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- Archive-name: usenet/signature-faq
- News-newusers-questions-archive-name: signature-faq
- Last-modified: 1994/12/1
- Author: tierna@agora.rdrop.com - with tips gathered from posts
- and submissions and credited wherever possible
- Comment: Available for FTP from rtfm.mit.edu in usenet/news/newusers/questions
- and by email from tierna@agora.rdrop.com.
-
-
-
- FAQ on making and using a .signature file
- by Britt Klein
-
- Last updated: 1 December 1994
-
- What follows are the bare basics on how to create a .signature file and get
- it to append to your news posts and email. It *should* work for most users.
-
- I'm going to try and pop this thing off every 4 days or so, just to keep
- it in people's faces and possibly eliminate the constant-request syndrome.
- Therefore this might be repeated twice in some postings:
- Available for FTP from rtfm.mit.edu in usenet/news/newusers/questions
- by email from tierna@agora.rdrop.com.
-
- Anything in quotes is a prompt-line command and should work verbatim.
- (Also, the terminology herein is quite near the lowest level of enduser.
- This is on purpose, as the last thing new users need is to be confused by
- too much technicalese.)
-
- This is formulated for *nix-based systems, outside of that realm I'm
- out of my level of expertise big-time. I never claimed to know everything,
- just enough to get around.
-
- Yes, DO email for clarification or further information or advice. I'm
- perfectly willing to help people if they ask.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- Get thee to thy home directory and therein edit thyself a file. Name it
- `.signature'. Remember that inews and other news systems (the ones that
- make up the majority of the news software on Usenet, actually) will cut
- off everything after the fourth line, so it's good to stay below that limit.
- Also, don't use ANSI. It might look good on your screen, but zillions of
- people across the Net will see it as nothing more than a bunch of control
- characters and very likely underestimate your intelligence.
- If you've never used an editor, I suggest pico, as it's infinitely
- user-friendly. ("pico .signature") Save it.
- Make sure the .signature file is world readable ("chmod 644 .signature").
-
- Now, your news posting software _should_ look for and automatically append
- it to your posts. If you're using Elm for email, it ought to do same.
- Some versions of mail and mailx will, also.
-
- If you are using Elm and it doesn't automatically read on the end of your
- messages, go to your .elm directory ("cd .elm") and edit your elmrc to get
- the pointers looking for a .signature file (often the problem is that line
- is commented out with a #, delete it). This assumes your Elm, as mine,
- supplies a .elm directory and elmrc file when invoked. If not, the following
- section should be the answer:
- --
- 1. If you do not yet have a .elm/elmrc file, create one with the
- following steps:
- elm (start elm)
- o (options)
- > (save)
- q (quit elm)
-
- 2. Edit the .elm/elmrc file with your favorite text editor (newer
- versions create a .elm directory and put the file `elmrc' into it.
- If that doesn't happen, you'll need to create it at this point, then
- edit), and insert the two lines
- localsignature = $HOME/.signature
- remotesignature = $HOME/.signature
- according to the comment lines in that file
- (Remember, to have those lines read, take out the #'s at the beginning.)
- --
- Torsten Dreier kindly supplied the information on getting things working
- in Pine:
- In your home directory you should have a file called '.pinerc'. Check
- with 'ls -alg'. This file is the pine configuration. Edit it and search for
- the section 'feature list'. To this section add the command
- 'signature-at-bottom' which will move the signature in replies to the end
- of the original (quoted) text. As far as I know this only works for mail
- not for newsgroups.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- NOTE: Newsposting software normally does *not* show your .signature when
- it asks about sending. The only sure way to know is to post to a TEST
- newsgroup to see. Don't append manually thinking it's not there until you
- know for certain.
- And remember, to test your .signature, send email to yourself or a friend,
- and send your posts to alt.test or misc.test with the Subject: ignore,
- so you don't clutter up areas not meant for such things. That way you'll
- not get floods of email chiding you for improper newsgroup use.
- Worldwide test groups send automatic replies to posts unless you include
- the words "ignore" or "no reply" in the body of the message.
-
- (Recommended reading: Professor Timo Salmi's FAQ on test posts periodically
- posted to news.newusers.questions.)
-
- - Britt
- --
- "I was sleeping nicely, then someone shut the lid on my pillow...
- That hurt." - SJK 12-12-94 0500
-