--- /dev/null
+[[!img notmuch-logo.png alt="Notmuch logo" class="left"]]
+# Notmuch Emacs Interface
+
+One of the more popular Notmuch message reading clients is **notmuch.el**, or
+`notmuch-emacs`, an [emacs](http://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/) major mode for
+interacting with Notmuch. It is included in the Notmuch package (`notmuch-emacs`
+in Debian).
+
+This page is a basic guide for setting up and using Notmuch with Emacs. See also
+the [[tips and tricks page|emacstips]] for more advanced details.
+
+[[!toc levels=2]]
+
+## Setup
+
+Have a look at the [[Howto|howto]] for prerequisites. Be sure you have done the
+general setup using the notmuch cli command!
+
+To use the Notmuch emacs mode, first add the following line to your `.emacs` rc
+file:
+
+ (autoload 'notmuch "notmuch" "notmuch mail" t)
+
+or if you always want to load notmuch when you start emacs:
+
+ (require 'notmuch)
+
+Then, either run `emacs -f notmuch`, or execute the command `M-x notmuch` from
+within a running emacs.
+
+### <span id="notmuch_init_file"> Notmuch Emacs configuration file: </span>
+
+(Since Notmuch 0.18)
+
+After notmuch is loaded `notmuch-init-file` (typically
+ `~/.emacs.d/notmuch-config.el`) is checked out. If such file exists
+it is loaded. Most emacs lisp based configuration not suitable via
+customization can be put there instead of `~/.emacs`.
+
+## Navigating & reading mails
+
+When first starting notmuch in emacs, you will be presented with the
+notmuch "hello" page. If it exits with an error after writing
+"Welcome to notmutch. You have" you need to do the basic notmuch setup
+first (see above).
+From here you can do searches, see lists of recent
+searches, saved searches, message tags, help information, etc.
+
+Executing a search will open a new buffer in `notmuch-search-mode`
+displaying the search results. Each line in the search results
+represents a message thread. Hitting the '?' key will show help for
+this mode.
+
+In general, the 'q' will kill the current notmuch buffer and return
+you to the previous buffer (sort of like a 'pop').
+
+In search mode, navigating to a thread and hitting return will then
+open a new buffer in `notmuch-show-mode`, which will show the actual
+message contents of the thread.
+
+## Sending mail
+
+In any notmuch mode, you can start a new message by hitting the 'm'
+key. To reply to a message or thread, just hit the 'r' key.
+
+When composing new messages, you will be entered in emacs's
+`message-mode`, which is a powerful mode for composing and sending
+messages. When in message mode, you can type `C-c ?` for help.
+
+If you would like to use address autocompletion when composing
+messages, see [address completion](#address_completion).
+
+When you are ready to send a message, type `C-c C-c`. By default
+message mode will use your sendmail command to send mail, so make sure
+that works. One annoying standard configuration of message mode is
+that it will hide the sent mail in your emacs frame stack, but it will
+not close it. If you type several mails in an emacs session they will
+accumulate and make switching between buffers more annoying. You can
+avoid that behavior by adding `(setq message-kill-buffer-on-exit t)`
+in your `.emacs` file
+(or doing `M-x customize-variable<RET>message-kill-buffer-on-exit<RET>`)
+which will really close the mail window after sending it.
+
+## Attaching files
+
+Using the `M-x mml-attach-file` command, you can attach any file to be
+sent with your mail. By default this command is bound to the menu item
+*Attachments--Attach File* with the key binding `C-c C-a`. The
+variable `mml-dnd-attach-options` (`M-x
+customize-variable<RET>mml-dnd-attach-options<RET>`) can be set to
+allow the prompting for various attachment options (such as
+inline/attachment) if you want to do that.
+
+For those who prefer a more graphical interface, you can also simply
+drag and drop files from a file manager into a mail composition window
+to have them attached. In Ubuntu this works without any modifications
+if files are dragged from the file manager.
+
+And for those who prefer working from command line, the following
+script opens new emacs window with empty message and attaches files
+mentioned as script arguments. (Note: The script expects that you have
+`(server-start)` in your `.emacs` file.)
+
+ #!/bin/sh
+ attach_cmds=""
+ while [ $# -gt 0 ]; do
+ fullpath=$(readlink --canonicalize "$1")
+ attach_cmds="$attach_cmds (mml-attach-file \"$fullpath\")"
+ shift
+ done
+ emacsclient -a '' -c -e "(progn (compose-mail) $attach_cmds)"
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