emacs/doc/misc/newsticker.texi

\input texinfo   @c -*-texinfo-*-
@comment %**start of header
@setfilename ../../info/newsticker
@set VERSION 1.99
@set UPDATED June 2008
@settitle Newsticker @value{VERSION}
@syncodeindex vr cp
@syncodeindex fn cp
@syncodeindex pg cp
@comment %**end of header

@copying
This manual is for Newsticker (version @value{VERSION}, @value{UPDATED}).

@noindent
Copyright @copyright{} 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
Free Software Foundation, Inc.

@quotation
Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or
any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU Manual'',
and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below.  A copy of the license
is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation License''.

(a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have the freedom to copy and
modify this GNU manual.  Buying copies from the FSF supports it in
developing GNU and promoting software freedom.''
@end quotation
@end copying

@dircategory Emacs
@direntry
* Newsticker: (newsticker). A Newsticker for Emacs.
@end direntry

@titlepage
@title Newsticker -- a Newsticker for Emacs
@subtitle for version @value{VERSION}, @value{UPDATED}
@author Ulf Jasper
@author @email{ulf.jasper@@web.de}
@author @uref{http://ulf.epplejasper.de/}
@page
@vskip 0pt plus 1filll
@insertcopying
@end titlepage

@contents

@ifnottex
@node Top
@top Newsticker
@end ifnottex

@menu
* Overview::        General description of newsticker.
* Requirements::    Requirements for using newsticker.
* Installation::    Installing newsticker on your system.
* Usage::           Basic newsticker instructions.
* Configuration::   Customizable newsticker settings.
* Remarks::         Remarks about newsticker.
* GNU Free Documentation License:: The license for this documentation.
* Index::           Variable, function, and concept index.
@end menu

@node Overview
@chapter Overview

Newsticker provides a newsticker for Emacs. A newsticker is a thing
that asynchronously retrieves headlines from a list of news sites,
prepares these headlines for reading, and allows for loading the
corresponding articles in a web browser.


Headlines consist of a title and (possibly) a small description.  They
are contained in "RSS" (RDF Site Summary) or "Atom" files.  Newsticker
works with the following RSS formats:

@itemize
@item RSS 0.91 (see @uref{http://backend.userland.com/rss091} or
@uref{http://my.netscape.com/publish/formats/rss-spec-0.91.html}),
@item RSS 0.92 (see @uref{http://backend.userland.com/rss092}),
@item RSS 1.0 (see @uref{http://purl.org/rss/1.0/spec}
@item RSS 2.0 (see @uref{http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss}),
@end itemize
@itemize
as well as the following Atom formats:
@item Atom 0.3
@item Atom 1.0 (see
@uref{http://www.ietf.org/internet-drafts/draft-ietf-atompub-format-11.txt}).
@end itemize

That makes Newsticker.el an ``Atom aggregator'', ``RSS reader'', ``Feed
aggregator'', or ``Feed reader''.

Newsticker provides several commands for reading headlines, navigating
through them, marking them as read/unread, hiding old headlines etc.
Headlines can be displayed as plain text or as rendered HTML.

Headlines can be displayed in the echo area, either scrolling like
messages in a stock-quote ticker, or just changing.

Newsticker allows for automatic processing of headlines by providing
hooks and (sample) functions for automatically downloading images and
enclosed files (as delivered by podcasts, e.g.).

@ifhtml
Here are screen shots of the @uref{newsticker-1.7.png, version 1.7
(current version)} and some older screen shots:
@uref{newsticker-1.6.png, version 1.6},
@uref{newsticker-1.5.png, version 1.5}, 
@uref{newsticker-1.4.png, version 1.4}
@uref{newsticker-1.3.png, version 1.3}, 
@uref{newsticker-1.0.png, version 1.0}.
@end ifhtml

@node Requirements
@chapter Requirements

Newsticker can be used with
@uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/emacs.html, GNU Emacs} version
21.1 or later as well as @uref{http://www.xemacs.org, XEmacs}.  It
requires an XML-parser (@file{xml.el}) which is part of GNU Emacs.  If
you are using XEmacs you want to get the @file{net-utils} package
which contains @file{xml.el} for XEmacs.

Newsticker retrieves headlines either via Emacs' built-in retrieval
functions, by an arbitrary external program that retrieves files via
http and prints them to stdout (like
@uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/wget/wget.html, wget}, or -- on a
per feed basis -- via an arbitrary Lisp command.


@node Installation
@chapter Installation

As Newsticker is part of GNU Emacs there is no need to perform any
installation steps in order to use Newsticker.

However, if you are using imenu, which allows for navigating with the
help of a menu, you should add the following to your Emacs startup file
(@file{~/.emacs}).

@lisp
(add-hook 'newsticker-mode-hook 'imenu-add-menubar-index)
@end lisp

That's it.

@node Usage
@chapter Usage

@findex newsticker-show-news
The command @code{newsticker-show-news} will display all available
headlines.  It will also start the asynchronous download of headlines.

You can choose between two different frontends for reading headlines:
@itemize
@item Newsticker's @emph{treeview} uses separate windows for the
feeds (in tree form), a list of headlines for the current feed, and
the content of the current headline. Feeds can be placed into groups
which itself can be placed in groups and so on. 
@item Newsticker's @emph{plainview} displays all headlines in a
single buffer, called @samp{*newsticker*}. The modeline in the
@samp{*newsticker*} buffer informs whenever new headlines have
arrived.
@end itemize
In both views clicking mouse-button 2 or pressing RET on a headline
will call @code{browse-url} to load the corresponding news story in
your favourite web browser.

@findex newsticker-start-ticker
@findex newsticker-stop-ticker
The scrolling, or flashing of headlines in the echo area, can be
started with the command @code{newsticker-start-ticker}. It can be
stopped with @code{newsticker-stop-ticker}.

@findex newsticker-start
@findex newsticker-stop
If you just want to start the periodic download of headlines use the
command @code{newsticker-start}. Calling @code{newsticker-stop} will
stop the periodic download, but will call
@code{newsticker-stop-ticker} as well.

@node Configuration
@chapter Configuration

All Newsticker options are customizable, i.e. they can be changed with
Emacs customization methods: Call the command
@code{customize-group} and enter @samp{newsticker} for the customization
group.

All Newsticker options have reasonable default values, so that in most
cases it is not necessary to customize settings before starting Newsticker
for the first time.

The following list shows the available groups of newsticker options
and some of the most important options.

@itemize

@item
@code{newsticker-retrieval} contains options that define which news
feeds are retrieved and how this is done.  

@itemize
@item
@vindex newsticker-url-list
@code{newsticker-url-list} defines the list of headlines which are
retrieved.
@item
@vindex newsticker-retrieval-method
@code{newsticker-retrieval-method} defines how headlines are
retrieved. This is either done using Emacs' built-in download
capabilities or using an external tool.
@item
@vindex newsticker-retrieval-interval
@code{newsticker-retrieval-interval} defines how often headlines
are retrieved.
@end itemize

@item
@code{newsticker-headline-processing} contains options that define
how the retrieved headlines are processed.

@itemize
@item
@vindex newsticker-keep-obsolete-items
@code{newsticker-keep-obsolete-items} decides whether unread
headlines that have been removed from the feed are kept in the
Newsticker cache.
@item
@vindex newsticker-auto-mark-filter-list
@code{newsticker-auto-mark-filter-list} provides the possibility to
automatically mark headlines as immortal or old.
@end itemize

@item
@code{newsticker-hooks} contains options for hooking other Emacs
commands to newsticker functions. 
@itemize
@item
@vindex newsticker-new-item-functions
@code{newsticker-new-item-functions} allows for automatic
processing of headlines. See `newsticker-download-images', and
`newsticker-download-enclosures' for sample functions.
@item
@vindex newsticker-plainview-hooks
The subgroup @code{newsticker-plainview-hooks} contains hook which
apply to the plainview reader only.
@end itemize

@item
@code{newsticker-miscellaneous} contains other Newsticker options.

@item
@code{newsticker-ticker} contains options that define how headlines
are shown in the echo area, i.e. the ``ticker''.

@itemize
@item
@vindex newsticker-display-interval
@vindex newsticker-scroll-smoothly
@code{newsticker-ticker-interval} and
@code{newsticker-scroll-smoothly} define how headlines are shown in
the echo area.
@end itemize


@item
@code{newsticker-reader} contains options for adjusting the headline reader.

@itemize
@item
@vindex newsticker-frontend
@code{newsticker-frontend} determines the actual headline reader. The
``plainview'' reader uses a single buffer, the ``treeview'' uses
separate buffers and windows.
@end itemize

@itemize
@item
@vindex newsticker-plainview
The subgroup @code{newsticker-plainview} contains options for the
plainview reader.
@item
@vindex newsticker-treeview
The subgroup @code{newsticker-treeview} contains options for the
treeview reader.
@end itemize

@end itemize

For the complete list of options please have a look at the
customization buffers.

@node Remarks
@chapter Remarks

Byte-compiling newsticker.el is recommended.

@node GNU Free Documentation License
@appendix GNU Free Documentation License
@include doclicense.texi

@node Index
@unnumbered Index

@printindex cp

@bye



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