XBUFFY(1)XBUFFY(1)NAMExbuffy - yet another biff for the X Window System
SYNOPSISxbuffy [X toolkit options] [-help] [-version] [-horiz]
[-poll seconds] [-header seconds] [-acmd sound file]
[-nobeep] [-names] [-orig] [-priority priority] [-command
command] [-shortnames] [-mail <mailbox files...>] [-news
<newsgroup names...>]
DESCRIPTION
Xbuffy is based on Xmultibiff by John Reardon.
Xbuffy keeps track of multiple mailboxes. You can either
specify mailbox files on the command line, in a Xresources
file, in a text configuration file, or set your MAILPATH
environment variable (a colon separated list of files).
It will display the number of new messages in each mail
file in a box. You can clear the reverse video in a box
by clicking on the box with Button 3.
Another key feature of xbuffy is that it will use NNTP to
watch newsgroups in the same way it watches mailboxes.
You can also specify newsgroups on the command line, in
Xresources, in a text configuration file (the same file
can specify both mailboxes and newsboxes), or set your
NEWSPATH environment variable using the same format as the
MAILPATH environment variable.
By specifying certain command line options and/or Xre-
sources, xbuffy can show the From and Subject lines in
each box. It can also invoke shell commands on button
clicks. Each box can be configured differently by using a
boxfile. In general, it is a very extensible biff. Read
on for details on what it can do.
OPTIONS
The following options are recognized:
-help Print a brief help message and exit
-version Print the current version and exit
-poll secs
How often the mailbox files are polled for new
mail. If this is not specified, it will use the
MAILCHECK environment variable. (default: 60)
-header secs
This will display the From: and Subject: lines
from incoming mail messages in a popup window
when button 1 is pressed in the box label. The
mail header will also popup automatically for
the amount of time indicated in secs when new
mail arrives. If secs is 0, the mail header
will not pop up when new mail arrives. Clicking
in the popup window when mail arrives (if the
argument is non-zero) will instantly popdown the
window. This feature was borrowed from xpbiff.
-fill Makes all the boxes the same size.
-center Centers the name of the box in the box. This
option turns on the fill option.
-acmd sound command
This will run a command instead of ringing the
bell when new mail arrives. For example, you
could "cat meow >/dev/audio". This option could
also be used to automatically open a mail reader
when new mail arrives.
-horiz This will line up the boxes horizontally
(default: vertical)
-nobeep This will disable the beep (or sound command)
when new mail arrives
-boxfile filename
The name of a file containing configuration
information for the boxes. The boxfile is an
alternative way of specifying what to watch.
The boxfile also allows each box to have differ-
ent polltime, headertime, etc.
-origMode This will show all messages in each mailbox. It
has no effect on news groups.
-names Will display the full pathname of all the mail-
boxes it is watching.
-shortnames
Will display the file names of all the mailboxes
it is watching.
-priority priority
Nice level at which xbuffy and its child pro-
cesses will run.
-command command
This is the default command that is to be exe-
cuted when Button 2 is pressed on a box.
X Options Standard X windows options (e.g. -fn, -display,
etc.)
ENVIRONMENT
The names and purpose of the some of the following envi-
ronment variables were borrowed from Bash, the GNU Shell.
MAILCHECK
This specifies the amount of seconds to wait in
between polling for mail.
MAILPATH
This is a colon separated list of files to check for
mail.
NEWSPATH
This is a colon separated list of newsgroups to moni-
tor.
NNTPSERVER
This is the name of the NNTP server to use for news
boxes.
X DEFAULTS
The application class is XBuffy. Almost all the arguments
above can be set in the X resource database, allowing for
one-time configuration and eliminating long command lines.
The environment variables described above take precedence
over any X resources that are specified. Also, any com-
mand line arguments take precedence over both X resources
and environment variables.
BOXFILE FORMAT
The boxfile contains configuration information for each
box. Any line that begins with '#' is considered a com-
ment and is ignored. The definition of a box begins with
the keyword box followed by the filename or newsgroup for
that box. All subsequent lines are then used to configure
that box until either another box command or the end of
file. Note that these options are NOT case sensitive.
The following are settable on a per box basis by using the
boxfile option (note that the boxfile may also be set in
the Xresources with the resource Xbuffy.boxfile: <file-
name>).
When using a boxfile, only the box line is required. All
options that are not given in the boxfile will default to
the command line (or built in) value.
box file name
The filename or newsgroup for this box. This
also marks the beginning of a box definition.
title box title
The title that you want for this box. This will
override the shortname or longname option.
mailbox Specify that the box is a mailbox (a file). If
neither mailbox or newsbox is specified, mailbox
is the default.
newsbox Specify that the box is a newsbox (a NNTP news-
group).
origMode origMode will make Xbuffy try to act like
Xmultibiff and count ALL messages instead of
just NEW message.
newMode newMode will make Xbuffy count only new messages
(this is the default).
nobeep This will disable the beep (or sound command)
when new mail arrives in the specified mailbox
to be counted.
beep This will enable the beep (or sound) when new
mail arrives in the specified mailbox to be
counted.
shortname This will cause the specified box to be prefaced
with the filename.
longname This will cause the specified box to be prefaced
with a full path name.
audio command string
Set to the command string to be used automati-
cally when new mail arrives.
polltime secs
Set to the time (in seconds) in between polling
the box.
headertime secs
Set to the time (in seconds) to display the
header when new things arrive.
command command string
Specifies a UNIX shell command to be executed by
sh when the middle mouse button is pushed in a
box. Take care to escape characters correctly.
led num Specifies a keyboard led to flash when new mail
arrives. This is a number between 1 and 3. (1 -
NumLock, 2 - CapsLock or 3 - ScrollLock).
NOTE: This is only available on LINUX and only
if compiled with --enable-led
The following resources are settable on a per application
basis
in the Xresources:
horiz Set to TRUE or FALSE. Same as the -horiz
option.
mailboxes Set to a colon separated list of mailboxes
(files). This is the same as specifying files
on the command line.
newsboxes Set to a colon separated list of news groups.
This is the same as specifying files on the com-
mand line.
EXAMPLES
The following examples demonstrate how to configure xbuffy
to do the same thing from both the command-line and X
resources. Although, for maximum flexibility on a per-box
basis, I suggest using a boxfile.
The following example will watch 2 mailboxes in a home
directory:
% xbuffy-mail ~/box1 ~/box2 &
boxfile:
box ~/box1
box ~/box2
The following example will watch a mailbox and a news-
group:
% xbuffy-mail /usr/spool/mail/you -news comp.windows.x &
boxfile:
box /usr/spool/mail/you
box comp.windows.x
newsbox
GRATITUDE
Thanks to John Reardon for writing the original Xmultibiff
and Xmultibiff 2.0. Xbuffy is a modified version of
Xmultibiff 2.0 (although the code is looking less and less
similar everyday).
BUGS
Sometimes buffy detects a change in the mailbox and
reports new mail before the mail is finished being deliv-
ered. This can (will) be fixed when buffy learns hows to
deal with file locking.
There is a bug with the NNTP stuff that isn't really
Buffy's fault. Most versions of the NNTP server will not
dynamically update the high message number (you must dis-
connect from the server and re-connect to get a new high
message). If your server is running one of these versions
of NNTP then you will not get told of new articles in your
newsboxes.
AUTHOR
xbuffy: Bill Pemberton, wfp5p@virginia.EDU
xmultibiff: John Reardon, Midnight Networks Inc.,
badger@midnight.com
01/31/95 XBUFFY(1)
