This file is /cdf/run1/documents/development/cdfsga_mail.note Last update was September 5th, 1999 The mail system used on cdfsga is called exmh. It is launched with the commands: > setup exmh > exmh & > xbiff & (for notification of incoming mail) =======Manual================================================================ There is an excellent manual for MH, xmh and exmh "MH and xmh, E-mail for Users & Programmers", By Jerry Peek, Third edition, Published April 1995 by O'Reilly & Associates. Do not worry that the manual is quite thick. This manual is also available online as http://www.ics.uci.edu/~mh/book/ =======Having mail sent to cdfsga============================================ To have mail sent to cdfsga, one should set mail forwarding on both FNALD and on the mail server FNAL. On FNALD, type a command similar to $ MAIL MAIL> SET FORWARD "SMTP%""WICKLUND@CDFSGA.FNAL.GOV""" 1 2 3 Please note the number of quotes, the 1,2,3 rule. On the mail server FNAL, issue commands similar to select option F Set Forwarding Enter forwarding address [ ? for help]: wicklund@cdfsga.fnal.gov (Make sure that you do not have a file $HOME/.forward on cdfsga) =======Automatic Mail Inclusion============================================== Many people prefer to have mail automatically incorporated into the "inbox" (the default is to not automatically include mail). This can be specified using the following commands: Click on "Preferences" (opens Exmh Preferences window) Click on "Incorporate Mail" (opens Incorporate Mail Preferences window) Click on "Inc at startup" (automatic incorporate on startup) Click on "Inc at mapping" (automatic incorporate on deinconfication) Click on "Dismiss" (dismiss Incorporate Mail Preferences window) Click on "Save" (save Exmh Preferences) Click on "Dismiss" (dismiss Exmh Preferences window) =======exmh and Netscape ==================================================== When a URL appears in a mail message, many people like to have the web page appear in their Netscape browser when they click on the URL shown by exmh. This feature can be specified using the following commands: In the top line of the exmh window, Click on "Preferences" (opens Exmh Preferences window) Click on "WWW" (opens WWW Preferences window) Select "Scan for URLs in messages" On Select "URL Viewer" netscape Type the following in the box "Netscape command" netscape -remote openURL($xuri) Click on "Dismiss" (dismiss Incorporate Mail Preferences window) Click on "Save" (save Exmh Preferences) Click on "Dismiss" (dismiss Exmh Preferences window) =======The Backspace Key in the editor======================================= If the Backspace Key does not work as you prefer in the simple editor for sending mail, you can rebind it with: Click on "Bindings..." in top line Click on "Simple Edit" submenu In the "backspace" field, type Click on Save =======How to use your favorite editor ====================================== To specify a different editor, Click on "Preferences" (opens Exmh Preferences window) Click on "Editor Support" (opens Editor Support Preferences window) Modify "Editor Command" to be: exmh-bg xterm -e tpu (or similar) Click on "Dismiss" (dismiss Editor Support Preferences window) Click on "Save" (save Exmh Preferences) Click on "Dismiss" (dismiss Exmh Preferences window) =======Copy on Send========================================================= Many people like to retain a copy of each mail message that they send. This can be accomplished under exmh, by creating a file $HOME/Mail/components with contents: To: cc: Fcc: inbox Subject: ------- The contents of this components file will be added by default at the head of every mail message, before the editor is launched. The line Fcc: inbox specifies that a file carbon copy of each message be put into your mail inbox. The format of the components file is very flexible, allowing a great deal of customization to your mail message. Please see the manual for more information. =======Printing from exmh==================================================== There are many ways to print from exmh. One of the simplest is to issue a command similar to: > setenv FLPQUE b0trwqms_hp before starting exmh, to specify your favorite text printer queue. Then, inside exmh, under More ... (at the upper right hand corner of the message) select Print (which is the first item on the menu). =======Changing the table of contents ======================================= Many people prefer a different appearance to the table of contents. This can be changed by modifying the file $HOME/.mh_profile to include the lines scan: -form scan.timely inc: -form scan.timely This is described in section 16.7.2 of the xmh manual. =======Fetching mail from an IMAP server ==================================== Mail can be fetched from an IMAP server onto cdfsga using the following commands: > setup gnu > fetchmail imapserver1.fnal.gov (or imapserver2.fnal.gov or imapserver3.fnal.gov) Then, use the "Inc" button (as usual) to read the mail under exmh. Note: once a mail message has been fetched, that mail message is no longer available on the IMAP server. ========Accessing exmh folders on plain terminals============================ When using a plain terminal, most people prefer to use the "mh" line commands. These commands are made available with the usual > setup exmh The commands include: > inc to incorporate mail into inbox > scan to see mail message headers > show to read current message > show last to read last message > prev to read previous message > next to read next message > comp to send a mail message > repl to reply to current message > forw to forward current message > rmm to delete the current message > refile +name to refile current message in folder name Please see the manual for more details. Note, there is no "mh" command per se. ========Using PINE with exmh folders========================================= However, some people use pine with the exmh folders on a plain terminal. Do do this, issue the commands: > setup pine > pine S (for SETUP) C (for Config) folder-collections = #mh/[] This tells pine to use the exmh folders. ========Special Mail Addresses ============================================== Although almost all computers are on the Internet, sometimes one knows only the DECNET address, but not the internet address for a given computer. In such a case, one could use the mail server computer, fnal.fnal.gov as a gateway to DECNET. Here is a typical addresses which uses the gateway to DECNET: wicklund%cithex.decnet@fnal.fnal.gov exmh is supported by Dave Fagan, (fagan@large.fnal.gov) of the Fermilab Computing Division.