X-Git-Url: https://git.cworth.org/git?p=obsolete%2Fnotmuch-wiki;a=blobdiff_plain;f=emacstips.mdwn;h=09c4b77cec2b30850d4dc03d2dc748c22023785b;hp=c97c351ae473b0596b80a72434762210e67d9d99;hb=HEAD;hpb=62658f86f165b668a371eb42a62868f568e1d578 diff --git a/emacstips.mdwn b/emacstips.mdwn index c97c351..09c4b77 100644 --- a/emacstips.mdwn +++ b/emacstips.mdwn @@ -1,100 +1,713 @@ -[[!img notmuch-logo.png alt="Notmuch logo" class="left"]] -#Tips and Tricks for using notmuch with Emacs +# Tips and Tricks for using notmuch with Emacs -The main client based on notmuch is notmuch.el, which is included in the notmuch package. It is might, and allows you to configure a lot of things, however, it might not be immediately obvious how, and how the general workflow generally looks like. This first section will describe a typical workflow and setup, while the section [Advanced tips and tweaks] below, focuses on more specific questions. +One of the more popular notmuch message reading clients is +**notmuch.el**, 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 goes over some usage +tips for using notmuch with Emacs. -##Typical setup and workflow +[[!toc levels=2]] -notmuch requires either a MailDir or a "mh" -style maildirectory to operate on (It basically simply requires that each mail is in a file of it's own). Most people therefore use "[offlineimap](http://software.complete.org/software/projects/show/offlineimap)" or "mbsync" in order to synchronize their IMAP or pop mail server with a local mail store. offlineimap is quite useful and widely tested, it also offers a handy hook that will come in useful a bit later in our setup. So go install and configure offlineimap so you can simply run offlineimap and have an updated maildir. In the [Account xxx] section of your .offineimaprc file your can specify a "presynchook" and "postsynchook" command that will get run whenever you sync. Point postsynchook to a script that gets run on every sync and that will do the automatic tagging and updating of your notmuch database. +## Setup -The script will look somewhat like this: +Have a look at the [Howto](http://notmuchmail.org/howto/) for +prerequisites. Be sure you have done the general setup using the +notmuch cli command! - #/bin/sh - # incorporate all new mails in the database - notmuch new - #apply some automatic tags - notmuch tag +notmuch from:notmuch@notmuchmail.org and not tag:notmuch - ...more tag rules... +To use the Notmuch emacs mode, first add the following line to your +`.emacs` rc file: -One advanced setup with automatic tagging has been described by James Vasile here (id: _87hbp5j9dv.fsf@hackervisions.org_). Carl Worth has described his script in this mail (id: _87r5o8stbj.fsf@yoom.home.cworth.org_). See more on message ids below. + (require 'notmuch) ------ +or you can load the package via autoload: + + (autoload 'notmuch "notmuch" "notmuch mail" t) + +Then, either run "emacs -f notmuch", or execute the command `M-x +notmuch` from within a running 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-variablemessage-kill-buffer-on-exit`) 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-variablemml-dnd-attach-options`) 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 [ "$1" ]; do + fullpath=$(readlink --canonicalize "$1") + attach_cmds="$attach_cmds (mml-attach-file \"$fullpath\")" + shift + done + emacsclient -a '' -c -e "(progn (compose-mail) $attach_cmds)" + +## Issues with Emacs 24 + +If notmuch-show-mode behaves badly for you in emacs 24.x try adding one of -__A note on message ids__: Confused by those message ids? Get used to it because they are an importance part of the notmuch workflow. Every send message has a unique message id, just like a website has a unique url. On the notmuch mailing list people will throw around message ids and expect people to just find the right mails, as this is what notmuch makes easy. In order to find a specific message, hit 's' for search and type: "id:messageidhere". If you incorporated the notmuch mail archive, you can e.g. try to find id:87r5o8stbj.fsf@yoom.home.cworth.org. Don't have the notmuch archive back to Feb 25, 2010? Fortunately gmane (and probably others allow to search for message id in their archives as well. You'll find this message under [http://mid.gmane.org/87r5o8stbj.fsf@yoom.home.cworth.org] (incidentally, this server seems to be down right now). + (setq gnus-inhibit-images nil) + +or + + (require 'gnus-art) + +to your .emacs file. ----- -OK, messages are in your maildir and they have the tags you want them to have (of course you will be assigning more tags manually as you parse through your mail.). Now, on to actually using notmuch in emacs. If you added the correct bits to your .emacs file you will be able to start notmuch by typing "M-x notmuch" (or M-x notmuch-folder). If you want to start notmuch immediately when starting emacs you can also call emacs as "emacs -f notmuch" (and create a handy shortcut on your desktop for that). +# Advanced tips and tweaks + +## Use separate emacs lisp file for notmuch configuration + +Instead of adding notmuch configuration code to `.emacs`, there +is an option to collect those to a separate file (which is only +loaded when `notmuch` is invoked). To do this, write, for example +a file called `~/.emacs.d/my-notmuch.el`: + + ;;; my-notmuch.el -- my notmuch mail configuration + ;;; + + ;;; add here stuff required to be configured *before* + ;;; notmuch is loaded; + + ;; uncomment and modify in case some elisp files are not found in load-path + ;; (add-to-list 'load-path "~/vc/ext/notmuch/emacs") + + ;;; load notmuch + (require 'notmuch) + + ;;; add here stuff required to be configured *after* + ;;; notmuch is loaded; + + ;; uncomment & modify if you want to use external smtp server to send mail + ;; (setq smtpmail-smtp-server "smtp.server.tld" + ;; message-send-mail-function 'message-smtpmail-send-it) + ;; uncomment to debug smtp sending problems + ;; (setq smtpmail-debug-info t) + +Then, add to `.emacs`: + + (autoload 'notmuch "~/.emacs.d/my-notmuch" "notmuch mail" t) + +## Initial cursor position in notmuch 0.15 hello window + +In notmuch version 0.15 emacs client the handling of cursor position in +notmuch hello window has been simplified to a version which suits best +most cases. + +Initially the cursor is positioned at the beginning of buffer. + +Some users liked the "ancient" version where cursor was moved to the +first `Saved searches` button. + +Add the following code to your notmuch emacs configuration file in +case you want this behaviour: + + (add-hook 'notmuch-hello-refresh-hook + (lambda () + (if (and (eq (point) (point-min)) + (search-forward "Saved searches:" nil t)) + (progn + (forward-line) + (widget-forward 1)) + (if (eq (widget-type (widget-at)) 'editable-field) + (beginning-of-line))))) + +## Add a key binding to add/remove/toggle a tag + +The `notmuch-{search,show}-{add,remove}-tag` functions are very useful +for making quick tag key bindings. For instance, here's an example +of how to make a key binding to add the "spam" tag and remove the +"inbox" tag in notmuch-show-mode: + +In notmuch versions up to 0.11.x + + (define-key notmuch-show-mode-map "S" + (lambda () + "mark message as spam" + (interactive) + (notmuch-show-add-tag "spam") + (notmuch-show-remove-tag "inbox"))) + +Starting from notmuch 0.12 the functions `notmuch-show-add-tag` and +`notmuch-show-remove-tag` have changed to be more versatile and lost +noninteractive use. When upgrading to 0.12 the above needs to be +changed to this: + + (define-key notmuch-show-mode-map "S" + (lambda () + "mark message as spam" + (interactive) + (notmuch-show-tag-message "+spam" "-inbox"))) + +You can do the same for threads in `notmuch-search-mode` by just +replacing "show" with "search" in the called functions. + +Starting from notmuch 0.12 use `notmuch-search-tag-thread` instead: + + (define-key notmuch-search-mode-map "S" + (lambda () + "mark messages in thread as spam" + (interactive) + (notmuch-show-tag-thread "+spam" "-inbox"))) + +Starting from notmuch 0.13 use `notmuch-search-tag` -- it has a little +different usage syntax: + + (define-key notmuch-search-mode-map "S" + (lambda () + "mark messages in thread as spam" + (interactive) + (notmuch-search-tag '("+spam" "-inbox")))) + +The definition above makes use of a lambda function, but you could +also define a separate function first: + + (defun notmuch-show-tag-spam () + "mark message as spam" + (interactive) + (notmuch-show-add-tag "spam") + (notmuch-show-remove-tag "inbox"))) + (define-key notmuch-show-mode-map "S" 'notmuch-show-tag-spam) + +(See above for analogy how to apply this for notmuch 0.12 and later) + +Here's a more complicated example of how to add a toggle "deleted" +key: + + (define-key notmuch-show-mode-map "d" + (lambda () + "toggle deleted tag for message" + (interactive) + (if (member "deleted" (notmuch-show-get-tags)) + (notmuch-show-remove-tag "deleted") + (notmuch-show-add-tag "deleted")))) + +And version for notmuch 0.12 + + (define-key notmuch-show-mode-map "d" + (lambda () + "toggle deleted tag for message" + (interactive) + (notmuch-show-tag-message + (if (member "deleted" (notmuch-show-get-tags)) + "-deleted" "+deleted")))) + +## Adding many tagging keybindings + +If you want to have have many tagging keybindings, you can save the typing +the few lines of boilerplate for every binding (for versions before 0.12, +you will need to change notmuch-show-apply-tag-macro). + + (eval-after-load 'notmuch-show + '(define-key notmuch-show-mode-map "`" 'notmuch-show-apply-tag-macro)) + + (setq notmuch-show-tag-macro-alist + (list + '("m" "+notmuch::patch" "+notmuch::moreinfo" "-notmuch::needs-review") + '("n" "+notmuch::patch" "+notmuch::needs-review" "-notmuch::pushed") + '("o" "+notmuch::patch" "+notmuch::obsolete" + "-notmuch::needs-review" "-notmuch::moreinfo") + '("p" "-notmuch::pushed" "-notmuch::needs-review" + "-notmuch::moreinfo" "+pending") + '("P" "-pending" "-notmuch::needs-review" "-notmuch::moreinfo" "+notmuch::pushed") + '("r" "-notmuch::patch" "+notmuch::review") + '("s" "+notmuch::patch" "-notmuch::obsolete" "-notmuch::needs-review" "-notmuch::moreinfo" "+notmuch::stale") + '("t" "+notmuch::patch" "-notmuch::needs-review" "+notmuch::trivial") + '("w" "+notmuch::patch" "+notmuch::wip" "-notmuch::needs-review"))) + + (defun notmuch-show-apply-tag-macro (key) + (interactive "k") + (let ((macro (assoc key notmuch-show-tag-macro-alist))) + (apply 'notmuch-show-tag-message (cdr macro)))) + +## Restore reply-to-all key binding to 'r' + +Starting from notmuch 0.12 the 'r' key is bound to reply-to-sender instead of +reply-to-all. Here's how to swap the reply to sender/all bindings in show mode: + + (define-key notmuch-show-mode-map "r" 'notmuch-show-reply) + (define-key notmuch-show-mode-map "R" 'notmuch-show-reply-sender) + +And in search mode: + + (define-key notmuch-search-mode-map "r" 'notmuch-search-reply-to-thread) + (define-key notmuch-search-mode-map "R" 'notmuch-search-reply-to-thread-sender) + + +## How to do FCC/BCC... + +The Emacs interface to notmuch will automatically add an `Fcc` +header to your outgoing mail so that any messages you send will also +be saved in your mail store. You can control where this copy of the +message is saved by setting the variable `notmuch-fcc-dirs` which defines the +subdirectory relative to the `database.path` setting from your +notmuch configuration in which to save the mail. Enter a directory +(without the maildir `/cur` ending which will be appended +automatically). Additional information can be found as usual using: + + M-x describe-variable notmuch-fcc-dirs + +An additional variable that can affect FCC settings in some cases is +`message-directory`. Emacs message-mode uses this variable for +postponed messages. + +To customize both variables at the same time, use the fancy command: + + M-x customize-apropos\(notmuch-fcc-dirs\)\|\(message-directory\) + +This mechanism also allows you to select different folders to be +used for the outgoing mail depending on your selected `From` +address. Please see the documentation for the variable +`notmuch-fcc-dirs` in the customization window for how to arrange +this. + +## How to customize `notmuch-saved-searches` + +When starting notmuch, a list of saved searches and message counts is +displayed, replacing the older `notmuch-folders` command. The set of +saved searches displayed can be modified directly from the notmuch +interface (using the `[save]` button next to a previous search) or by +customising the variable `notmuch-saved-searches`. + +An example setting might be: + + (setq notmuch-saved-searches '(("inbox" . "tag:inbox") + ("unread" . "tag:inbox AND tag:unread") + ("notmuch" . "tag:inbox AND to:notmuchmail.org"))) + +Of course, you can have any number of saved searches, each configured +with any supported search terms (see "notmuch help search-terms"). + +Some users find it useful to add `and not tag:delete` to those +searches, as they use the `delete` tag to mark messages as +deleted. This causes messages that are marked as deleted to be removed +from the commonly used views of messages. Use whatever seems most +useful to you. + +## Viewing HTML messages with an external viewer + +The emacs client can display an HTML message inline using either the +`html2text` library or some text browser, like w3m or lynx. This is +controlled by the `mm-text-html-renderer` variable. + +The first option is theorically better, because it can generate +strings formatted for emacs and do whatever you want, e.g., substitute +text inside <b> tags for bold text in the buffer. The library, however +is still in a very early development phase and cannot yet process +properly many elements, like tables and