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   1 .TH REPL %manext1% "December 14, 2014" "%nmhversion%"
   2 .\"
   3 .\" %nmhwarning%
   4 .\"
   5 .SH NAME
   6 repl \- reply to a message
   7 .SH SYNOPSIS
   8 .HP 5
   9 .na
  10 .B repl
  11 .RI [ +folder ]
  12 .RI [ msg ]
  13 .RB [ \-annotate " | " \-noannotate ]
  14 .RB [ \-group " | " \-nogroup ]
  15 .RB [ \-cc
  16 all/to/cc/me]
  17 .RB [ \-nocc
  18 all/to/cc/me]
  19 .RB [ \-query " | " \-noquery ]
  20 .RB [ \-form
  21 .IR formfile ]
  22 .RB [ \-format " | " \-noformat ]
  23 .RB [ \-filter
  24 .IR filterfile ]
  25 .RB [ \-inplace " | " \-noinplace ]
  26 .RB [ \-mime " | " \-nomime ]
  27 .RB [ \-fcc
  28 .IR +folder ]
  29 .RB [ \-width
  30 .IR columns ]
  31 .RB [ \-draftfolder
  32 .IR +folder ]
  33 .RB [ \-draftmessage
  34 .IR msg ]
  35 .RB [ \-nodraftfolder ]
  36 .RB [ \-editor
  37 .IR editor ]
  38 .RB [ \-noedit ]
  39 .RB [ \-convertargs
  40 .IR "type argstring" ]
  41 .RB [ \-whatnowproc
  42 .IR program ]
  43 .RB [ \-nowhatnowproc ]
  44 .RB [ \-atfile ]
  45 .RB [ \-noatfile ]
  46 .RB [ \-fmtproc
  47 .IR program ]
  48 .RB [ \-nofmtproc ]
  49 .RB [ \-build ]
  50 .RB [ \-file
  51 .IR msgfile ]
  52 .RB [ \-version ]
  53 .RB [ \-help ]
  54 .ad
  55 .SH DESCRIPTION
  56 .B Repl
  57 may be used to produce a reply to an existing message.
  58 .PP
  59 In its simplest form (with no arguments),
  60 .B repl
  61 will set up a
  62 message\-form skeleton in reply to the current message in the current
  63 folder, and invoke the whatnow shell.
  64 .PP
  65 In order to construct the message draft of the reply,
  66 .B repl
  67 uses
  68 a reply template to guide its actions.  A reply template is simply a
  69 .B mhl
  70 format file (see
  71 .IR mh\-format (5)
  72 for details).
  73 .PP
  74 If the switch
  75 .B \-nogroup
  76 is given (it is on by default), then
  77 .B repl
  78 will use the standard forms file \*(lqreplcomps\*(rq.  This will construct
  79 a draft message that is intended to be sent only to the author of the
  80 message to which you are replying.  If a file named \*(lqreplcomps\*(rq
  81 exists in the user's
  82 .B nmh
  83 directory, it will be used instead of this
  84 default forms file.
  85 .PP
  86 The default reply template \*(lqreplcomps\*(rq will direct
  87 .B repl
  88 to construct the reply message draft as follows:
  89 .PP
  90 .RS 5
  91 .nf
  92 To: <Mail\-Reply\-To> or <Reply\-To> or <From>
  93 cc: <To> and <cc> and <personal address>
  94 Fcc: {fcc switch} or +outbox
  95 Subject: Re: <Subject>
  96 In\-Reply\-To: <Message\-Id>
  97 References: <Message\-Id>
  98 Comments: In\-Reply\-To <From> or <apparently from> or <Sender>
  99 .ti +3
 100 message dated <date>
 101 --------
 102 .fi
 103 .RE
 104 .PP
 105 where field names enclosed in angle brackets (<\ >) indicate the
 106 contents of the named field from the message to which the reply is
 107 being made.
 108 .PP
 109 By default, the \*(lqcc:\*(rq field is empty.  You may selectively add
 110 addresses to this default with the
 111 .B \-cc
 112 .I type
 113 switch.  This switch takes an
 114 argument
 115 .RI ( all / to / cc / me )
 116 which specifies who gets added to the default
 117 \*(lqcc:\*(rq list of the reply.  You may give this switch multiple times (with
 118 different arguments) if you wish to add multiple types of addresses.
 119 .PP
 120 If the switch
 121 .B \-group
 122 is given, then
 123 .B repl
 124 will use the
 125 standard forms file \*(lqreplgroupcomps\*(rq.  This will construct a
 126 draft message that is intended as a group or followup reply.  If a file
 127 named \*(lqreplgroupcomps\*(rq exists in the user's nmh directory, it
 128 will be used instead of this default forms file, unless you specify
 129 another forms file on the command line or in your profile.
 130 .PP
 131 The default group reply template \*(lqreplgroupcomps\*(rq will direct
 132 .B repl
 133 to construct the reply message draft as follows:
 134 .PP
 135 .RS 5
 136 .nf
 137 To: <Mail\-Followup\-To>
 138 Subject: Re: <Subject>
 139 In\-Reply\-To: Message from <From> of <Date>.
 140 .ti +\w'In\-Reply\-To: 'u
 141 <Message\-Id>
 142 --------
 143 .fi
 144 .RE
 145 .PP
 146 or if the field <Mail\-Followup\-To> is not available:
 147 .PP
 148 .RS 5
 149 .nf
 150 To: <Mail\-Reply\-To> or <Reply\-To> or <From>
 151 cc: <To> and <cc> and <personal address>
 152 Subject: Re: <Subject>
 153 In\-Reply\-To: Message from <From> of <Date>.
 154 .ti +\w'In\-Reply\-To: 'u
 155 <Message\-Id>
 156 --------
 157 .fi
 158 .RE
 159 .PP
 160 By default, the \*(lqcc:\*(rq contains all the addresses shown.  You may
 161 selectively remove addresses from this default with the
 162 .B \-nocc
 163 .I type
 164 switch.
 165 This switch takes an argument (
 166 .IR all / to / cc / me )
 167 which specifies who gets removed
 168 from the default \*(lqcc:\*(rq list of the reply.  You may give this switch
 169 multiple times (with different arguments) if you wish to remove multiple types
 170 of addresses.
 171 .PP
 172 In any case, you may specify an alternate forms file with the switch
 173 .B \-form
 174 .IR formfile .
 175 .PP
 176 The
 177 .B \-query
 178 switch modifies the action of
 179 .B \-nocc
 180 .I type
 181 switch by
 182 interactively asking you if each address that normally would be placed in
 183 the \*(lqTo:\*(rq and \*(lqcc:\*(rq list should actually be sent a copy.
 184 This is useful for special\-purpose replies.  Note that the position of
 185 the
 186 .B \-cc
 187 and
 188 .B \-nocc
 189 switches, like all other switches which take a
 190 positive and negative form, is important.
 191 .PP
 192 Lines beginning with the fields \*(lqTo:\*(rq, \*(lqcc:\*(rq, and
 193 \*(rqBcc:\*(rq will be standardized and have duplicate addresses removed.
 194 In addition, the
 195 .B \-width
 196 .I columns
 197 switch will guide
 198 .BR repl 's
 199 formatting of these fields.
 200 .PP
 201 If the draft already exists,
 202 .B repl
 203 will ask you as to the disposition
 204 of the draft.  A reply of
 205 .B quit
 206 will abort
 207 .BR repl ,
 208 leaving the
 209 draft intact;
 210 .B replace
 211 will replace the existing draft with a blank
 212 skeleton; and
 213 .B list
 214 will display the draft.
 215 .PP
 216 See
 217 .IR comp (1)
 218 for a description of the
 219 .B \-editor
 220 and
 221 .B \-noedit
 222 switches.  Note that while in the editor, with
 223 .B \-atfile
 224 and if the current directory is writable, the message being replied
 225 to is available through a link named \*(lq@\*(rq (assuming the default
 226 .IR whatnowproc ).
 227 In addition, the actual pathname of the message is
 228 stored in the environment variable
 229 .BR $editalt ,
 230 and the pathname of
 231 the folder containing the message is stored in the environment variable
 232 .BR $mhfolder .
 233 The creation of the \*(lq@\*(rq file is controlled via the
 234 .B \-atfile
 235 and
 236 .B \-noatfile
 237 options.
 238 .PP
 239 The
 240 .B \-convertargs
 241 switch directs
 242 .B repl
 243 to pass the arguments for
 244 .I type
 245 to
 246 .BR mhbuild .
 247 Both arguments are required;
 248 .I type
 249 must be non-empty while
 250 .I argstring
 251 can be empty, e.g., '' in a shell command line.  The
 252 .B \-convertargs
 253 switch can be used multiple times.
 254 .I %docdir%/contrib/replaliases
 255 shows the use of
 256 .BR "repl \-convertargs" .
 257 .PP
 258 Although
 259 .B repl
 260 uses a forms file to direct it how to construct
 261 the beginning of the draft, it uses a message filter file to direct
 262 it as to how the message to which you are replying should be filtered
 263 (re\-formatted) in the body of the draft.  The filter file for
 264 .B repl
 265 should be a standard form file for
 266 .BR mhl ,
 267 as
 268 .B repl
 269 will invoke
 270 .B mhl
 271 to format the message to which you are replying.
 272 .PP
 273 The switches
 274 .BR \-noformat ,
 275 .BR \-format ,
 276 and
 277 .B \-filter
 278 .I filterfile
 279 specify
 280 which message filter file to use.
 281 .PP
 282 If the switch
 283 .B \-noformat
 284 is given (it is the default) and the
 285 .B \-filter
 286 switch is not used, then the message
 287 to which you are replying is not included in the body of the draft.
 288 .PP
 289 If the switch
 290 .B \-format
 291 is given, then a default message filter file
 292 is used.  This default message filter should be adequate for most users.
 293 This default filter
 294 .RI \*(lq mhl.reply \*(rq
 295 is:
 296 .PP
 297 .RS 5
 298 .nf
 299 %mhl_reply%
 300 .fi
 301 .RE
 302 .PP
 303 which outputs each line of the body of the message prefaced with the
 304 \*(lq>\*(rq character and a space.
 305 .PP
 306 If a file named
 307 .RI \*(lq mhl.reply \*(rq
 308 exists in the user's
 309 .B nmh
 310 directory,
 311 it will be used instead of this form.  You may specify an alternate
 312 message filter file with the switch
 313 .B \-filter
 314 .IR filterfile .
 315 .PP
 316 Other reply filters are commonly used, such as:
 317 .PP
 318 .RS 5
 319 .nf
 320 :
 321 body:nocomponent,compwidth=9,offset=9
 322 .fi
 323 .RE
 324 .PP
 325 which says to output a blank line and then the body of the message
 326 being replied\-to, indented by one tab\-stop.  Another popular format
 327 is:
 328 .PP
 329 .RS 5
 330 .nf
 331 message-id:nocomponent,\|nonewline,\\
 332 formatfield=\*(lqIn message %{text},\ \*(rq
 333 from:nocomponent,\|formatfield=\*(lq%(decode(friendly{text})) writes:\*(rq
 334 body:component=\*(lq>\*(rq,\|overflowtext=\*(lq>\*(rq,\|overflowoffset=0
 335 .fi
 336 .RE
 337 .PP
 338 This message filter file cites the Message-ID and author of the message
 339 being replied\-to, and then outputs each line of the body prefaced with
 340 the \*(lq>\*(rq character.
 341 .PP
 342 You can also use an external format program to format the message body.
 343 The format program is specified by the
 344 .IR formatproc
 345 profile entry, and is enabled by the \*(lqformat\*(rq flag.  A message
 346 filter using an external format program would look like this:
 347 .PP
 348 .RS 5
 349 .nf
 350 body:component=\*(lq>\*(rq,\|nowrap,\|format
 351 .fi
 352 .RE
 353 .PP
 354 See the
 355 .IR mhl(1)
 356 documentation for more information.  The format program can be changed by
 357 the
 358 .B \-fmtproc
 359 .I program
 360 and
 361 .B \-nofmtproc
 362 switches.
 363 .PP
 364 To use the MIME rules for encapsulation, specify the
 365 .B \-mime
 366 switch.
 367 This directs
 368 .B repl
 369 to generate an
 370 .B mhbuild
 371 composition file.
 372 Note that
 373 .B nmh
 374 will not invoke
 375 .B mhbuild
 376 automatically; you must specifically give the command
 377 .PP
 378 .RS 5
 379 What now? mime
 380 .RE
 381 .PP
 382 prior to sending the draft.
 383 .PP
 384 If the
 385 .B \-annotate
 386 switch is given, the message being replied\-to will
 387 be annotated with the lines
 388 .PP
 389 .RS 5
 390 Replied:\ date
 391 Replied:\ addrs
 392 .RE
 393 .PP
 394 where the address list contains one line for each addressee.
 395 The annotation will be done only if the message is sent directly from
 396 .BR repl .
 397 If the message is not sent immediately from
 398 .BR repl ,
 399 .RB \*(lq "comp\ \-use" \*(rq
 400 may be used to re\-edit and send the constructed
 401 message, but the annotations won't take place.  Normally annotations are
 402 done inplace in order to preserve any links to the message.  You may use
 403 the
 404 .B \-noinplace
 405 switch to change this.
 406 .PP
 407 Although the default template specifies that a copy of the reply will be
 408 put in
 409 the folder 'outbox',
 410 if the
 411 .B \-fcc
 412 .I +folder
 413 switch is given it will override the default value.
 414 More than one folder, each preceded by
 415 .B \-fcc
 416 can
 417 be named.
 418 .PP
 419 In addition to the standard
 420 .IR mh\-format (5)
 421 escapes,
 422 .B repl
 423 also recognizes the following additional
 424 .I component
 425 escape:
 426 .PP
 427 .RS 5
 428 .nf
 429 .ta \w'Escape  'u +\w'Returns  'u
 430 .I "Escape      Returns Description"
 431 fcc     string  Any folders specified with `\-fcc\ folder'
 432 .fi
 433 .RE
 434 .PP
 435 To avoid reiteration,
 436 .B repl
 437 strips any leading `Re: ' strings from
 438 the
 439 .I subject
 440 component.
 441 .PP
 442 The
 443 .B \-draftfolder
 444 .I +folder
 445 and
 446 .B \-draftmessage
 447 .I msg
 448 switches invoke
 449 the
 450 .B nmh
 451 draft folder facility.  This is an advanced (and highly
 452 useful) feature.  Consult the
 453 .IR mh-draft (5)
 454 man page for more
 455 information.
 456 .PP
 457 Upon exiting from the editor,
 458 .B repl
 459 will invoke the
 460 .B whatnow
 461 program.  See
 462 .IR whatnow (1)
 463 for a discussion of available
 464 options.  The invocation of this program can be inhibited by using the
 465 .B \-nowhatnowproc
 466 switch.  (In truth of fact, it is the
 467 .B whatnow
 468 program which starts the initial edit.  Hence,
 469 .B \-nowhatnowproc
 470 will
 471 prevent any edit from occurring.)
 472 .PP
 473 The
 474 .B \-build
 475 switch is intended to be used by the Emacs mh-e interface
 476 to
 477 .BR nmh .
 478 It implies
 479 .BR \-nowhatnowproc .
 480 It causes a file
 481 .I <mh\-dir>/reply
 482 to be created, containing the draft message that would normally be presented
 483 to the user for editing.
 484 No mail is actually sent.
 485 .PP
 486 The
 487 .B \-file
 488 .I msgfile
 489 switch specifies the message to be replied to as an
 490 exact filename rather than as an
 491 .B nmh
 492 folder and message number.
 493 The same caveats apply to this option as to the
 494 .B \-build
 495 switch.
 496 .SH FILES
 497 .B repl
 498 looks for all format, filter and template files in multiple locations:
 499 absolute pathnames are accessed directly, tilde expansion is done on
 500 usernames, and files are searched for in the user's
 501 .I Mail
 502 directory as specified in their profile.  If not found there, the directory
 503 .RI \*(lq %nmhetcdir% \*(rq
 504 is checked.
 505 .PP
 506 .fc ^ ~
 507 .nf
 508 .ta \w'%nmhetcdir%/ExtraBigFileName  'u
 509 ^%nmhetcdir%/replcomps~^The standard reply template
 510 ^or <mh\-dir>/replcomps~^Rather than the standard template
 511 ^%nmhetcdir%/replgroupcomps~^The standard `reply -group' template
 512 ^or <mh\-dir>/replgroupcomps~^Rather than the standard template
 513 ^%nmhetcdir%/mhl.reply~^The standard message filter
 514 ^or <mh\-dir>/mhl.reply~^Rather than the standard filter
 515 ^$HOME/\&.mh\(ruprofile~^The user profile
 516 ^<mh\-dir>/draft~^The draft file
 517 .fi
 518 .SH "PROFILE COMPONENTS"
 519 .fc ^ ~
 520 .nf
 521 .ta 2.4i
 522 .ta \w'ExtraBigProfileName  'u
 523 ^Path:~^To determine the user's nmh directory
 524 ^Alternate\-Mailboxes:~^To determine the user's mailboxes
 525 ^Current\-Folder:~^To find the default current folder
 526 ^Draft\-Folder:~^To find the default draft\-folder
 527 ^Editor:~^To override the default editor
 528 ^Msg\-Protect:~^To set mode when creating a new message (draft)
 529 ^fileproc:~^Program to refile the message
 530 ^mhlproc:~^Program to filter message being replied\-to
 531 ^whatnowproc:~^Program to ask the \*(lqWhat now?\*(rq questions
 532 .fi
 533 .SH "SEE ALSO"
 534 .IR comp (1),
 535 .IR forw (1),
 536 .IR mhbuild (1),
 537 .IR send (1),
 538 .IR whatnow (1),
 539 .IR mh\-format (5)
 540 .PP
 541 .I %docdir%/contrib/replaliases
 542 .SH DEFAULTS
 543 .nf
 544 .RB ` +folder "' defaults to the current folder"
 545 .RB ` msg "' defaults to cur"
 546 .RB ` \-nogroup '
 547 .RB ` "\-nocc\ all" "' with `\-nogroup', `\-cc\ all' with `\-group'"
 548 .RB ` \-noannotate '
 549 .RB ` \-nodraftfolder '
 550 .RB ` \-noformat '
 551 .RB ` \-inplace '
 552 .RB ` \-nomime '
 553 .RB ` \-noquery '
 554 .RB ` \-noatfile '
 555 .RB ` "\-width\ 72" '
 556 .fi
 557 .SH CONTEXT
 558 If a folder is given, it will become the current folder.  The message
 559 replied\-to will become the current message.
 560 .SH BUGS
 561 If any addresses occur in the reply template, addresses in the template
 562 that do not contain hosts are defaulted incorrectly.  Instead of using
 563 the localhost for the default,
 564 .B repl
 565 uses the sender's host.
 566 Moral of the story: if you're going to include addresses in a reply
 567 template, include the host portion of the address.
 568 .PP
 569 The
 570 .B \-width
 571 .I columns
 572 switch is only used to do address-folding; other
 573 headers are not line\-wrapped.
 574 .PP
 575 If
 576 .I whatnowproc
 577 is
 578 .BR whatnow ,
 579 then
 580 .B repl
 581 uses a built\-in
 582 .BR whatnow ,
 583 it does not actually run the
 584 .B whatnow
 585 program.
 586 Hence, if you define your own
 587 .IR whatnowproc ,
 588 don't call it
 589 .B whatnow
 590 since
 591 .B repl
 592 won't run it.