annotate doc/gaim.1 @ 5209:3a9d257628cb

[gaim-migrate @ 5579] 0.63cvs committer: Tailor Script <[e-mail]>

.\" Copyright (c) 2000, Dennis Ristuccia <[e-mail]>
.\"
.\" This is free documentation; you can redistribute it and/or
.\" modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as
.\" published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of
.\" the License, or (at your option) any later version.
.\"
.\" The GNU General Public License's references to "object code"
.\" and "executables" are to be interpreted as the output of any
.\" document formatting or typesetting system, including
.\" intermediate and printed output.
.\"
.\" This manual is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
.\" but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
.\" MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
.\" GNU General Public License for more details.
.\"
.\" You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public
.\" License along with this manual; if not, write to the Free
.\" Software Foundation, Inc., 675 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139,
.\" USA.
.TH gaim 1
.SH NAME
Gaim v0.62 \- Instant Messaging client
.SH SYNOPSIS
.TP 5
\fBgaim \fI[options]\fR

.SH DESCRIPTION
.PP
\fBgaim\fR is a GTK2-based Instant Messaging (IM) client designed primarily for use with AOL Instant Messenger (AIM).  However, it supports most other popular IM protocols including Gadu-Gadu, ICQ, IRC, Jabber, MSN Messenger, Napster, Yahoo!, and Zephyr.

.SH OPTIONS
The following options are provided by \fBgaim\fR using the standard GNU command line syntax:
.TP
.B \-a, \-\-acct
Launch the \fBAccount Editor\fR rather than the \fBLogin\fR window on start.
.TP
.B \-d, \-\-debug
Print debugging messages to stdout.  These are the same debugging messages that are displayed in the \fBDebug\fR window.
.TP
.B \-f, \-\-file=\fIFILE\fB
Use \fIFILE\fR as the configuration file instead of \fI~/.gaimrc\fR.
.TP
.B \-h, \-\-help
Print this help and exit.
.TP
.B \-l, \-\-login[=\fINAME\fB]
Automatically login on start using the default account or the account specified by the \fINAME\fR parameter.
.TP
.B \-n, \-\-loginwin
Don't automatically login when \fBgaim\fR starts.  Show the \fBLogin\fR window instead.
.TP
.B \-u, \-\-user=\fINAME\fB
Use account \fINAME\fR as default.
.TP
.B \-v, \-\-version
Display the version information window.
.TP
.B \-w, \-\-away[=\fIMESG\fB]
Automatically go away on signon.  You may optionally use the \fIMESG\fR parameter to set the away message.

.SH BUDDY LIST
The \fBBuddy List\fR window is \fBgaim\fR's main interface window.  The focus of this window is the \fBBuddy List\fR itself, shown in the \fBOnline\fR pane.  Buddy list organization and editing is handled in the \fBEdit Buddies\fR pane.

Buddy Lists can be imported by using the \fIImport Buddy List\fR command in the \fIFile\fR menu.

.SH Online Pane
The \fBOnline\fR pane contains a list of your buddies who are online and have allowed you to be notified of their presence.  The icon to the left of each buddy (if enabled in \fBgaim\fR's \fBPreferences\fR) indicates the buddy's current state.  Double clicking a buddy will open a new \fBConversation\fR window.  Right clicking will pop up a menu:
.TP
.B IM
Opens a new \fBConversation\fR window to the selected buddy.
.TP
.B Alias
Create an alias for this buddy.  This will open up a new dialog in which one can give this buddy an alternate name to appear on the buddy list and in conversataions.

For example, if a buddy's name screen name was jsmith1281xx and his real name was 'John Q. Smith,' one could create an alias as to identify the buddy by his common name. 
.TP
.B Add Buddy Pounce
A Buddy Pounce is a configurable automated action to be performed when the buddy's state changes.  This will open the \fBBuddy Pounce\fR dialog to be discussed later.
.TP 
.B View Log
\fBgaim\fR is capable of automatically log its activities.  These logs are html files (with a .log extenstion) located in the \fI~/.gaim/logs\fR directory.  This menu command will attempt to view this file with \fBgaim\fR's internal log viewer.
.LP
The remainder of the menu will consist of protocol specific commands.  These commands vary depending on the protocol; below are the commands available when using OSCAR, the more popular and developer-recommended AIM protocol:
.TP
.B Get Info
Retrieves and displays information about the buddy.  This information is also known as a Profile.
.TP
.B Get Away Msg
If this buddy is in an Away state, this will retrieve and display the buddy's \fBAway Message\fR.
.TP
.B Get Capabilities
Retrieves and displays the client capabilities of your buddy.
.LP
At the bottom of the pane are several buttons (if enabled in \fBPreferences\fR):
.TP
.B IM
Opens a new \fBConversation\fR window to to the selected buddy, or brings up the \fBNew Message\fR dialog box if no buddy is selected.
.TP
.B Info
Retrieves and display information about the selected buddy, or brings up the \fBGet User Info\fR dialog box if no buddy is selected.
.TP
.B Chat
Brings up the \fBJoin Chat\fR dialog box, prompting the user to select which username to use and what chat group to join.
.TP
.B Away
Brings up a menu of all available \fBAway Messages\fR.  If an item is selected, all online accounts will use this item as their away message.

.SH Edit Buddies Pane
Clicking the \fBEdit Buddies\fR tab on the \fBBuddy List Window\fR will invoke the main interface to edit and organize buddy lists.  Buddies already in your buddy list can be moved to different groups or reordered in the same group by clicking and dragging with the mouse.  One can also add, rename, alias, or delete buddies here, as well as access some of the functions available in the \fBBuddy List Dialog\fR.  

At the bottom of the pane are several buttons:
.TP
.B Add
This brings up the \fBAdd Buddy Dialog\fR, where you can add a buddy to your buddy list.
.TP
.B Group
This brings up the \fBAdd Group Dialog\fR, where you can add a group to the current connection (the connection with an item selected, otherwise the top-most connection).
.TP
.B Remove
This removes the currently selected buddy or group.  If no buddy or group is selected, no action is taken.

.SH ACCOUNT EDITOR
The account editor consists of a list of accounts and information about them.  Clicking \fIDelete\fR will delete the currently selected account.  Clicking \fIAdd\fR or \fIModify\fR will invoke a \fBModify Account\fR window.  Here, you can add or alter account information.  When creating a new account, you will submit your screen name and password.  You will also choose your protocol. The AIM protocol, OSCAR, is always loaded, but other protocols can be dynamically loaded and unloaded using \fBProtocols Plugins\fR (PRPLS).

If \fIRemember Password\fR is chosen, the password will be saved in \fBgaim\fR's configuration file.

If \fIAuto-Login\fR is chosen, this account will automatically login upon starting \fBgaim\fR.

Each protocol has it's own specific options that can be found in the protocol-specific tab on the modify screen.

.SH PREFERENCES

All options take effect immediately.

.SH Interface

\fIShow debug window\fR: Makes visable \fBgaim\fR's debugging window, which displays more verbose operating information.  A must for bug-tracking.

\fIDisplay remote nicknames if no alias is set\fR: Toggles whether server nickname data should be used if no local alias exists.

.TP
.B Themes
Allows the user to choose between different emoticon themes.
.TP
.B Fonts
Lets the user pick a default font style/face/color for all accounts (only available in protocols that accept HTML messages).
.TP
.B Message Text
\fIShow graphical smileys\fR: Enables the replacement of text emoticons with their graphical equivalents.

\fIShow timestamp on messages\fR: Toggles the timestamp behavior for conversations.  Per-conversation behavior can be changed by pressing \fIF2\fR in the \fBConversation\fR window.

\fIShow URLs as links\fR: Enables the translation of URLs (such as \fIhttp://gaim.sourceforge.net\fR) into clickable links.

\fIIgnore colors/font faces/font sizes\fR: Tells \fBgaim\fR to disregard buddies' color/font/size information in displaying IMs or Chats.
.TP
.B Shortcuts
Allows the user to determine which keyboard shortcuts are available.
.TP
.B Buddy List
\fIHide IM/Info/Chat buttons\fR: Disables the display of these buttons on the
\fBBuddy List\fR's \fBOnline\fR pane.

\fIShow pictures on buttons\fR: Toggles between picture-only and text-only views of the buttons on the \fBBuddy List\fR.

\fISave window size/position\fR: If enabled, \fBgaim\fR will place the \fBBuddy List\fR at its last screen position at start-up.

\fIRaise window on events\fR: Tells \fBgaim\fR to bring the \fBBuddy List\fR window to the top when buddies sign in or out.

\fIHide groups with no online buddies\fR: Groups in which no buddies are currently logged in will not be shown in the \fBOnline\fR pane.

\fIShow numbers in groups\fR: The number of buddies from each group currently logged in will be shown along with the total number of buddies in the group.

\fIShow buddy type icons\fR: The icons showing which protocol each buddy uses and whether or not the buddy is away will not be shown.

\fIShow warning levels\fR: Each buddy's warning level will be displayed next to the screen name. As a buddy's warning level increases, outgoing messages are more and more severely rate-limited.

\fIShow idle times\fR: The amount of time each buddy has been idle will be displayed next to the screen name (if the buddy has opted to have their client report this information).

\fIGrey idle buddies\fR: If enabled, idle buddies will be displayed in grey text instead of black text.
.TP
.B IM Window
\fIShow buttons as...\fR: The selected item will determine whether picture-only, text-only, or combined picture/text buttons will be used for \fBConversation\fR windows.

\fINew window width/height...\fR: The values here determine how large \fBConversation\fR windows are by default.  However, each window can be independently resized.

\fIEntry widget height...\fR: This value controls the size of the entry widget (the part of the \fBConversation\fR window where you type).  It should not be made greater than the \fINew window height\fR.

\fIRaise windows on events\fR: If enabled, \fBConversation\fR windows will be brought to the top when new messages are received.

\fIHide window on send\fR: If enabled, \fBConversation\fR windows will be iconified after each message is sent.

\fIHide buddy icons\fR: For protocols that support it, buddy icons allow buddies to send small pictures to be displayed during the course of a conversation. This option hides those pictures.

\fIDisable buddy icon animation\fR: If these pictures happen to be animated, this option will disable the animation, displaying only the first frame.

\fIShow logins in window\fR: If currently conversing with a buddy who signs off or on, this information will be shown in the \fBConversation\fR window.

\fINotify buddies that you are typing to them\fR: Some protocols allow clients to tell their buddies when they are typing. This option enables this feature for protocols that supports it.
.TP
.B Chat Window
\fIWindow\fR: The options in this section behave identically to the options of the same name in the \fBIM Window\fR preferences.

\fITab Completion\fR: In a chat room with many participants, it can be tedious to keep typing the screen name of the user to whom you wish to direct a comment.  These options allow \fITab\fR to expand the current text into a valid nickname.
\fIShow people joining/leaving in window\fR: When chat room participants enter or exit the room, the information will be displayed in the \fBBuddy Chat\fR window.

\fIColorize screennames\fR: Color code the screen names of users in chat rooms.
.TP
.B Tabs
Tabbed chatting allows one to have multiple conversations without multiple windows. \fbTabs\fR show which conversations have unanswered messages, and can identify a user either by screen name or by alias.

.SH Proxy

The configuration section to enable \fBgaim\fR to operate through a proxy server.  \fBgaim\fR currently supports SOCKS 4/5 and HTTP proxies.

.SH Browser

Allows the user to select \fBgaim\fR's default web browser.  Galeon, Konqueror, Mozilla, Netscape, and Opera are supported natively.  The user can also manually enter a command to be executed when a link is clicked (\fI%s\fR expands to the URL).  For example, \fIxterm -e lynx %s\fR will open the link with lynx.  \fIOpen new window by default\fR makes the browser use a new window instead of using the current window (or spawning a new tab).

.SH Logging

\fIMessage Logs\fR lets the user choose whether \fBConversations\fR and/or \fBBuddy Chats\fR will be logged as well as whether logs will be in HTML or plain text format.  \fISystem Logs\fR describes the types of events to be logged.

.SH Sounds

\fINo sounds when you log in\fR: Makes the log-in process silent.

\fISounds while away\fR: Determines whether sounds are played when an away message is up.

\fISound Method\fR lets the user choose between different playback methods. The user can also manually enter a command to be executed when a sound is to be played (\fI%s\fR expands to the full path to the file name).

.TP
.B Sound Events
Lets the user choose when and what sounds are to be played.

.SH Away / Idle

\fISending messages removes away status\fR: If enabled, sending a message will change the sending account's status to Available.  If disabled, any account may send messages without affecting their away status.

\fIQueue new messages when away\fR: Messages received since going Away will not be shown until away status is removed.

\fIIgnore new conversations when away\fR: Messages from current conversations will be accepted, but new conversations will not be shown until away status is removed.

\fISeconds before resending\fR: Auto-response information is resent to all buddies in current conversations every once in a while.  This option decides just how often.

\fIDon't send auto-response\fR: If someone messages you while away, your auto-response will not be sent.

\fIOnly send auto-response when idle\fR: If someone messages you while away, your auto-response will only be sent if \fBgaim\fR decides that the connection is idle.

\fIDon't send auto-response in active conversations\fR: If you continue a conversation while away, this option will disable the sending of the auto-response for the duration of the conversation.

\fIIdle time reporting\fR: If \fINone\fR is selected, account idle time will not be reported.  \fIGaim usage\fR infers your idle time from your usage of \fBgaim\fR.  \fIX usage\fR infers your idle time from \fBX\fR (this option may not be universally available).

\fIAuto-away\fR: Determines if and under what conditions \fBgaim\fR will automatically turn on the Away status.

.TP
.B Away Messages
Lets the user add/edit/remove available \fBAway Messages\fR.

.SH Plugins

Allows the user to enable add-on plugins for \fBgaim\fR.  Several of these come with \fBgaim\fR, while others must be downloaded separately.  The \fIDescription\fR field gives the plugin author's description of the plugin, while the \fIDetails\fR field gives the plugin's authorship, URL, and file name/location information.

Some plugins can be configured.  If you load such a plugin, its configuration preferences will appear as a submenu to \fBPlugins\fR, with the submenu title determined by the plugin's name.

.SH CONVERSATIONS
When starting a new conversation, the user is presented with the \fBConversation\fR window.  The conversation appears in the upper text box and the user types his/her message in the lower text box.  Between the two is a row of settings, represented by icons.  From left to right:
.TP
.B Bold
adds <b></b> to your message
.TP
.B Italics
adds <i></i> to your message
.TP
.B Underline
adds <u></u> to your message
.TP
.B Decrease font size
adds <font size="1"></font> to your message
.TP
.B Default font size
adds <font size="3"></font> to your message
.TP
.B Increase font size
adds <font size="5"></font> to your message
.TP
.B Select a foreground color
adds an appropriate font tag to your message.
.TP
.B Select a background color
adds an appropriate body tag to your message.
.TP
.B Add image
inserts an appropriate img tag (not available in all protocols).
.TP
.B Add hyperlink
adds an appropriate a href tag to your message.
.TP
.B Add smiley
adds an ASCII smiley to your message.  This will become a graphic smiley in the upper text box if the option for graphical smileys is set.

Beneath the lower text box is a row of buttons that execute commands:
.TP
.B Warn
This issues a warning to the other person in the conversation (not available in all protocols).
.TP
.B Block
This adds the other person to your deny list (not available in all protocols).
.TP
.B Add
This adds this user to your buddy list.  This option is not available if the user is already on your list.
.TP
.B Remove
This removes this user from your buddy list.  This option is not available if the user is not on your list.
.TP
.B Info
This gets information (a profile) about the other person in the conversation (not available in all protocols).
.TP
.B Send
This sends what's currently in the lower text box

.SH BUDDY CHATS
For protocols that allow it, \fBBuddy Chats\fR can be entered through the \fIFile\fR menu or the \fIChat\fR button at the bottom of the \fBBuddy List\fR's \fBOnline\fR tab.

Additional commands available in chat, depending on the protocol are:
.TP
.B Whisper
The text will appear in the chat conversation, but it will only be visible to the sender and the receiver.
.TP
.B Invite
Invite other people to join the chat room.
.TP
.B Ignore
Ignore anything said by the chosen person
.TP
.B Set Topic
Set the topic of the chat room.  This is usually a brief sentence describing the nature of the chat--an explanation of the chat room's name.

.SH AWAY MESSAGES
Most protocols allow for away messages.  When a user is \fIAway\fR, he can leave an informative message for others to see.  The \fBAway\fR submenu of the \fBTools\fR menu is used to add and remove away messages.

\fINew Away Message\fR provides space for one to enter an away message and a title for that message.  If \fISave\fR or \fISave & Use\fR are chosen, this message will be saved.  It can later be referred to by the title given to it.

\fIRemove Away Message\fR is a submenu containing the titles of saved away messages.  Clicking on one of these titles will remove the away message associated with it.

The rest of the \fIaway\fR menu provides the user with a way to assign different away messages to different connections.  Choosing \fISet All Away\fR will set away all the connections capable of the away state.

.SH BUDDY POUNCE
A Buddy Pounce is an automated trigger that occurs when a buddy returns to a normal state from an away state.  The \fBNew Buddy Pounce\fR dialog box can be activated by selecting the \fIBuddy Pounce\fR submenu from the \fBTools\fR menu. A pounce can be set to occur on any combination of the events listed, and any combination of actions can result.  If \fISave this pounce after activation\fR is checked, the trigger will remain until it is removed from the \fIRemove Buddy Pounce\fR menu.

.SH PLUGINS
\fBGaim\fR allows for dynamic loading of plugins to add extra functionality to \fBgaim\fR.  Plugins can be enabled and configured from the \fBPreferences\fR window.  See \fIplugins/HOWTO\fR for more information on writing plugins.

.SH PERL
\fBGaim\fR allows for perl scripting.  See \fIplugins/PERL-HOWTO\fR for more information about perl scripting.

.SH FILES
\fI/usr/local/bin/gaim\fR: \fBgaim\fR's default location.
.br
\fI/usr/local/lib/gaim/\fR: \fBgaim\fR's plugins directory.
.br
\fI~/.gaimrc\fR: \fBgaim\fR's configuration file.
.br
\fI~/.gaim/logs/SCREENNAME.log\fR: a log of all conversation with \fISCREENNAME\fR.
.br
\fI~/.gaim/blist.xml\fR: the buddy list.

.SH BUGS
Known bugs are listed at \fIhttp://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=235&atid=100235\fR.

.SH PATCHES
If you fix a bug in \fBgaim\fR (or otherwise enhance it), please submit a patch (using \fIcvs diff -u > my.diff\fR against the latest CVS version) at \fIhttp://sourceforge.net/tracker/?func=add&group_id=235&atid=300235\fR.

Before sending a bug report, please verify that you have the latest 
version of \fBgaim\fR.  Many bugs (major and minor) are fixed 
at each release, and if yours is out of date, the problem may already 
have been solved.

.SH SEE ALSO
\fIhttp://gaim.sourceforge.net/\fR
.br
\fIhttp://www.sourceforge.net/projects/gaim/\fR

.SH LICENSE
This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
\fBWITHOUT ANY WARRANTY\fR; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the GNU 
General Public License for more details.

You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License 
along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software
Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple PLace, Suite 330, Boston, MA  02111-1307  USA

.SH AUTHORS
\fBGaim\fR's active developers are:

 Rob Flynn (maintainer) <\[e-mail]\fR>
.br
 Sean Egan (coder) <\[e-mail]\fR>

The retired developers of \fBgaim\fR are:

 Jim Duchek
.br
 Eric Warmenhoven <\[e-mail]\fR>
.br
 Mark Spencer (original author) <\[e-mail]\fR>


This manpage was originally written by Dennis Ristuccia <\[e-mail]\fR>.  It has been updated and largely rewritten by Sean Egan <\[e-mail]\fR> and Ben Tegarden <\[e-mail]\fR>.