clarify contributing and patch/bug tracking

[obsolete/notmuch-wiki] / index.mdwn

diff --git a/index.mdwn b/index.mdwn
index bde412838cd14bc2aa615c0802e68400e30dfbff..4b0fbc8fd3a493a8996cc7142d095d21ef9ca028 100644 (file)
--- a/index.mdwn
+++ b/index.mdwn
@@ -1,5 +1,9 @@
 [[!img notmuch-logo.png alt="Notmuch logo" class="left"]]
 [[!img notmuch-logo.png alt="Notmuch logo" class="left"]]

-# Why Notmuch?
+# Notmuch -- The mail indexer
+
+## Why Notmuch?
+
+Because dealing with your mail can be so much better.

 
 * "Not much mail" is what Notmuch thinks about your email
   collection. Even if you receive 12000 messages per month or have on
 
 * "Not much mail" is what Notmuch thinks about your email
   collection. Even if you receive 12000 messages per month or have on


@@ -12,7 +16,7 @@
   that you can keep your inbox tamed and focus on what really matters
   in your life, (which is surely not email).
 
   that you can keep your inbox tamed and focus on what really matters
   in your life, (which is surely not email).
 

-* Notmuch is an answer to <a href="http://sup.rubyforge.org/">Sup</a>.
+* Notmuch is an answer to [Sup](http://sup.rubyforge.org/).

   Sup is a very good email program written by William Morgan (and
   others) and is the direct inspiration for Notmuch. Notmuch began as
   an effort to rewrite performance-critical pieces of Sup in C rather
   Sup is a very good email program written by William Morgan (and
   others) and is the direct inspiration for Notmuch. Notmuch began as
   an effort to rewrite performance-critical pieces of Sup in C rather


@@ -23,72 +27,136 @@
   features can be integrated into any email program.)
 
 * Notmuch is not much of an email program. It doesn't receive messages
   features can be integrated into any email program.)
 
 * Notmuch is not much of an email program. It doesn't receive messages

-  (no POP or IMAP suport). It doesn't send messages (no mail composer,
+  (no POP or IMAP support). It doesn't send messages (no mail composer,

   no network code at all). And for what it does do (email search) that
   no network code at all). And for what it does do (email search) that

-  work is provided by an external library, <a
-  href="http://xapian.org/">Xapian</a>. So if Notmuch provides no user
+  work is provided by an external library,
+  [Xapian](http://xapian.org).  So if Notmuch provides no user

   interface and Xapian does all the heavy lifting, then what's left
   interface and Xapian does all the heavy lifting, then what's left

-  here? Not much.  </ul>
+  here? Not much.

 
 

-Notmuch is still in the early stages of development, but there are
-already three user interfaces available for it (one for emacs, one for
-vim, and another using curses for running within a terminal). If
-you've been looking for a fast, global-search and tag-based email
+If you've been looking for a fast, global-search and tag-based email

 reader to use within your text editor or in a terminal, then Notmuch
 may be exactly what you've been looking for.
 
 reader to use within your text editor or in a terminal, then Notmuch
 may be exactly what you've been looking for.
 

-Otherwise, if you're a developer of an existing email program and
-would love a good library interface for fast, global search with
-support for arbitrary tags, then Notmuch also may be exactly what
-you've been looking for.
+If you're a developer of an existing email program and would love a
+good library interface for fast, global search with support for
+arbitrary tags, then Notmuch also may be exactly what you've been
+looking for.
+
+## News
+
+[[The latest news from notmuch|news]]
+
+## Documentation
+
+To get started with notmuch, just run "notmuch" at the command line.
+The configuration wizard will walk you through initial setup,
+including specifying the location of your mail store and how to start
+the initial indexing.  After that, come back and checkout our docs:
+
+  * [[Notmuch manual pages|manpages]]
+  * [[General how-tos|howto]]
+  * [[Searching]]
+  * [[Excluding and deleting messages|excluding]]
+  * [[Initial tagging|Initial_Tagging]]
+  * [[Tips for using notmuch within Emacs|emacstips]]
+  * [[Remote usage|remoteusage]]
+  * [[Performance|performance]]
+
+Apart from the wiki, help is available via email and on IRC (see
+below).  Join the mailing list.  Read the archives.  Ask questions.
+
+## Email clients and front ends
+
+Notmuch ships with a powerful set of [[command-line tools|manpages]], an
+[[email client for Emacs|emacstips]], another
+[client for vim](http://git.notmuchmail.org/git/notmuch/blob/HEAD:/vim/README),
+and a [[Mutt integration script|notmuch-mutt]].
+
+There are also many other [[email clients and frontends|frontends]] based on
+Notmuch.

 
 

+## Screenshots

 
 

-## Source code
+* [[Emacs UI screenshots|screenshots]]

 
 

-Either way, please feel free to jump in. All of the code for Notmuch
-is available as <a
-href="http://www.fsf.org/licensing/essays/free-sw.html">free
-software</a> released under the GNU 
-<a href="http://www.fsf.org/licensing/licenses/gpl.html">GPL version 
-3</a>. The latest versions
-can be checked out via git with this command:
+## Obtaining Notmuch

 
 

-       git clone git://notmuchmail.org/git/notmuch
+[Notmuch source releases](http://notmuchmail.org/releases/) are available as
+source tar balls.

 
 

-You can browse the <a
-href="http://git.notmuchmail.org/git/notmuch">Notmuch code history</a>
-online. And finally, you can <a
-href="http://notmuchmail.org/mailman/listinfo/notmuch-commits">subscribe
-to the notmuch-commits list</a> to watch every commit made to notmuch
-and the notmuchmail.org web site.
+Notmuch is packaged for the following distributions:

 
 

-Patches are most welcome and should be sent to notmuch&#64;notmuchmail.org.
-Please try to follow the [patch submission guidelines of the Git
-project](http://repo.or.cz/w/git.git?a=blob;f=Documentation/SubmittingPatches;hb=HEAD)
-when submitting patches to notmuch. We are currently test-driving a [Patchwork
-instance](http://patchwork.notmuchmail.org/project/notmuch) to help us keep track
-of [the patches](http://patchwork.notmuchmail.org/project/notmuch/list).
+* [Debian](http://packages.debian.org/search?keywords=notmuch) (Please use at
+  least the packages from squeeze-backports, squeeze packages are very
+  outdated!)
+* [Fedora](https://community.dev.fedoraproject.org/packages/notmuch)
+* [Gentoo](http://packages.gentoo.org/package/net-mail/notmuch)
+* [Slackware](http://slackbuilds.org/repository/13.37/office/notmuch/)
+* [Ubuntu](http://packages.ubuntu.com/search?keywords=notmuch)
+
+## Development and Contributing
+
+All of the code for Notmuch is available as [free
+software](http://www.fsf.org/licensing/essays/free-sw.html) released
+under the GNU [GPL version
+3](http://www.fsf.org/licensing/licenses/gpl.html). The latest
+versions can be checked out via git with this command:
+
+        git clone git://notmuchmail.org/git/notmuch
+
+You can browse the
+[Notmuch code history online](http://git.notmuchmail.org/git/notmuch). And
+finally, you can
+[subscribe to the `notmuch-commits` list](http://notmuchmail.org/mailman/listinfo/notmuch-commits)
+to watch every commit made to notmuch and the notmuchmail.org web
+site.
+
+We have a [buildbot](http://buildbot.notmuchmail.org/grid) (here's
+its
+[configuration](https://github.com/tomprince/buildbot-configs/tree/notmuch)).
+
+Contributions, such as patches, to Notmuch are most welcome. Please refer to the
+[[guide to contributing|contributing]].
+
+## Bug and patch tracking
+
+The tagging and filtering features of notmuch make it quite suitable
+for use as a bug- and patch-tracker. We are currently experimenting
+with using it for this purpose for notmuch development, using a
+utility called [[nmbug]]. The status of bugs and current patches can also be
+followed [online](http://nmbug.tethera.net/status).
+
+Bug reports should be sent to the Notmuch mailing list notmuch@notmuchmail.org.

 
 ## Contact: Email & IRC
 
 Comments? Please feel free to email the notmuch mailing list:
 notmuch&#64;notmuchmail.org (subscription is not required, but you can
 
 ## Contact: Email & IRC
 
 Comments? Please feel free to email the notmuch mailing list:
 notmuch&#64;notmuchmail.org (subscription is not required, but you can

-subscribe to the [notmuch list](http://notmuchmail.org/mailman/listinfo/notmuch) if you would like to). You can also browse the
-<a href="http://notmuchmail.org/pipermail/notmuch/">online archives</a>
-of the mailing list, read them as a <a href="http://n3.nabble.com/notmuch-f198994.html">web forum (nabble)</a>, or download a <a href="http://notmuchmail.org/archives/notmuch.mbox">mbox file</a> of the entire mailing-list. 
-
-The mb2md utility can be used to convert the archives to maildir format which is convenient for reading the archives within notmuch itself.
+also subscribe to the
+[notmuch mailing list](http://notmuchmail.org/mailman/listinfo/notmuch)). You
+can also browse the
+[online list archives](http://notmuchmail.org/pipermail/notmuch/),
+read them as a
+[web forum (nabble)](http://notmuch.198994.n3.nabble.com/), or
+download an [mbox file](http://notmuchmail.org/archives/notmuch.mbox)
+of the entire mailing-list.

 
 

-If you prefer real-time chat, there is often someone on the [#notmuch](irc://chat.freenode.net/#notmuch)@irc.freenode.net IRC channel.
+The `mb2md` utility can be used to convert the archives to maildir
+format which is convenient for reading the archives within notmuch
+itself.

 
 

-## Emacs Tips and Tricks
+If you prefer real-time chat, there is often someone on the
+[#notmuch](irc://chat.freenode.net/#notmuch)@irc.freenode.net IRC
+channel.

 
 

-The best supported interface to notmuch is based on emacs and can be tweaked extensively. We have started to collect some tips and tricks [here](/emacstips).
-### Website
+## Feature ideas

 
 

-This wiki is maintained using [ikiwiki](http://ikiwiki.info). You can pull and
-push changes using the following URL (no authentication necessary):
+We have started a [[feature requests|feature-requests]] page on this
+wiki.  No, things you add there won't automatically get implemented -
+but it's a nice way to collect ideas.

 
 

-    git://notmuchmail.org/git/notmuch-wiki
+## Website

 
 

-As the above is still broken, you will currently need to use [this](http://git.cworth.org/git/notmuch-wiki?a=commit;h=023952dcb7cbf5d4bd9c8ba2c79bac11d54af1d4), in order to change this site.
\ No newline at end of file
+This wiki is maintained using [ikiwiki](http://ikiwiki.info). Here are
+[[instructions on how to edit the wiki|wikiwriteaccess]].