to avoid this problem. However, by repeating the @kbd{u} command,you can eventually get back to the message that you intend toundelete. You can also select a particular deleted message withthe @kbd{M-p} command, then type @kbd{u} to undelete it. A deleted message has the @samp{deleted} attribute, and as a result@samp{deleted} appears in the mode line when the current message isdeleted. In fact, deleting or undeleting a message is nothing more thanadding or removing this attribute. @xref{Rmail Attributes}.@node Rmail Inbox@section Rmail Files and Inboxes@cindex inbox file The operating system places incoming mail for you in a file that wecall your @dfn{inbox}. When you start up Rmail, it runs a C programcalled @code{movemail} to copy the new messages from your inbox intoyour primary Rmail file, which also contains other messages saved fromprevious Rmail sessions. It is in this file that you actually read themail with Rmail. This operation is called @dfn{getting new mail}. Youcan get new mail at any time in Rmail by typing @kbd{g}.@vindex rmail-primary-inbox-list@cindex @env{MAIL} environment variable The variable @code{rmail-primary-inbox-list} contains a list of thefiles which are inboxes for your primary Rmail file. If you don't setthis variable explicitly, it is initialized from the @env{MAIL}environment variable, or, as a last resort, set to @code{nil}, whichmeans to use the default inbox. The default inbox is@file{/var/mail/@var{username}}, @file{/usr/spool/mail/@var{username}},or @file{/usr/mail/@var{username}}, depending on your operating system. To see what the default is on your system, use @kbd{C-h vrmail-primary-inbox @key{RET}}. You can specify the inbox file(s) forany Rmail file with the command @code{set-rmail-inbox-list}; see@ref{Rmail Files}. There are two reasons for having separate Rmail files and inboxes.@enumerate@itemThe inbox file format varies between operating systems and according tothe other mail software in use. Only one part of Rmail needs to knowabout the alternatives, and it need only understand how to convert allof them to Rmail's own format.@itemIt is very cumbersome to access an inbox file without danger of losingmail, because it is necessary to interlock with mail delivery.Moreover, different operating systems use different interlockingtechniques. The strategy of moving mail out of the inbox once and forall into a separate Rmail file avoids the need for interlocking in allthe rest of Rmail, since only Rmail operates on the Rmail file.@end enumerate Rmail was written to use Babyl format as its internal format. Sincethen, we have recognized that the usual inbox format on Unix and GNUsystems is adequate for the job, and we plan to change Rmail to use thatas its internal format. However, the Rmail file will still be separatefrom the inbox file, even on systems where their format is the same.@node Rmail Files@section Multiple Rmail Files Rmail operates by default on your @dfn{primary Rmail file}, which is named@file{~/RMAIL} and receives your incoming mail from your system inbox file.But you can also have other Rmail files and edit them with Rmail. Thesefiles can receive mail through their own inboxes, or you can move messagesinto them with explicit Rmail commands (@pxref{Rmail Output}).@table @kbd@item i @var{file} @key{RET}Read @var{file} into Emacs and run Rmail on it (@code{rmail-input}).@item M-x set-rmail-inbox-list @key{RET} @var{files} @key{RET}Specify inbox file names for current Rmail file to get mail from.@item gMerge new mail from current Rmail file's inboxes(@code{rmail-get-new-mail}).@item C-u g @var{file} @key{RET}Merge new mail from inbox file @var{file}.@end table@kindex i @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-input To run Rmail on a file other than your primary Rmail file, you may usethe @kbd{i} (@code{rmail-input}) command in Rmail. This visits the filein Rmail mode. You can use @kbd{M-x rmail-input} even when not inRmail. The file you read with @kbd{i} should normally be a valid Rmail file.If it is not, Rmail tries to decompose it into a stream of messages invarious known formats. If it succeeds, it converts the whole file to anRmail file. If you specify a file name that doesn't exist, @kbd{i}initializes a new buffer for creating a new Rmail file.@vindex rmail-secondary-file-directory@vindex rmail-secondary-file-regexp You can also select an Rmail file from a menu. Choose first the menubar Classify item, then from the Classify menu choose the Input RmailFile item; then choose the Rmail file you want. The variables@code{rmail-secondary-file-directory} and@code{rmail-secondary-file-regexp} specify which files to offer in themenu: the first variable says which directory to find them in; thesecond says which files in that directory to offer (all those that matchthe regular expression). These variables also apply to choosing a filefor output (@pxref{Rmail Output}).@findex set-rmail-inbox-list Each Rmail file can contain a list of inbox file names; you can specifythis list with @kbd{M-x set-rmail-inbox-list @key{RET} @var{files}@key{RET}}. The argument can contain any number of file names, separatedby commas. It can also be empty, which specifies that this file shouldhave no inboxes. Once a list of inboxes is specified, the Rmail fileremembers it permanently until you specify a different list. As a special exception, if your primary Rmail file does not specify anyinbox files, it uses your standard system inbox.@kindex g @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-get-new-mail The @kbd{g} command (@code{rmail-get-new-mail}) merges mail into thecurrent Rmail file from its specified inboxes. If the Rmail filehas no inboxes, @kbd{g} does nothing. The command @kbd{M-x rmail}also merges new mail into your primary Rmail file. To merge mail from a file that is not the usual inbox, give the@kbd{g} key a numeric argument, as in @kbd{C-u g}. Then it reads a filename and merges mail from that file. The inbox file is not deleted orchanged in any way when @kbd{g} with an argument is used. This is,therefore, a general way of merging one file of messages into another.@node Rmail Output@section Copying Messages Out to Files These commands copy messages from an Rmail file into another file.@table @kbd@item o @var{file} @key{RET}Append a copy of the current message to the file @var{file}, using Rmailfile format by default (@code{rmail-output-to-rmail-file}).@item C-o @var{file} @key{RET}Append a copy of the current message to the file @var{file}, usingsystem inbox file format by default (@code{rmail-output}).@item w @var{file} @key{RET}Output just the message body to the file @var{file}, taking the defaultfile name from the message @samp{Subject} header.@end table@kindex o @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-output-to-rmail-file@kindex C-o @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-output The commands @kbd{o} and @kbd{C-o} copy the current message into aspecified file. This file may be an Rmail file or it may be in systeminbox format; the output commands ascertain the file's format and writethe copied message in that format. The @kbd{o} and @kbd{C-o} commands differ in two ways: each has itsown separate default file name, and each specifies a choice of format touse when the file does not already exist. The @kbd{o} command usesRmail format when it creates a new file, while @kbd{C-o} uses systeminbox format for a new file. The default file name for @kbd{o} is thefile name used last with @kbd{o}, and the default file name for@kbd{C-o} is the file name used last with @kbd{C-o}. If the output file is an Rmail file currently visited in an Emacs buffer,the output commands copy the message into that buffer. It is up to youto save the buffer eventually in its file.@kindex w @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-output-body-to-file Sometimes you may receive a message whose body holds the contents of afile. You can save the body to a file (excluding the message header)with the @kbd{w} command (@code{rmail-output-body-to-file}). Oftenthese messages contain the intended file name in the @samp{Subject}field, so the @kbd{w} command uses the @samp{Subject} field as thedefault for the output file name. However, the file name is read usingthe minibuffer, so you can specify a different name if you wish. You can also output a message to an Rmail file chosen with a menu.Choose first the menu bar Classify item, then from the Classify menuchoose the Output Rmail File menu item; then choose the Rmail file you want.This outputs the current message to that file, like the @kbd{o} command.The variables @code{rmail-secondary-file-directory} and@code{rmail-secondary-file-regexp} specify which files to offer in themenu: the first variable says which directory to find them in; thesecond says which files in that directory to offer (all those that matchthe regular expression).@vindex rmail-delete-after-output Copying a message gives the original copy of the message the@samp{filed} attribute, so that @samp{filed} appears in the mode linewhen such a message is current. If you like to keep just a single copyof every mail message, set the variable @code{rmail-delete-after-output}to @code{t}; then the @kbd{o} and @kbd{C-o} commands delete the originalmessage after copying it. (You can undelete the original afterward ifyou wish.) Copying messages into files in system inbox format uses the headerfields that are displayed in Rmail at the time. Thus, if you use the@kbd{t} command to view the entire header and then copy the message, theentire header is copied. @xref{Rmail Display}.@vindex rmail-output-file-alist The variable @code{rmail-output-file-alist} lets you specifyintelligent defaults for the output file, based on the contents of thecurrent message. The value should be a list whose elements have thisform:@example(@var{regexp} . @var{name-exp})@end example@noindentIf there's a match for @var{regexp} in the current message, then thedefault file name for output is @var{name-exp}. If multiple elementsmatch the message, the first matching element decides the default filename. The subexpression @var{name-exp} may be a string constant givingthe file name to use, or more generally it may be any Lisp expressionthat returns a file name as a string. @code{rmail-output-file-alist}applies to both @kbd{o} and @kbd{C-o}.@node Rmail Labels@section Labels@cindex label (Rmail)@cindex attribute (Rmail) Each message can have various @dfn{labels} assigned to it as a meansof classification. Each label has a name; different names are differentlabels. Any given label is either present or absent on a particularmessage. A few label names have standard meanings and are given tomessages automatically by Rmail when appropriate; these special labelsare called @dfn{attributes}.@ifinfo(@xref{Rmail Attributes}.)@end ifinfoAll other labels are assigned only by users.@table @kbd@item a @var{label} @key{RET}Assign the label @var{label} to the current message (@code{rmail-add-label}).@item k @var{label} @key{RET}Remove the label @var{label} from the current message (@code{rmail-kill-label}).@item C-M-n @var{labels} @key{RET}Move to the next message that has one of the labels @var{labels}(@code{rmail-next-labeled-message}).@item C-M-p @var{labels} @key{RET}Move to the previous message that has one of the labels @var{labels}(@code{rmail-previous-labeled-message}).@item C-M-l @var{labels} @key{RET}Make a summary of all messages containing any of the labels @var{labels}(@code{rmail-summary-by-labels}).@end table@kindex a @r{(Rmail)}@kindex k @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-add-label@findex rmail-kill-label The @kbd{a} (@code{rmail-add-label}) and @kbd{k}(@code{rmail-kill-label}) commands allow you to assign or remove anylabel on the current message. If the @var{label} argument is empty, itmeans to assign or remove the same label most recently assigned orremoved. Once you have given messages labels to classify them as you wish, thereare two ways to use the labels: in moving and in summaries.@kindex C-M-n @r{(Rmail)}@kindex C-M-p @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-next-labeled-message@findex rmail-previous-labeled-message The command @kbd{C-M-n @var{labels} @key{RET}}(@code{rmail-next-labeled-message}) moves to the next message that hasone of the labels @var{labels}. The argument @var{labels} specifies oneor more label names, separated by commas. @kbd{C-M-p}(@code{rmail-previous-labeled-message}) is similar, but moves backwardsto previous messages. A numeric argument to either command serves as arepeat count. The command @kbd{C-M-l @var{labels} @key{RET}}(@code{rmail-summary-by-labels}) displays a summary containing only themessages that have at least one of a specified set of labels. Theargument @var{labels} is one or more label names, separated by commas.@xref{Rmail Summary}, for information on summaries.@refill If the @var{labels} argument to @kbd{C-M-n}, @kbd{C-M-p} or@kbd{C-M-l} is empty, it means to use the last set of labels specifiedfor any of these commands.@node Rmail Attributes@section Rmail Attributes Some labels such as @samp{deleted} and @samp{filed} have built-inmeanings and are assigned to or removed from messages automatically atappropriate times; these labels are called @dfn{attributes}. Here is alist of Rmail attributes:@table @samp@item unseenMeans the message has never been current. Assigned to messages whenthey come from an inbox file, and removed when a message is madecurrent. When you start Rmail, it initially shows the first messagethat has this attribute.@item deletedMeans the message is deleted. Assigned by deletion commands andremoved by undeletion commands (@pxref{Rmail Deletion}).@item filedMeans the message has been copied to some other file. Assigned by thefile output commands (@pxref{Rmail Files}).@item answeredMeans you have mailed an answer to the message. Assigned by the @kbd{r}command (@code{rmail-reply}). @xref{Rmail Reply}.@item forwardedMeans you have forwarded the message. Assigned by the @kbd{f} command(@code{rmail-forward}). @xref{Rmail Reply}.@item editedMeans you have edited the text of the message within Rmail.@xref{Rmail Editing}.@item resentMeans you have resent the message. Assigned by the command @kbd{M-xrmail-resend}. @xref{Rmail Reply}.@end table All other labels are assigned or removed only by the user, and have nostandard meaning.@node Rmail Reply@section Sending Replies Rmail has several commands that use Mail mode to send outgoing mail.@xref{Sending Mail}, for information on using Mail mode, includingcertain features meant to work with Rmail. What this section documentsare the special commands of Rmail for entering Mail mode. Note that theusual keys for sending mail---@kbd{C-x m}, @kbd{C-x 4 m}, and @kbd{C-x 5m}---are available in Rmail mode and work just as they usually do.@table @kbd@item mSend a message (@code{rmail-mail}).@item cContinue editing the already started outgoing message (@code{rmail-continue}).@item rSend a reply to the current Rmail message (@code{rmail-reply}).@item fForward the current message to other users (@code{rmail-forward}).@item C-u fResend the current message to other users (@code{rmail-resend}).@item M-mTry sending a bounced message a second time (@code{rmail-retry-failure}).@end table@kindex r @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-reply@cindex reply to a message The most common reason to send a message while in Rmail is to reply tothe message you are reading. To do this, type @kbd{r}(@code{rmail-reply}). This displays the @samp{*mail*} buffer in anotherwindow, much like @kbd{C-x 4 m}, but preinitializes the @samp{Subject},@samp{To}, @samp{CC} and @samp{In-reply-to} header fields based on themessage you are replying to. The @samp{To} field starts out as theaddress of the person who sent the message you received, and the@samp{CC} field starts out with all the other recipients of thatmessage.@vindex rmail-dont-reply-to-names You can exclude certain recipients from being placed automatically inthe @samp{CC}, using the variable @code{rmail-dont-reply-to-names}. Itsvalue should be a regular expression (as a string); any recipient thatthe regular expression matches, is excluded from the @samp{CC} field.The default value matches your own name, and any name starting with@samp{info-}. (Those names are excluded because there is a conventionof using them for large mailing lists to broadcast announcements.) To omit the @samp{CC} field completely for a particular reply, enterthe reply command with a numeric argument: @kbd{C-u r} or @kbd{1 r}. Once the @samp{*mail*} buffer has been initialized, editing andsending the mail goes as usual (@pxref{Sending Mail}). You can edit thepresupplied header fields if they are not right for you. You can alsouse the commands of Mail mode (@pxref{Mail Mode}), including @kbd{C-cC-y} which yanks in the message that you are replying to. You canswitch to the Rmail buffer, select a different message there, switchback, and yank the new current message.@kindex M-m @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-retry-failure@cindex retrying a failed message@vindex rmail-retry-ignored-headers Sometimes a message does not reach its destination. Mailers usuallysend the failed message back to you, enclosed in a @dfn{failuremessage}. The Rmail command @kbd{M-m} (@code{rmail-retry-failure})prepares to send the same message a second time: it sets up a@samp{*mail*} buffer with the same text and header fields as before. Ifyou type @kbd{C-c C-c} right away, you send the message again exactlythe same as the first time. Alternatively, you can edit the text orheaders and then send it. The variable@code{rmail-retry-ignored-headers}, in the same format as@code{rmail-ignored-headers} (@pxref{Rmail Display}), controls whichheaders are stripped from the failed message when retrying it.@kindex f @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-forward@cindex forwarding a message Another frequent reason to send mail in Rmail is to @dfn{forward} thecurrent message to other users. @kbd{f} (@code{rmail-forward}) makesthis easy by preinitializing the @samp{*mail*} buffer with the currentmessage as the text, and a subject designating a forwarded message. Allyou have to do is fill in the recipients and send. When you forward amessage, recipients get a message which is ``from'' you, and which hasthe original message in its contents.@findex unforward-rmail-message Forwarding a message encloses it between two delimiter lines. It alsomodifies every line that starts with a dash, by inserting @w{@samp{- }}at the start of the line. When you receive a forwarded message, if itcontains something besides ordinary text---for example, program sourcecode---you might find it useful to undo that transformation. You can dothis by selecting the forwarded message and typing @kbd{M-xunforward-rmail-message}. This command extracts the original forwardedmessage, deleting the inserted @w{@samp{- }} strings, and inserts itinto the Rmail file as a separate message immediately following thecurrent one.@findex rmail-resend @dfn{Resending} is an alternative similar to forwarding; thedifference is that resending sends a message that is ``from'' theoriginal sender, just as it reached you---with a few added header fields@samp{Resent-From} and @samp{Resent-To} to indicate that it came viayou. To resend a message in Rmail, use @kbd{C-u f}. (@kbd{f} runs@code{rmail-forward}, which is programmed to invoke @code{rmail-resend}if you provide a numeric argument.)@kindex m @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-mail The @kbd{m} (@code{rmail-mail}) command is used to start editing anoutgoing message that is not a reply. It leaves the header fields empty.Its only difference from @kbd{C-x 4 m} is that it makes the Rmail bufferaccessible for @kbd{C-c C-y}, just as @kbd{r} does. Thus, @kbd{m} can beused to reply to or forward a message; it can do anything @kbd{r} or @kbd{f}can do.@refill@kindex c @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-continue The @kbd{c} (@code{rmail-continue}) command resumes editing the@samp{*mail*} buffer, to finish editing an outgoing message you werealready composing, or to alter a message you have sent.@refill@vindex rmail-mail-new-frame If you set the variable @code{rmail-mail-new-frame} to anon-@code{nil} value, then all the Rmail commands to start sending amessage create a new frame to edit it in. This frame is deleted whenyou send the message, or when you use the @samp{Cancel} item in the@samp{Mail} menu. All the Rmail commands to send a message use the mail-compositionmethod that you have chosen (@pxref{Mail Methods}).@node Rmail Summary@section Summaries@cindex summary (Rmail) A @dfn{summary} is a buffer containing one line per message to giveyou an overview of the mail in an Rmail file. Each line shows themessage number and date, the sender, the line count, the labels, andthe subject. Moving point in the summary buffer selects messages asyou move to their summary lines. Almost all Rmail commands are validin the summary buffer also; when used there, they apply to the messagedescribed by the current line of the summary. A summary buffer applies to a single Rmail file only; if you areediting multiple Rmail files, each one can have its own summary buffer.The summary buffer name is made by appending @samp{-summary} to theRmail buffer's name. Normally only one summary buffer is displayed at atime.@menu* Rmail Make Summary:: Making various sorts of summaries.* Rmail Summary Edit:: Manipulating messages from the summary.@end menu@node Rmail Make Summary@subsection Making Summaries Here are the commands to create a summary for the current Rmail file.Once the Rmail file has a summary buffer, changes in the Rmail file(such as deleting or expunging messages, and getting new mail)automatically update the summary.@table @kbd@item h@itemx C-M-hSummarize all messages (@code{rmail-summary}).@item l @var{labels} @key{RET}@itemx C-M-l @var{labels} @key{RET}Summarize messages that have one or more of the specified labels(@code{rmail-summary-by-labels}).@item C-M-r @var{rcpts} @key{RET}Summarize messages that have one or more of the specified recipients(@code{rmail-summary-by-recipients}).@item C-M-t @var{topic} @key{RET}Summarize messages that have a match for the specified regexp@var{topic} in their subjects (@code{rmail-summary-by-topic}).@item C-M-s @var{regexp}Summarize messages whose headers and the subject line match thespecified regular expression @var{regexp}(@code{rmail-summary-by-regexp}).@end table@kindex h @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-summary The @kbd{h} or @kbd{C-M-h} (@code{rmail-summary}) command fills the summary bufferfor the current Rmail file with a summary of all the messages in the file.It then displays and selects the summary buffer in another window.@kindex l @r{(Rmail)}@kindex C-M-l @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-summary-by-labels @kbd{C-M-l @var{labels} @key{RET}} (@code{rmail-summary-by-labels}) makesa partial summary mentioning only the messages that have one or more of thelabels @var{labels}. @var{labels} should contain label names separated bycommas.@refill@kindex C-M-r @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-summary-by-recipients @kbd{C-M-r @var{rcpts} @key{RET}} (@code{rmail-summary-by-recipients})makes a partial summary mentioning only the messages that have one or moreof the recipients @var{rcpts}. @var{rcpts} should contain mailingaddresses separated by commas.@refill@kindex C-M-t @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-summary-by-topic @kbd{C-M-t @var{topic} @key{RET}} (@code{rmail-summary-by-topic})makes a partial summary mentioning only the messages whose subjects havea match for the regular expression @var{topic}.@kindex C-M-s @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-summary-by-regexp @kbd{C-M-s @var{regexp} @key{RET}} (@code{rmail-summary-by-regexp})makes a partial summary which mentions only the messages whose headers(including the date and the subject lines) match the regularexpression @var{regexp}. Note that there is only one summary buffer for any Rmail file; making onekind of summary discards any previously made summary.@vindex rmail-summary-window-size@vindex rmail-summary-line-count-flag The variable @code{rmail-summary-window-size} says how many lines touse for the summary window. The variable@code{rmail-summary-line-count-flag} controls whether the summary linefor a message should include the line count of the message.@node Rmail Summary Edit@subsection Editing in Summaries You can use the Rmail summary buffer to do almost anything you can doin the Rmail buffer itself. In fact, once you have a summary buffer,there's no need to switch back to the Rmail buffer. You can select and display various messages in the Rmail buffer, fromthe summary buffer, just by moving point in the summary buffer todifferent lines. It doesn't matter what Emacs command you use to movepoint; whichever line point is on at the end of the command, thatmessage is selected in the Rmail buffer. Almost all Rmail commands work in the summary buffer as well as in theRmail buffer. Thus, @kbd{d} in the summary buffer deletes the currentmessage, @kbd{u} undeletes, and @kbd{x} expunges. @kbd{o} and @kbd{C-o}output the current message to a file; @kbd{r} starts a reply to it. Youcan scroll the current message while remaining in the summary bufferusing @key{SPC} and @key{DEL}. The Rmail commands to move between messages also work in the summarybuffer, but with a twist: they move through the set of messages includedin the summary. They also ensure the Rmail buffer appears on the screen(unlike cursor motion commands, which update the contents of the Rmailbuffer but don't display it in a window unless it already appears).Here is a list of these commands:@table @kbd@item nMove to next line, skipping lines saying `deleted', and select itsmessage.@item pMove to previous line, skipping lines saying `deleted', and selectits message.@item M-nMove to next line and select its message.@item M-pMove to previous line and select its message.@item >Move to the last line, and select its message.@item <Move to the first line, and select its message.@item M-s @var{pattern} @key{RET}Search through messages for @var{pattern} starting with the currentmessage; select the message found, and move point in the summary bufferto that message's line.@end table@vindex rmail-redisplay-summary Deletion, undeletion, and getting new mail, and even selection of adifferent message all update the summary buffer when you do them in theRmail buffer. If the variable @code{rmail-redisplay-summary} isnon-@code{nil}, these actions also bring the summary buffer back ontothe screen.@kindex Q @r{(Rmail summary)}@findex rmail-summary-wipe@kindex q @r{(Rmail summary)}@findex rmail-summary-quit When you are finished using the summary, type @kbd{Q}(@code{rmail-summary-wipe}) to delete the summary buffer's window. Youcan also exit Rmail while in the summary: @kbd{q}(@code{rmail-summary-quit}) deletes the summary window, then exits fromRmail by saving the Rmail file and switching to another buffer.@node Rmail Sorting@section Sorting the Rmail File@table @kbd@item M-x rmail-sort-by-dateSort messages of current Rmail file by date.@item M-x rmail-sort-by-subjectSort messages of current Rmail file by subject.@item M-x rmail-sort-by-authorSort messages of current Rmail file by author's name.@item M-x rmail-sort-by-recipientSort messages of current Rmail file by recipient's names.@item M-x rmail-sort-by-correspondentSort messages of current Rmail file by the name of the othercorrespondent.@item M-x rmail-sort-by-linesSort messages of current Rmail file by size (number of lines).@item M-x rmail-sort-by-keywords @key{RET} @var{labels} @key{RET}Sort messages of current Rmail file by labels. The argument@var{labels} should be a comma-separated list of labels. The order ofthese labels specifies the order of messages; messages with the firstlabel come first, messages with the second label come second, and so on.Messages which have none of these labels come last.@end table The Rmail sort commands perform a @emph{stable sort}: if there is noreason to prefer either one of two messages, their order remainsunchanged. You can use this to sort by more than one criterion. Forexample, if you use @code{rmail-sort-by-date} and then@code{rmail-sort-by-author}, messages from the same author appear inorder by date. With a numeric argument, all these commands reverse the order ofcomparison. This means they sort messages from newest to oldest, frombiggest to smallest, or in reverse alphabetical order.@node Rmail Display@section Display of Messages Rmail reformats the header of each message before displaying it forthe first time. Reformatting hides uninteresting header fields toreduce clutter. You can use the @kbd{t} command to show the entireheader or to repeat the header reformatting operation.@table @kbd@item tToggle display of complete header (@code{rmail-toggle-header}).@end table@vindex rmail-ignored-headers Reformatting the header involves deleting most header fields, on thegrounds that they are not interesting. The variable@code{rmail-ignored-headers} holds a regular expression that specifieswhich header fields to hide in this way---if it matches the beginning ofa header field, that whole field is hidden.@kindex t @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-toggle-header Rmail saves the complete original header before reformatting; to seeit, use the @kbd{t} command (@code{rmail-toggle-header}). Thisdiscards the reformatted headers of the current message and displays itwith the original header. Repeating @kbd{t} reformats the messageagain. Selecting the message again also reformats. One consequence of this is that if you edit the reformatted header(using @kbd{e}; @pxref{Rmail Editing}), subsequent use of @kbd{t} willdiscard your edits. On the other hand, if you use @kbd{e} after@kbd{t}, to edit the original (unreformatted) header, those changes arepermanent. When the @kbd{t} command has a prefix argument, a positive argumentmeans to show the reformatted header, and a zero or negative argumentmeans to show the full header.@vindex rmail-highlighted-headers When the terminal supports multiple fonts or colors, Rmailhighlights certain header fields that are especially interesting---bydefault, the @samp{From} and @samp{Subject} fields. The variable@code{rmail-highlighted-headers} holds a regular expression thatspecifies the header fields to highlight; if it matches the beginningof a header field, that whole field is highlighted. If you specify unusual colors for your text foreground andbackground, the colors used for highlighting may not go well withthem. If so, specify different colors for the face@code{rmail-highlight-face}. @xref{Faces}, for how to do this. Toturn off highlighting entirely in Rmail, set@code{rmail-highlighted-headers} to @code{nil}. You can highlight and activate URLs in incoming messages by addingthe function @code{goto-address} to the hook@code{rmail-show-message-hook}. Then you can browse these URLs byclicking on them with @kbd{Mouse-2} or by moving to one and typing@kbd{C-c @key{RET}}. @xref{Goto-address, Activating URLs, Activating URLs}.@node Rmail Coding@section Rmail and Coding Systems@cindex decoding mail messages (Rmail) Rmail automatically decodes messages which contain non-ASCIIcharacters, just as Emacs does with files you visit and with subprocessoutput. Rmail uses the standard @samp{charset=@var{charset}} header inthe message, if any, to determine how the message was encoded by thesender. It maps @var{charset} into the corresponding Emacs codingsystem (@pxref{Coding Systems}), and uses that coding system to decodemessage text. If the message header doesn't have the @samp{charset}specification, or if @var{charset} is not recognized,Rmail chooses the coding system with the usual Emacs heuristics anddefaults (@pxref{Recognize Coding}).@cindex fixing incorrectly decoded mail messages Occasionally, a message is decoded incorrectly, either because Emacsguessed the wrong coding system in the absence of the @samp{charset}specification, or because the specification was inaccurate. Forexample, a misconfigured mailer could send a message with a@samp{charset=iso-8859-1} header when the message is actually encodedin @code{koi8-r}. When you see the message text garbled, or some ofits characters displayed as empty boxes, this may have happened.@findex rmail-redecode-body You can correct the problem by decoding the message again using theright coding system, if you can figure out or guess which one isright. To do this, invoke the @kbd{M-x rmail-redecode-body} command.It reads the name of a coding system, encodes the message body usingwhichever coding system was used to decode it before, then redecodesit using the coding system you specified. If you specified the rightcoding system, the result should be readable. Decoding and encoding using the wrong coding system is lossless formost encodings, in particular with 8-bit encodings such as iso-8859 orkoi8. So, if the initial attempt to redecode the message didn'tresult in a legible text, you can try other coding systems until yousucceed. With some coding systems, notably those from the iso-2022 family,information can be lost in decoding, so that encoding the messageagain won't bring back the original incoming text. In such a case,@code{rmail-redecode-body} cannot work. However, the problems thatcall for use of @code{rmail-redecode-body} rarely occur with thosecoding systems. So in practice the command works when you need it.@node Rmail Editing@section Editing Within a Message Most of the usual Emacs commands are available in Rmail mode, though afew, such as @kbd{C-M-n} and @kbd{C-M-h}, are redefined by Rmail forother purposes. However, the Rmail buffer is normally read only, andmost of the letters are redefined as Rmail commands. If you want toedit the text of a message, you must use the Rmail command @kbd{e}.@table @kbd@item eEdit the current message as ordinary text.@end table@kindex e @r{(Rmail)}@findex rmail-edit-current-message The @kbd{e} command (@code{rmail-edit-current-message}) switches fromRmail mode into Rmail Edit mode, another major mode which is nearly thesame as Text mode. The mode line indicates this change. In Rmail Edit mode, letters insert themselves as usual and the Rmailcommands are not available. When you are finished editing the message andare ready to go back to Rmail, type @kbd{C-c C-c}, which switches back toRmail mode. Alternatively, you can return to Rmail mode but cancel all theediting that you have done, by typing @kbd{C-c C-]}.@vindex rmail-edit-mode-hook Entering Rmail Edit mode runs the hook @code{text-mode-hook}; then itruns the hook @code{rmail-edit-mode-hook} (@pxref{Hooks}). It adds theattribute @samp{edited} to the message. It also displays the fullheaders of the message, so that you can edit the headers as well as thebody of the message, and your changes in the headers will bepermanent.@node Rmail Digest@section Digest Messages@cindex digest message@cindex undigestify A @dfn{digest message} is a message which exists to contain and carryseveral other messages. Digests are used on some moderated mailinglists; all the messages that arrive for the list during a period of timesuch as one day are put inside a single digest which is then sent to thesubscribers. Transmitting the single digest uses much less computertime than transmitting the individual messages even though the totalsize is the same, because the per-message overhead in network mailtransmission is considerable.@findex undigestify-rmail-message When you receive a digest message, the most convenient way to read it isto @dfn{undigestify} it: to turn it back into many individual messages.Then you can read and delete the individual messages as it suits you. To do this, select the digest message and type the command @kbd{M-xundigestify-rmail-message}. This extracts the submessages as separateRmail messages, and inserts them following the digest. The digestmessage itself is flagged as deleted.@node Out of Rmail@section Converting an Rmail File to Inbox Format@cindex Babyl format to Inbox format@cindex converting Rmail file to mailbox format@findex unrmail The command @kbd{M-x unrmail} converts a file in Rmail format to inboxformat (also known as the system mailbox, or mbox, format), so thatyou can use it with other mail-editing tools. You must specify twoarguments, the name of the Rmail file and the name to use for theconverted file. @kbd{M-x unrmail} does not alter the Rmail file itself.@pindex b2m @kbd{M-x unrmail} is useful if you can run Emacs on the machinewhere the Rmail file resides, or can access the Rmail file remotely(@pxref{Remote Files}) from a machine where Emacs is installed. Ifaccessing Rmail files from Emacs is impossible, you can use the@command{b2m} program instead. @command{b2m} is part of the Emacsdistribution, it is installed into the same directory where all theother auxiliary programs (@command{etags} etc.) are installed, and itssource is available in the Emacs source distribution, so that youcould copy the source to the target machine and compile it there. To convert a file @file{@var{babyl-file}} into @file{@var{mbox-file}},invoke @command{b2m} like this:@example b2m < @var{babyl-file} > @var{mbox-file}@end example@node Rmail Rot13@section Reading Rot13 Messages@cindex rot13 code Mailing list messages that might offend some readers are sometimesencoded in a simple code called @dfn{rot13}---so named because itrotates the alphabet by 13 letters. This code is not for secrecy, as itprovides none; rather, it enables those who might be offended to avoidever seeing the real text of the message.@findex rot13-other-window To view a buffer using the rot13 code, use the command @kbd{M-xrot13-other-window}. This displays the current buffer in another windowwhich applies the code when displaying the text.@node Movemail@section @code{movemail} and POP@cindex @code{movemail} program@vindex rmail-preserve-inbox When getting new mail, Rmail first copies the new mail from the inboxfile to the Rmail file; then it saves the Rmail file; then it truncatesthe inbox file. This way, a system crash may cause duplication of mailbetween the inbox and the Rmail file, but cannot lose mail. If@code{rmail-preserve-inbox} is non-@code{nil}, then Rmail will copy newmail from the inbox file to the Rmail file without truncating the inboxfile. You may wish to set this, for example, on a portable computer youuse to check your mail via POP while traveling, so that your mail willremain on the server and you can save it later on your workstation. In some cases, Rmail copies the new mail from the inbox fileindirectly. First it runs the @code{movemail} program to move the mailfrom the inbox to an intermediate file called@file{~/.newmail-@var{inboxname}}. Then Rmail merges the new mail fromthat file, saves the Rmail file, and only then deletes the intermediatefile. If there is a crash at the wrong time, this file continues toexist, and Rmail will use it again the next time it gets new mail fromthat inbox.@pindex movemail If Rmail is unable to convert the data in@file{~/.newmail-@var{inboxname}} into Babyl format, it renames the fileto @file{~/RMAILOSE.@var{n}} (@var{n} is an integer chosen to make thename unique) so that Rmail will not have trouble with the data again.You should look at the file, find whatever message confuses Rmail(probably one that includes the control-underscore character, octal code037), and delete it. Then you can use @kbd{1 g} to get new mail fromthe corrected file. Some sites use a method called POP for accessing users' inbox datainstead of storing the data in inbox files. @code{movemail} can workwith POP if you compile it with the macro @code{MAIL_USE_POP} defined.(You can achieve that by specifying @samp{--with-pop} when you run@code{configure} during the installation of Emacs.)@code{movemail} only works with POP3, not with olderversions of POP.@cindex @env{MAILHOST} environment variable@cindex POP inboxes Assuming you have compiled and installed @code{movemail}appropriately, you can specify a POP inbox by using a ``file name'' ofthe form @samp{po:@var{username}}, in the inbox list of an Rmail file.@code{movemail} handles such a name by opening a connection to the POPserver. The @env{MAILHOST} environment variable specifies the machineto look for the server on; alternatively, you can specify the POP serverhost name as part of the mailbox name using the syntax@samp{po:@var{username}:@var{hostname}}.@vindex rmail-pop-password@vindex rmail-pop-password-required Accessing mail via POP may require a password. If the variable@code{rmail-pop-password} is non-@code{nil}, it specifies the passwordto use for POP. Alternatively, if @code{rmail-pop-password-required} isnon-@code{nil}, then Rmail asks you for the password to use.@vindex rmail-movemail-flags If you need to pass additional command-line flags to @code{movemail},set the variable @code{rmail-movemail-flags} a list of the flags youwish to use. Do not use this variable to pass the @samp{-p} flag topreserve your inbox contents; use @code{rmail-preserve-inbox} instead.@cindex Kerberos POP authentication The @code{movemail} program installed at your site may supportKerberos authentication. If it issupported, it is used by default whenever you attempt to retrievePOP mail when @code{rmail-pop-password} and@code{rmail-pop-password-required} are unset.@cindex reverse order in POP inboxes Some POP servers store messages in reverse order. If your server doesthis, and you would rather read your mail in the order in which it wasreceived, you can tell @code{movemail} to reverse the order ofdownloaded messages by adding the @samp{-r} flag to@code{rmail-movemail-flags}.