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GNU Info File | 1994-09-21 | 51KB | 889 lines

This is Info file ../info/gnus, produced by Makeinfo-1.56 from the input file gnus.txi. This file documents GNUS, the GNU Emacs newsreader. Copyright (C) 1989 Fujitsu Laboratories LTD. Copyright (C) 1990 Masanobu UMEDA. Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice are preserved on all copies. Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also that the sections entitled "Distribution" and "GNUS General Public License" are included exactly as in the original, and provided that the entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a permission notice identical to this one. Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions, except that the sections entitled "Distribution" and "GNUS General Public License" may be included in a translation approved by the author instead of in the original English. File: gnus, Node: Top, Next: Distribution, Up: (DIR) The GNUS Newsreader ******************* GNUS is a network newsreader for GNU Emacs. This Info file describes how to read and write USENET articles using GNUS and how to customize GNUS. * Menu: * Distribution:: How to get the latest GNUS distribution. * License:: Permission to redistribute GNUS on certain terms. * Acknowledgments:: I would like to thank many people who have helped me. * Introduction:: An introduction to GNUS. * Installation:: How to install GNUS. * Starting up:: How to get started with GNUS. * Buffers of GNUS:: Buffers used by GNUS. * Newsgroup Commands:: Browsing through newsgroups. * Subject Commands:: Browsing through headers and messages. * Article Commands:: Commands for an article. * KILL File:: How to use KILL files. * Customization:: How to customize GNUS. * Problems:: How to solve problems with GNUS. * Reporting Bugs:: Mailing lists and USENET newsgroups for GNUS lovers. How to report bugs. * Key Index:: An item for each standard GNUS key sequence. * Command Index:: An item for each command name. * Variable Index:: An item for each documented variable. * Program Index:: An item for each program. * Concept Index:: An item for each concept. File: gnus, Node: Distribution, Next: License, Prev: Top, Up: Top Distribution ************ GNUS is "free"; this means that everyone is free to use it and free to redistribute it on a free basis. GNUS is not in the public domain; it is copyrighted and there are restrictions on its distribution, but these restrictions are designed to permit everything that a good cooperating citizen would want to do. What is not allowed is to try to prevent others from further sharing any version of GNUS that they might get from you. The precise conditions appears following this section. The easiest way to get a copy of GNUS is from someone else who has it. You need not ask for permission to do so, or tell any one else; just copy it. If you have access to the Internet, you can get the latest version of GNUS from tut.cis.ohio-state.edu [128.146.8.60] using anonymous ftp. You can also get it from osu-cis using anonymous uucp. You may also receive GNUS when you buy a computer. Computer manufacturers are free to distribute copies on the same terms that apply to everyone else. These terms require them to give you the full sources, including whatever changes they may have made, and to permit you to redistribute the GNUS received from them under the usual terms of the General Public License. In other words, the program must be free for you when you get it, not just free for the manufacturer. If you cannot get a copy in any of those ways, you can order one from the author using electronic mail. For further information, write to: umerin@mse.kyutech.ac.jp If you cannot reach the author using these addresses, try the following mailing list: info-gnus-english@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu The list is intended to exchange useful information about GNUS, such as bug reports, useful hooks, and extensions. Feel free to ask about the nearest machine that has GNUS installed. Subscription requests for this list should be sent to: info-gnus-english-request@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu *Note Reporting Bugs::, for more information on the mailing list. File: gnus, Node: License, Next: Acknowledgments, Prev: Distribution, Up: Top GNUS General Public License *************************** (Clarified 13 Jan 1989) The license agreements of most software companies keep you at the mercy of those companies. By contrast, our general public license is intended to give everyone the right to share GNUS. To make sure that you get the rights we want you to have, we need to make restrictions that forbid anyone to deny you these rights or to ask you to surrender the rights. Hence this license agreement. Specifically, we want to make sure that you have the right to give away copies of GNUS, that you receive source code or else can get it if you want it, that you can change GNUS or use pieces of it in new free programs, and that you know you can do these things. To make sure that everyone has such rights, we have to forbid you to deprive anyone else of these rights. For example, if you distribute copies of GNUS, you must give the recipients all the rights that you have. You must make sure that they, too, receive or can get the source code. And you must tell them their rights. Also, for our own protection, we must make certain that everyone finds out that there is no warranty for GNUS. If GNUS is modified by someone else and passed on, we want its recipients to know that what they have is not what we distributed, so that any problems introduced by others will not reflect on our reputation. Therefore I (Masanobu Umeda) use the following terms, which are written for GNU Emacs by Richard Stallman and the Free Software Foundation, Inc. They say what you must do to be allowed to distribute or change GNU Emacs. You can know your right to distribute or change GNUS by replacing any occurrences of GNU Emacs with GNUS. Please apply the same policies to GNUS as GNU Emacs. Copying Policies ================ 1. You may copy and distribute verbatim copies of GNU Emacs source code as you receive it, in any medium, provided that you conspicuously and appropriately publish on each file a valid copyright notice "Copyright (C) 1988 Free Software Foundation, Inc." (or with whatever year is appropriate); keep intact the notices on all files that refer to this License Agreement and to the absence of any warranty; and give any other recipients of the GNU Emacs program a copy of this License Agreement along with the program. You may charge a distribution fee for the physical act of transferring a copy. 2. You may modify your copy or copies of GNU Emacs source code or any portion of it, and copy and distribute such modifications under the terms of Paragraph 1 above, provided that you also do the following: * cause the modified files to carry prominent notices stating who last changed such files and the date of any change; and * cause the whole of any work that you distribute or publish, that in whole or in part contains or is a derivative of GNU Emacs or any part thereof, to be licensed at no charge to all third parties on terms identical to those contained in this License Agreement (except that you may choose to grant more extensive warranty protection to some or all third parties, at your option). * if the modified program serves as a text editor, cause it, when started running in the simplest and usual way, to print an announcement including a valid copyright notice "Copyright (C) 1988 Free Software Foundation, Inc." (or with the year that is appropriate), saying that there is no warranty (or else, saying that you provide a warranty) and that users may redistribute the program under these conditions, and telling the user how to view a copy of this License Agreement. * You may charge a distribution fee for the physical act of transferring a copy, and you may at your option offer warranty protection in exchange for a fee. Mere aggregation of another unrelated program with this program (or its derivative) on a volume of a storage or distribution medium does not bring the other program under the scope of these terms. 3. You may copy and distribute GNU Emacs (or a portion or derivative of it, under Paragraph 2) in object code or executable form under the terms of Paragraphs 1 and 2 above provided that you also do one of the following: * accompany it with the complete corresponding machine-readable source code, which must be distributed under the terms of Paragraphs 1 and 2 above; or, * accompany it with a written offer, valid for at least three years, to give any third party free (except for a nominal shipping charge) a complete machine-readable copy of the corresponding source code, to be distributed under the terms of Paragraphs 1 and 2 above; or, * accompany it with the information you received as to where the corresponding source code may be obtained. (This alternative is allowed only for noncommercial distribution and only if you received the program in object code or executable form alone.) For an executable file, complete source code means all the source code for all modules it contains; but, as a special exception, it need not include source code for modules which are standard libraries that accompany the operating system on which the executable file runs. 4. You may not copy, sublicense, distribute or transfer GNU Emacs except as expressly provided under this License Agreement. Any attempt otherwise to copy, sublicense, distribute or transfer GNU Emacs is void and your rights to use GNU Emacs under this License agreement shall be automatically terminated. However, parties who have received computer software programs from you with this License Agreement will not have their licenses terminated so long as such parties remain in full compliance. 5. If you wish to incorporate parts of GNU Emacs into other free programs whose distribution conditions are different, write to the Free Software Foundation. We have not yet worked out a simple rule that can be stated here, but we will often permit this. We will be guided by the two goals of preserving the free status of all derivatives of our free software and of promoting the sharing and reuse of software. Your comments and suggestions about our licensing policies and our software are welcome! Please contact the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 675 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139. NO WARRANTY =========== BECAUSE GNUS IS LICENSED FREE OF CHARGE, WE PROVIDE ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE STATE LAW. EXCEPT WHEN OTHERWISE STATED IN WRITING, FUJITSU LABORATORIES LTD., MASANOBU UMEDA AND/OR OTHER PARTIES PROVIDE GNUS "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE PROGRAM IS WITH YOU. SHOULD THE GNUS PROGRAM PROVE DEFECTIVE, YOU ASSUME THE COST OF ALL NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR OR CORRECTION. IN NO EVENT UNLESS REQUIRED BY APPLICABLE LAW WILL FUJITSU LABORATORIES LTD., MASANOBU UMEDA, AND/OR ANY OTHER PARTY WHO MAY MODIFY AND REDISTRIBUTE GNUS AS PERMITTED ABOVE, BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR DAMAGES, INCLUDING ANY LOST PROFITS, LOST MONIES, OR OTHER SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF DATA OR DATA BEING RENDERED INACCURATE OR LOSSES SUSTAINED BY THIRD PARTIES OR A FAILURE OF THE PROGRAM TO OPERATE WITH PROGRAMS NOT DISTRIBUTED BY MASANOBU UMEDA) THE PROGRAM, EVEN IF YOU HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES, OR FOR ANY CLAIM BY ANY OTHER PARTY. File: gnus, Node: Acknowledgments, Next: Introduction, Prev: License, Up: Top Acknowledgments *************** The author would like to thank all those who have helped design and develop GNUS, and who tested non stable code at their own risk. Haruo Yokota, Hiroyuki Yoshida, and Kohji Akiyama contributed many valuable suggestions in the early stages of the development of GNUS. Nobuyuki Hiraoka, Tsuneo Nakata, and Mark Feldman patiently tested non stable code and contributed valuable comments. Mark Feldman also helped with proofreading. Mike Khaw, Kouich Kumon, and Mitsuhiro Kishimoto helped contribute the name GNUS. Itaru Ichikawa helped implement the caesar rotations for Japanese characters. Yasunari Itoh, Akio Shibata, and Ken-ichi Sakaeda made this software available on SX/A Emacs and some old versions of GNU Emacs. Leonard H. Tower Jr., Bob Sutterfield, and Karl Kleinpaste helped create mailing lists for GNUS users. Bob Sutterfield has also been managing the info-gnus-english mailing list. Jordan K. Hubbard helped with proofreading of this Texinfo manual. The author would also like to thank many other GNUS users who have sent comments, suggestions, and bug fixes. Thanks also go to Richard Stallman and the Free Software Foundation for their good work. File: gnus, Node: Introduction, Next: Installation, Prev: Acknowledgments, Up: Top Introduction ************ GNUS is a program for reading and writing USENET news using GNU Emacs. This manual documents the use and simple customization of GNUS. Unlike other conventional newsreaders such as rn which was (:-) the most popular newsreader in the world, GNUS runs inside the GNU Emacs editor as a subsystem. This means that there is no need to invoke an editor when composing articles or mail. The reading and writing of articles can be done in the same Emacs environment you usually work in. Like rrn, a remote version of rn, GNUS can use computer networks for retrieving articles. This means that there is no need to have a local copy of the news spool, to mount a remote file system over the network, or to run Emacs on a remote machine. Its great advantage is to balance loads and exploit resources of the entire computer system in a distributed environment. The protocol used by GNUS is "NNTP", the Network News Transfer Protocol, defined by RFC977. Unlike rrn, GNUS can talk to many NNTP servers easily. The only thing you have to do is to create startup files for each NNTP server. Like other libraries of GNU Emacs, GNUS is completely written in Emacs lisp. This means that GNUS is highly extensible and customizable just like GNU Emacs. It is possible to change the behavior of GNUS and extend its functions by using variables and hooks. GNUS is pronounced *"NUZ"*. Never call it *"ghu-NUZ"* nor *"ghu-NAS"*. This manual is currently in progress and thus is incomplete. Your suggestions, bug fixes, and contributions are welcome. File: gnus, Node: Installation, Next: Starting up, Prev: Introduction, Up: Top Installing GNUS *************** Installation of GNUS and some initialization of your computing environment are described in this chapter. Please read the following sections carefully before getting started with GNUS. * Menu: * Files of GNUS:: How many files of GNUS are there? * Compilation:: How to byte-compile lisp sources. * Autoloading:: How to define autoload entries. * Environment:: How to define your environment. * Texinfo Manual:: How to install an Info file and print the manual. File: gnus, Node: Files of GNUS, Next: Compilation, Prev: Installation, Up: Installation Files of GNUS ============= Unpacking the shar files will produce the following files. They are the Emacs lisp sources, a C source, a Texinfo manual of GNUS, and a Makefile. `gnus.el' Main part of GNUS newsreader. `gnuspost.el' Post news commands. `gnusmail.el' Mail reply commands. `gnusmisc.el' Miscellaneous commands. `nntp.el' NNTP package. `nnspool.el' A package accessing local news spool like NNTP. `mhspool.el' A package accessing private directory like NNTP. `timezone.el' A general time zone handling package useful not only for GNUS. `tcp.el' Patches to some versions of GNU Emacs which do not have the function `open-network-stream'. `tcp.c' C program for external TCP/IP implementation. This is used with `tcp.el'. `gnus.texinfo' Texinfo manual of GNUS. `Makefile' Makefile to byte-compile the lisp files using the `make' command. File: gnus, Node: Compilation, Next: Autoloading, Prev: Files of GNUS, Up: Installation Byte-Compilation ================ Move the lisp files, the C file, and `Makefile' to the appropriate directory in the search path defined by the variable `load-path'. Before actually byte-compiling the lisp files, make sure there are no byte-compiled files of older versions of GNUS in that directory. Remove or rename such files as the byte-compiler may be confused by old macro definitions. If you can use the `make' command, you don't have to take care of the dependencies. The C file `tcp.c' should be compiled with a C compiler and installed in a directory in the search path defined by the variable `exec-path', if this is required. If you can use the `make' command, just type `make' in a Unix shell. All the lisp files will be byte-compiled. Otherwise, byte-compile lisp files in the following order according to your computing environment by yourself: 1. Byte-compile `nntp.el', `gnus.el', `gnuspost.el', `gnusmail.el', and `gnusmisc.el' in this order. 2. Byte-compile `timezone.el' if you didn't have it. 3. Byte-compile `nnspool.el' if you want to use the local news spool of your machine instead of NNTP (*note Local News Spool::.). 4. Byte-compile `mhspool.el' if you want to read articles or mail in your private directory using GNUS (*note Private Directory::.). 5. Compile and install `tcp.el' and `tcp.c' if TCP/IP is not supported by Emacs but is supported by your operating system. `tcp.el' defines the function `open-network-stream', and `tcp.c' is an emulation program for the stream used by the function. If you modified `tcp.c' for your system, please send the author the diffs. Some of them will be included in the future releases of GNUS. File: gnus, Node: Autoloading, Next: Environment, Prev: Compilation, Up: Installation Autoloading =========== It is useful to define autoload entries in `.emacs', `site-init.el' or `default.el' as follows: (autoload 'gnus "gnus" "Read network news." t) (autoload 'gnus-post-news "gnuspost" "Post a new news." t) File: gnus, Node: Environment, Next: Texinfo Manual, Prev: Autoloading, Up: Installation Environment =========== The NNTP server and its service name, your domain and organization, and other important definitions of your computing environment are described in this section. Since these definitions depend heavily on your environment, you'd better be familiar with the operating system you are using. Knowledge of the USENET software is also important. * Menu: * Server: NNTP Server. How to define NNTP server. * Service: NNTP Service. How to define NNTP service. * Domain:: How to define your domain and organization. * GENERICFROM:: How to use GENERICFROM feature. * GENERICPATH:: How to use GENERICPATH feature. * Startup File:: About the startup files of GNUS. File: gnus, Node: NNTP Server, Next: NNTP Service, Prev: Environment, Up: Environment NNTP Server ----------- The variable `gnus-nntp-server' specifies the default NNTP server. To define the server `flab', put the following code in `.emacs', `site-init.el' or `default.el': (setq gnus-nntp-server "flab") The variable `gnus-nntp-server' is initialized from the `NNTPSERVER' environment variable. To define the server using the `NNTPSERVER' environment variable, put the following code in `.login': setenv NNTPSERVER "flab" If an NNTP server is preceded by a colon such as `:Mail', the user's private directory `~/Mail' is used as the news spool. This makes it possible to read mail stored in MH folders or articles saved by GNUS. *Note Private Directory::, for more information. GNUS will ask you for the NNTP server at start up time unless it is defined. Even if the default server is defined, it is possible to choose another server by invoking GNUS with a prefix argument like `C-u M-x gnus' (*note Getting Started::.). File: gnus, Node: NNTP Service, Next: Domain, Prev: NNTP Server, Up: Environment NNTP Service ------------ The default service name of NNTP is `"nntp"'. You may, however, have to define the service name as the number `119' as follows: (setq gnus-nntp-service 119) If you'd like to use a local news spool of your machine directly instead of NNTP, set the variable to `nil' as follows: (setq gnus-nntp-service nil) In this case, the NNTP server must be a local host name returned by the function `system-name' (*note Local News Spool::.). File: gnus, Node: Domain, Next: GENERICFROM, Prev: NNTP Service, Up: Environment Domain and Organization ----------------------- "Domain" and "organization" must be defined before you post your first article, because they are included in all articles you post and will be used for identifying who you are. "Domain" is the domain part of your mail address excluding the local host name. For example, if your mail address is `umerin@photon.stars.flab.Fujitsu.CO.JP' and the local host name is `photon', your domain is `stars.flab.Fujitsu.CO.JP'. If the function `system-name' of your Emacs returns the full Internet name, you do not have to define the domain. "Organization" is the organization you belong to. It must be defined unless it is defined in the file `/usr/lib/news/organization'. To define the domain `stars.flab.Fujitsu.CO.JP' and the organization `Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd., Kawasaki, Japan.' using lisp variables, put the following code in `.emacs', `site-init.el' or `default.el'. If you are a system administrator and are installing GNUS for other users, `site-init.el' is the best place to define this because the domain and organization are common to all users of the system. (setq gnus-local-domain "stars.flab.Fujitsu.CO.JP") (setq gnus-local-organization "Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd., Kawasaki, Japan.") The `DOMAINNAME' and `ORGANIZATION' environment variables are used instead, if defined. To define these variables, put the following code in `.login'. setenv DOMAINNAME "stars.flab.Fujitsu.CO.JP" setenv ORGANIZATION "Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd., Kawasaki, Japan." If the value of the `ORGANIZATION' environment variable or the variable `gnus-local-organization' begins with a slash, it is taken as the name of a file whose contents are read for the value. If neither of these is defined, and a file `~/.organization-DISTRIBUTION' or `~/.organization' exists, the contents of that file are used. If neither of them does not exist, and the file `/usr/lib/news/organization' exists, its contents are used. File: gnus, Node: GENERICFROM, Next: GENERICPATH, Prev: Domain, Up: Environment GENERICFROM ----------- If the variable `gnus-use-generic-from' is non-`nil', the local host name of your machine will not appear in the `From:' field of article headers you post. This is called the "GENERICFROM" feature in the Bnews system. This may be useful if there are many workstations connected to each other in a local area network, and aliases service or automatic forwarding of mail is supported between the workstations. To use the GENERICFROM, put the following code in `.emacs', `site-init.el' or `default.el'. If you are a system administrator and are installing GNUS for other users, `site-init.el' is the best place to define it because the definition is common to all users of the system having the same domain and organization (*note Domain and Organization: Domain.). (setq gnus-use-generic-from t) As a special case of the GENERICFROM feature, if the variable `gnus-use-generic-from' is a string, it is used as your domain instead of the definition of the environment variable `DOMAINNAME' or the variable `gnus-local-domain' (*note Domain and Organization: Domain.). File: gnus, Node: GENERICPATH, Next: Startup File, Prev: GENERICFROM, Up: Environment GENERICPATH ----------- If the variable `gnus-use-generic-path' is `nil', the NNTP server name followed by the user login name is used in the `Path:' field of article headers you post. If it is a string, the string followed by the user login name is used instead. Otherwise, if it is non-`nil', only the user login name is used. This is called the "GENERICPATH" feature in the Bnews system. For example, to define the generic path `flab', put the following codes in `.emacs', `site-init.el' or `default.el'. If you are a system administrator and are installing GNUS for other users, `site-init.el' is the best place to define it because the definition is common to all users of the system having the same domain and organization (*note Domain and Organization: Domain.). (setq gnus-use-generic-path "flab") In this case, the `Path:' field will be generated as `Path: flab!USER'. File: gnus, Node: Startup File, Prev: GENERICPATH, Up: Environment Startup File ------------ "Startup file" is a file recording information on articles you have already read. GNUS uses `.newsrc' for the startup file as in the Bnews system. If you think you will talk to exactly one NNTP server, you can use it without any problems. Otherwise, if you want to talk to several NNTP servers, you'd better use server specific startup files since startup files are not portable between servers. The server specific startup file for an NNTP server on a machine SERVER is a file named `.newsrc-SERVER'. For example, `.newsrc-photon' is for an NNTP server on a machine named `photon'. The primary name of the startup file, `.newsrc', is specified by the variable `gnus-startup-file' (*note Variables::.). GNUS automatically adds newly created newsgroups to a startup file when getting started. To prevent adding the newsgroups under some newsgroup hierarchies, you can use the options line in the startup file or the variable `gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method' provided for subscription method customization. *Note Variables::, for more information on the variable customization. Option `-n' of the options line in the startup file is recognized properly the same as for the Bnews system. For example, if the options line is `options -n !talk talk.rumors', newsgroups under the `talk' hierarchy except for `talk.rumors' are ignored while checking new newsgroups. These ignored newsgroups can be added manually using the command `U' (`gnus-Group-unsubscribe-group') in the Newsgroup buffer. Use the commands `C-k' and `C-w' (`gnus-Group-kill-group' and `gnus-Group-kill-region') to kill newsgroups from the startup file per a newsgroup basis. *Note Maintenance::, for more information. Once a startup file is updated by GNUS, the "quick startup file" of which the file name is generated by appending `.el' to that of the raw startup file is also created. The quick startup file can be read by Emacs faster than the raw startup file since all information in the file is in lisp form. If there is a quick startup file and it is newer than the raw startup file, the quick startup file is loaded instead of the raw startup file. If the raw startup file is newer, it is normally read after loading the quick startup file. You should not remove the quick startup file because it contains additional information. Instead, make the raw startup file newer than that by touching it or force GNUS to read it by using the command `R' (`gnus-Group-restart') in the Newsgroup buffer if you want to reflect the changes of the raw startup file to GNUS. File: gnus, Node: Texinfo Manual, Prev: Environment, Up: Installation Texinfo Manual ============== `gnus.texinfo' is a manual of GNUS written in Texinfo format. This file can be printed using TeX, and also can be read using Info Mode of Emacs. *note Creating an Info File: (texinfo)Creating an Info File, to create an on-line Info file from the Texinfo manual. If you are not allowed to create the Info file in the standard Info directory specified by the variable `Info-directory', create it in your private directory and set the variable `gnus-Info-directory' to the directory. If this Info file is installed, you can read the documentation of GNUS according to the current major mode of GNUS. The command `gnus-Info-find-node' for reading appropriate Info nodes of the Info file is assigned to `C-c C-i' in all major modes of GNUS. *note Printing Hardcopy: (texinfo)Printing Hardcopy, to print a hardcopy of the manual. File: gnus, Node: Starting up, Next: Buffers of GNUS, Prev: Installation, Up: Top Starting up GNUS **************** This chapter describes how to get started GNUS, how to use a local news spool directly, and how to read private directory. * Menu: * Getting Started:: How to get started GNUS. * Local News Spool:: How to use a local news spool. * Private Directory:: How to read a private directory. File: gnus, Node: Getting Started, Next: Local News Spool, Prev: Starting up, Up: Starting up Getting Started GNUS ==================== Type `M-x gnus' at the top level of GNU Emacs to invoke GNUS. Unless a default NNTP server is defined, you will be asked for the name of the server. The NNTP server can be changed at startup time by giving a prefix argument to the command even if a default server is defined. *Note NNTP Server::, to define the default server. `M-x gnus' Run GNUS using the default NNTP server. `C-u M-x gnus' Run GNUS without using the default NNTP server. File: gnus, Node: Local News Spool, Next: Private Directory, Prev: Getting Started, Up: Starting up Using Local News Spool ====================== If the NNTP server is the local host name (exactly the same as the value returned by the function `system-name'), and the variable `gnus-nntp-service' is nil, GNUS looks up the local news spool of your machine directly instead of NNTP (*note NNTP Service::.). It may be a good idea not to use NNTP if you wish to reduce network traffic (even if an NNTP server is running on the local machine) though commands for retrieving articles by Message-IDs may take longer or not work at all. *Note Referencing Articles::, to refer to articles by the Message-IDs, and *note Spool Variables::., for more information on the restrictions. File: gnus, Node: Private Directory, Prev: Local News Spool, Up: Starting up Reading a Private Directory =========================== If an NNTP server is preceded by a colon such as `:Mail', the user's private directory `~/Mail' is used as the news spool. This makes it possible to read mail stored in MH folders or articles saved by GNUS. An active file for the directory is generated from files of which the file name consists of only numeric characters, and other files containing non-numeric characters in their file name are ignored. A server specific startup file for each directory must be created before starting GNUS. For example, a startup file for the directory `~/Mail' is a file named `.newsrc-:Mail'. *Note Startup File::, for more information on the server specific startup file. File: gnus, Node: Buffers of GNUS, Next: Newsgroup Commands, Prev: Starting up, Up: Top Buffers of GNUS *************** Basically GNUS uses three buffers in Emacs: Newsgroup buffer, Subject buffer, and Article buffer. Each of them is associated with a specific major mode of Emacs. The configuration of the windows displaying these buffers are customizable by using the variable `gnus-window-configuration'. *Note Variables::, for more information on customizing the window configuration. * Menu: * Newsgroup Buffer:: a buffer for listing newsgroups. * Subject Buffer:: a buffer for listing subjects and other important headers. * Article Buffer:: a buffer for displaying messages of articles. File: gnus, Node: Newsgroup Buffer, Next: Subject Buffer, Prev: Buffers of GNUS, Up: Buffers of GNUS Newsgroup Buffer ================ "Newsgroup buffer" is for listing newsgroups. The major mode of this buffer is "Group Mode". The buffer is created and popped up when GNUS starts. Newsgroups which are subscribed to and contain unread articles are usually listed in the buffer. If there is no such newsgroup, the buffer will be empty and a message `No news is good news.' will be displayed in the echo area of Emacs. The contents of a Newsgroup buffer looks something like the following: SM NUMBER: NEWSGROUP A character indicating whether the newsgroup is subscribed to. `U' means the newsgroup is unsubscribed. ` ' means it is subscribed to. A character indicating whether there are unread articles in the newsgroup. `*' means there are no newly arrived articles in the newsgroup. ` ' means there are newly arrived articles. NUMBER The number of unread articles in the newsgroup. NEWSGROUP The name of the newsgroup. File: gnus, Node: Subject Buffer, Next: Article Buffer, Prev: Newsgroup Buffer, Up: Buffers of GNUS Subject Buffer ============== "Subject buffer" is for listing subjects and other important headers of articles. The major mode of the buffer is "Subject Mode". The buffer is created for each newsgroup when the newsgroup is selected in the Newsgroup buffer. The contents of a Subject buffer looks something like the following: S NUMBER:C[LINES:AUTHOR] SUBJECT A character indicating whether an article is newly arrived. ` ' means the article is newly arrived. `D' means it was read and marked so. `-' means it was read once but marked as unread again. NUMBER The number assigned to the article. A character indicating which article is currently selected. `+' is placed on the current article. LINES The number of lines of the article body. AUTHOR Mail address of the author of the article. SUBJECT Subject of the article. Strings between `[' and `]' are optional, and can be customized using the variable `gnus-optional-headers'. *Note Variables::, and *note Hooks::., for more information on customization. File: gnus, Node: Article Buffer, Prev: Subject Buffer, Up: Buffers of GNUS Article Buffer ============== "Article buffer" is for displaying articles. The major mode of the buffer is "Article Mode". Very few commands are available in this buffer because most operations on the buffer can be done in the Subject buffer. File: gnus, Node: Newsgroup Commands, Next: Subject Commands, Prev: Buffers of GNUS, Up: Top Newsgroup Commands ****************** The Newsgroup buffer is intended to show newsgroups which are subscribed to and contain unread articles. Unsubscribed newsgroups or newsgroups containing no unread articles are not usually displayed in the buffer. Commands for browsing through newsgroups, selecting newsgroups to read, and maintaining newsgroups are described in this chapter. * Menu: * Browsing Newsgroups:: Browsing through newsgroups. * Selecting a Newsgroup:: Selecting a newsgroup to read articles. * Maintenance:: Maintaining newsgroups. * Exiting GNUS:: How to exit GNUS. * Other Newsgroup Commands:: Other miscellaneous commands. File: gnus, Node: Browsing Newsgroups, Next: Selecting a Newsgroup, Prev: Newsgroup Commands, Up: Newsgroup Commands Walking Around Newsgroups ========================= First of all, you have to move the point to a newsgroup to read articles in it. Move point to the next newsgroup containing unread articles (`gnus-Group-next-unread-group'). `DEL' Move point to the previous newsgroup containing unread articles (`gnus-Group-prev-unread-group'). `C-n' Move point to the next newsgroup (`gnus-Group-next-group'). `C-p' Move point to the previous newsgroup (`gnus-Group-prev-group'). `j NEWSGROUP RET' Move point to the specified NEWSGROUP (`gnus-Group-jump-to-group'). Do an incremental search forward (`isearch-forward'). Move point to the beginning of the buffer (`beginning-of-buffer'). Move point to the end of the buffer (`end-of-buffer'). Restrict visible newsgroups to the current region specified by the point and the mark (`gnus-Group-restrict-groups'). The command `j' (`gnus-Group-jump-to-group') reads a newsgroup name interactively, and moves the point to it. If there is no such newsgroup in the buffer, a line for the newsgroup is inserted at the beginning of the buffer. The command `r' (`gnus-Group-restrict-groups') restricts visible newsgroups to the current region specified by the point and the mark. This is useful if you want to concentrate on a restricted set of newsgroups in a region. Type `C-x w' (`widen') to remove the restriction. File: gnus, Node: Selecting a Newsgroup, Next: Maintenance, Prev: Browsing Newsgroups, Up: Newsgroup Commands Selecting a Newsgroup ===================== If you successfully move the point to a desired newsgroup, you can select the newsgroup to read articles by typing `SPC' (`gnus-Group-read-group') or `=' (`gnus-Group-select-group') on that line. `SPC' Select the newsgroup, and then select the first unread article automatically (`gnus-Group-read-group'). Select the newsgroup (`gnus-Group-select-group'). No article is selected automatically. To prevent automatic selection of the first unread article even when the newsgroup is selected by the command `SPC' (`gnus-Group-read-group'), set the variable `gnus-auto-select-first' to `nil'. If you want to change the value of the variable according to the selected newsgroups, set the variable in the hook `gnus-Select-group-hook'. If unread articles are contained in a selected newsgroup, they become ready to be read. Otherwise, all articles in the newsgroup become ready to be read. All articles in a newsgroup can be selected unconditionally by giving a prefix argument to the commands `SPC' and `=' (`gnus-Group-read-group' and `gnus-Group-select-group'). If the number of articles being selected is larger than the variable `gnus-large-newsgroup', the number of articles actually selected is asked for. If the given value N is positive, the last N articles will be selected. If N is negative, the first N articles will be selected. An empty string means to select all articles. *Note Variables::, and *note Hooks::., for more information on customization. File: gnus, Node: Maintenance, Next: Exiting GNUS, Prev: Selecting a Newsgroup, Up: Newsgroup Commands Maintaining Newsgroups ====================== Subscription of newsgroups, deletion of bogus newsgroups, and other related operations are described in this section. Mark all articles as read in the newsgroup, preserving articles marked as unread (`gnus-Group-catch-up'). Mark all articles as read in the newsgroup (`gnus-Group-catch-up-all'). Redisplay newsgroups which are subscribed to and containing unread articles (`gnus-Group-list-groups'). Display all newsgroups unconditionally (`gnus-Group-list-all-groups'). Unsubscribe from (or subscribe to) the newsgroup (`gnus-Group-unsubscribe-current-group'). `U NEWSGROUP RET' Unsubscribe from (or subscribe to) the specified NEWSGROUP (`gnus-Group-unsubscribe-group'). If it is not contained in the startup file, it is added to the file. `C-k' Kill newsgroups from the startup file (`gnus-Group-kill-group'). Numeric argument to the command specifies the number of newsgroups to be killed. `C-w' Kill newsgroups in current region (excluding current line) from the startup file (`gnus-Group-kill-region'). `C-y' Yank the last newsgroup killed with the command `C-k' before the current line (`gnus-Group-yank-group'). `C-c C-y' Pop up a buffer for browsing the killed newsgroups (`gnus-Browse-killed-groups'). Check bogus newsgroups (`gnus-Group-check-bogus-groups'). Bogus means non-active. Get newly arrived articles (`gnus-Group-get-new-news'). In fact, GNUS reads the active file from the NNTP server again. Force to read the raw startup file and get newly arrived articles (`gnus-Group-restart'). The commands `c' and `C' (`gnus-Group-catch-up' and `gnus-Group-catch-up-all') mark all articles as read in a newsgroup. These commands do not take account of the cross-reference information in the `Xref:' field, while the command `c' (`gnus-Subject-catch-up-and-exit') in Subject Mode does. Only subscribed newsgroups containing unread articles are usually displayed in the Newsgroup buffer. Type `L' (`gnus-Group-list-all-groups') to show all newsgroups which are currently active. The command `U' (`gnus-Group-unsubscribe-group') reads a newsgroup name interactively, and toggles its subscription flag if it is already in the startup file. Otherwise, if it is not contained in the startup file, it is added to the file. Thus, you can add newly created newsgroups manually which are not added automatically because of the options line in the startup file. *Note Startup File::, for more information on the startup file and options line. The commands `C-k' and `C-w' (`gnus-Group-kill-group' and `gnus-Group-kill-region') kill newsgroups from both the Newsgroup buffer and the raw startup file. The killed newsgroups are stored in an invisible kill ring and they can be yanked back later. The command `C-y' (`gnus-Group-yank-group') yank the last newsgroup killed. The command `C-c C-y' (`gnus-Browse-killed-groups') pops up the "Browse-Killed buffer" for browsing all the killed newsgroups. In this buffer, the killed newsgroups can be yanked in any order using the commands `y' and `C-y' (`gnus-Browse-killed-yank'). Thus, you can change the order of newsgroups in the Newsgroup buffer without editing the raw startup file directly. Since the information on the killed newsgroups will be stored in the quick startup file, they can be restored any time unless you lose the file. A "bogus newsgroup" is one not in the list of active newsgroups in the active file. Bogus newsgroups which are deleted or renamed must be deleted from the startup file (*note Startup File::.) explicitly by the command `b' (`gnus-Group-check-bogus-groups'). The command `R' (`gnus-Group-restart') is useful to restart GNUS using the raw startup file instead of the quick startup file. Generally speaking, if you want changes to the raw startup file to be noticed by GNUS, it must be newer than the quick startup file. *Note Startup File::, for more information on the startup file. GNUS reads the active file at start up time to know about currently active articles. This information is not updated unless you force GNUS to do so with the command `g' (`gnus-Group-get-new-news') or the command `R' (`gnus-Group-restart'). File: gnus, Node: Exiting GNUS, Next: Other Newsgroup Commands, Prev: Maintenance, Up: Newsgroup Commands Exiting GNUS ============ Update the startup file `.newsrc' (`gnus-Group-force-update'). Suspend the current GNUS session to make it possible to resume it later (`gnus-Group-suspend'). Update the startup file `.newsrc', and then exit GNUS (`gnus-Group-exit'). Exit GNUS without updating the startup file `.newsrc' (`gnus-Group-quit'). If a GNUS session is suspended by the command `z' (`gnus-Group-suspend'), it is possible to resume it later without any time-consuming initializations. Switch to the Newsgroup buffer and type `g' (`gnus-Group-get-new-news') to get newly arrived articles if you want to resume the suspended GNUS session. It is a good idea to update the startup file (*note Startup File::.) before suspending GNUS. If you want to forget what you read this GNUS session, exit GNUS by the command `Q' (`gnus-Group-quit'). Otherwise, exit by the command `q' (`gnus-Group-exit') to update the startup file. The hook `gnus-Exit-gnus-hook' is called when exiting GNUS, and the hook `gnus-Suspend-gnus-hook' is called when suspending GNUS. If you want to clear out Emacs buffers which were created by GNUS and remain afterwards, use these hooks. File: gnus, Node: Other Newsgroup Commands, Prev: Exiting GNUS, Up: Newsgroup Commands Miscellaneous Commands ====================== Other miscellaneous commands are described here. Compose a new article (`gnus-Group-post-news'). *Note Followup and Reply::, for more information. `M-k' Edit a local KILL file (`gnus-Group-edit-local-kill'). *Note KILL File::, for more information. `M-K' Edit a global KILL file (`gnus-Group-edit-global-kill'). *Note KILL File::, for more information. Print version number of this GNUS (`gnus-version'). Describe Group Mode commands briefly (`gnus-Group-describe-briefly'). `C-c C-i' Read Info on Group Mode (`gnus-Info-find-node'). *Note Texinfo Manual::, to prepare an Info file of GNUS. File: gnus, Node: Subject Commands, Next: Article Commands, Prev: Newsgroup Commands, Up: Top Subject Commands **************** The Subject buffer is intended to show interesting headers of articles in a newsgroup and to help you know what kind of discussions are being held there. Messages of articles are displayed in the Article buffer which is usually popped up automatically when necessary. Scrolling of the messages and most other commands on articles can be done in the Subject buffer. * Menu: * Reading Articles:: How to read articles. * Searching Articles:: Searching for articles. * Referencing Articles:: Referencing parent articles. * Saving Articles:: Saving articles in your favorite format. * Sorting Headers:: Sorting subjects and other headers. * Followup and Reply:: Followup and reply commands. * Exiting Newsgroup:: How to exit the current newsgroup. * Other Subject Commands:: Other miscellaneous commands. File: gnus, Node: Reading Articles, Next: Searching Articles, Prev: Subject Commands, Up: Subject Commands Reading Articles ================ Commands for browsing headers and reading messages are described here. * Menu: * Browsing Headers:: Browsing through headers. * Moving Among Articles:: Selecting articles. * Scrolling:: Browsing through a message. * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as (un)read. * Thread-based Reading:: Reading articles based on conversation threads. * Digest Articles:: How to read digest articles. File: gnus, Node: Browsing Headers, Next: Moving Among Articles, Prev: Reading Articles, Up: Reading Articles Walking Around Headers ---------------------- `C-n' Move point to the next header (`gnus-Subject-next-subject'). `C-p' Move point to the previous header (`gnus-Subject-prev-subject'). `M-n' Move point to the next header, skipping marked articles (`gnus-Subject-next-unread-subject'). `M-p' Move point to the previous header, skipping marked articles (`gnus-Subject-prev-unread-subject'). `j NUMBER RET' Move point to the header specified by the article NUMBER (`gnus-Subject-goto-subject'). Do an incremental search on headers (`isearch-forward'). These commands are for moving the point on headers. Type `SPC' (`gnus-Subject-next-page') or `g' (`gnus-Subject-show-article') to read an article on the line (*note Scrolling::.). Expand the Subject Mode window to show the headers full window (`gnus-Subject-expand-window'). `C-t' Toggle truncation of the Subject buffer (`gnus-Subject-toggle-truncation'). The command `=' (`gnus-Subject-expand-window') expands the Subject Mode window by deleting the Article Mode window. It is very useful for displaying the Subject buffer full window when browsing through many headers. The command behaves different from the command `C-x 1' (`delete-other-windows') if windows more than two are displayed. Long lines in the Subject buffer are truncated and the continuation lines are not displayed normally. The command `C-t' (`gnus-Subject-toggle-truncation') toggles the truncation of the lines in the buffer.