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diff --git a/etc/gnus-tut.txt b/etc/gnus-tut.txt new file mode 100644 index 00000000000..94e9500f712 --- /dev/null +++ b/etc/gnus-tut.txt @@ -0,0 +1,294 @@ +From lars Thu Feb 23 23:20:38 1995 +From: larsi@ifi.uio.no (ding) +Date: Fri Feb 24 13:40:45 1995 +Subject: So you want to use the new Gnus +Message-ID: <lars-doc1@eyesore.no> + +Actually, since you are reading this, chances are you are already +using the new Gnus. Congratulations. + +This entire newsgroup you are reading is, in fact, no real newsgroup +at all, in the traditional sense. It is an example of one of the +"foreign" select methods that Gnus may use. + +The text you are now reading is stored in the "etc" directory with the +rest of the Emacs sources. You are using the "nndoc" backend for +accessing it. Scary, isn't it? + +This isn't the real documentation. `M-x info', `m gnus <RET>' to read +that. This "newsgroup" is intended as a kinder, gentler way of getting +people started. + +Gnus is a rewrite of GNUS 4.1, written by Masanobu Umeda. The rewrite +was done by moi, yours truly, your humble servant, Lars Magne +Ingebrigtsen. If you have a WWW browser, you can investigate to your +heart's delight at <URL:http://www.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/larsi.html>. + +;; Copyright (C) 1995 Free Software Foundation, Inc. + +;; Author: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@ifi.uio.no> +;; Keywords: news + +;; This file is part of GNU Emacs. + +;; GNU Emacs 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, or (at your option) +;; any later version. + +;; GNU Emacs 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 GNU Emacs; see the file COPYING. If not, write to the +;; Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place - Suite 330, +;; Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA. + +From lars Thu Feb 23 23:20:38 1995 +From: larsi@ifi.uio.no (ding) +Date: Fri Feb 24 13:40:45 1995 +Subject: Starting up +Message-ID: <lars-doc2@eyesore.no> + +If you are having problems with Gnus not finding your server, you have +to set `gnus-select-method'. A "method" is a way of specifying *how* +the news is to be found, and from *where*. + +Say you want to read news from you local, friendly nntp server +"news.my.local.server". + +(setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.my.local.server")) + +Quite easy, huh? + +From the news spool: + +(setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool "")) + +From your mh-e spool: + +(setq gnus-select-method '(nnmh "")) + +There's a whole bunch of other methods for reading mail and news, see +the "Foreign groups" article for that. + + +From lars Thu Feb 23 23:20:38 1995 +From: larsi@ifi.uio.no (ding) +Date: Fri Feb 24 13:40:45 1995 +Subject: Where are all the groups, then? +Message-ID: <lars-doc3@eyesore.no> + +If this is the first time you have used a newsreader, you won't have a +.newsrc file. This means that Gnus will think that all the newsgroups +on the server are "new", and kill them all. + +If you have a .newsrc file, the new groups will be processed with the +function in the `gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method' variable, which is +`gnus-subscribe-zombies' by default. + +This means that all the groups have been made into "zombies" - not +quite dead, but not exactly alive, either. + +Jump back to the *Group* buffer, and type `A z' to list all the zombie +groups. Look though the list, and subscribe to the groups you want to +read by pressing `u' on the one you think look interesting. + +If all the groups have been killed, type `A k' to list all the killed +groups. Subscribe to them the same way. + +When you are satisfied, press `S z' to kill all the zombie groups. + +Now you should have a nice list of all groups you are interested in. + +(If you later want to subscribe to more groups, press `A k' to +list all the kill groups, and repeat. You can also type `U' and be +prompted for groups to subscribe to.) + + +From lars Thu Feb 23 23:20:38 1995 +From: larsi@ifi.uio.no (ding) +Date: Fri Feb 24 13:40:45 1995 +Subject: I want to read my mail! +Message-ID: <lars-doc4@eyesore.no> + +Yes, Virginia, you can read mail with Gnus. + +First you have to decide which mail backend you want to use. You have +nnml, which is a one-file-one-mail backend, which is quite nice, but +apt to make your systems administrator go crazy and come after you +with a shotgun. + +nnmbox uses a Unix mail box to store mail. Nice, but slow. + +nnmh uses mh-e folders, which is also a one-file-one-mail thingie, but +slower than nnml. (It doesn't support NOV files.) + +So if you want to go with nnmbox, you can simply say: + +(setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox ""))) + +(The same for the other methods, kind of.) + +You should also set `nnmail-split-methods' to something sensible: + +(setq nnmail-split-methods + '(("mail.junk" "From:.*Lars") + ("mail.misc ""))) + +This will put all mail from me in you junk mail group, and the rest in +"mail.misc". + +These groups will be subscribe the same way as the normal groups, so +you will probably find them among the zombie groups after you set +these variables and re-start Gnus. + + +From lars Thu Feb 23 23:20:38 1995 +From: larsi@ifi.uio.no (ding) +Date: Fri Feb 24 13:40:45 1995 +Subject: Foreign newsgroups +Message-ID: <lars-doc5@eyesore.no> + +These are groups that do not come from `gnus-select-method'. + +Say you want to read "alt.furniture.couches" from "news.funet.fi". You +can then either type `B news.funet.fi <RET>' to browse that server and +subscribe to that group, or you can type +`G m alt.furniture.couches<RET>nntp<RET>news.funet.fi<RET>', if you +like to type a lot. + +If you want to read a directory as a newsgroup, you can create an +nndir group, much the same way. There's a shorthand for that, +though. If, for instance, you want to read the (ding) list archives, +you could type `G d /ftp <RET>'. + +There's lots more to know about foreign groups, but you have to read +the info pages to find out more. + + +From lars Thu Feb 23 23:20:38 1995 +From: larsi@ifi.uio.no (ding) +Date: Fri Feb 24 13:40:45 1995 +Subject: Low level changes in GNUS, or, Wrong type argument: stringp, nil +Message-ID: <lars-doc6@eyesore.no> + +Gnus really isn't GNUS, even though it looks like it. If you scrape +the surface, you'll find that most things have changed. + +This means that old code that relies on GNUS internals will fail. + +In particular, `gnus-newsrc-hashtb', `gnus-newsrc-assoc', +`gnus-killed-list', the `nntp-header-' macros and the display formats +have all changed. If you have some code lying around that depend on +these, or change these, you'll have to re-write your code. + +Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably +remove all hilit code from all the Gnus hooks +(`gnus-group-prepare-hook', `gnus-summary-prepare-hook' and +`gnus-summary-article-hook'). (Well, at the very least the first +two.) Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting, +which are both faster and more accurated. + +There is absolutely no chance, whatsoever, of getting Gnus to work +with Emacs 18. It won't even work on Emacsen older than Emacs +19.30/XEmacs 19.13. Upgrade your Emacs or die. + + +From lars Thu Feb 23 23:20:38 1995 +From: larsi@ifi.uio.no (ding) +Date: Fri Feb 24 13:40:45 1995 +Subject: How do I re-scan my mail groups? +Message-ID: <lars-doc8@eyesore.no> + +Reading the active file from the nntp server is a drag. + +Just press `M-g' on the mail groups, and they will be re-scanned. + +You can also re-scan all the mail groups by putting them on level 1 +(`S l 1'), and saying `1 g' to re-scan all level 1 groups. + + +From lars Thu Feb 23 23:20:38 1995 +From: larsi@ifi.uio.no (ding) +Date: Fri Feb 24 13:40:45 1995 +Subject: How do I set up virtual newsgroups? +Message-ID: <lars-doc9@eyesore.no> + +Virtual newsgroups are collections of other newsgroups. Why people +want this is beyond me, but here goes: + +Create the group by saying + +`M-a my.virtual.newsgroup<RET>nnvirtual<RET>^rec\.aquaria\.*<RET>' + +This will create the group "nnvirtual:my.virtual.newsgroup", which +will collect all articles from all the groups in the "rec.aquaria" +hierarchy. + +If you want to edit the regular expression, just type `M-e' on the +group line. + +Note that all the groups that are part of the virtual group have to be +alive. This means that the cannot, absolutely not, be zombie or +killed. They can be unsubscribed; that's no problem. + +You can combine groups from different servers in the same virtual +newsgroup, something that may actually be useful. Say you have the +group "comp.headers" on the server "news.server.no" and the same group +on "news.server.edu". If people have posted articles with Distribution +headers that stop propagation of their articles, combining these two +newsgroups into one virtual newsgroup should give you a better view of +what's going on. + +One caveat, though: The virtual group article numbers from the first +source group (group A) will always be lower than the article numbers +from the second (group B). This means that Gnus will believe that +articles from group A are older than articles from group B. Threading +will lessen these problems, but it might be a good idea to sort the +threads over the date of the articles to get a correct feel for the +flow of the groups: + +(setq gnus-thread-sort-functions '(gnus-thread-sort-by-date)) + +If you only want this in virtual groups, you could say something along +the lines of: + +(setq gnus-select-group-hook + (lambda () + (if (eq 'nnvirtual (car (gnus-find-method-for-group + gnus-newsgroup-name))) + (progn + (make-local-variable 'gnus-thread-sort-functions) + (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions '(gnus-thread-sort-by-date)))))) + + +From lars Thu Feb 23 23:20:38 1995 +From: larsi@ifi.uio.no (ding) +Date: Fri Feb 24 13:40:45 1995 +Subject: Bugs & stuff +Message-ID: <lars-doc7@eyesore.no> + +If you want to report a bug, please type `M-x gnus-bug'. This will +give me a precise overview of your Gnus and Emacs version numbers, +along with a look at all Gnus variables you have changed. + +Du not expect a reply back, but your bug should be fixed in the next +version. If the bug persists, please re-submit your bug report. + +When a bug occurs, I need a recipe for how to trigger the bug. You +have to tell me exactly what you do to uncover the bug, and you should +(setq debug-on-error t) and send me the backtrace along with the bug +report. + +If I am not able to reproduce the bug, I won't be able to fix it. + +I would, of course, prefer that you locate the bug, fix it, and mail +me the patches, but one can't have everything. + +If you have any questions on usage, the "ding@ifi.uio.no" mailing list +is where to post the questions. + + |