The Mutt E-Mail Client
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The Mutt E-Mail Client

Michael Elkins

version 1.5.18 (2008-05-17)

Abstract

``All mail clients suck. This one just sucks less.'' -me, circa 1995

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
1. Mutt Home Page
2. Mailing Lists
3. Software Distribution Sites
4. IRC
5. USENET
6. Copyright
2. Getting Started
1. Moving Around in Menus
2. Editing Input Fields
2.1. Introduction
2.2. History
3. Reading Mail - The Index and Pager
3.1. The Message Index
3.2. The Pager
3.3. Threaded Mode
3.4. Miscellaneous Functions
4. Sending Mail
4.1. Editing the message header
4.2. Using Mutt with PGP
4.3. Sending anonymous messages via mixmaster.
4.4. Sending format=flowed messages
5. Forwarding and Bouncing Mail
6. Postponing Mail
3. Configuration
1. Syntax of Initialization Files
2. Address groups
3. Defining/Using aliases
4. Changing the default key bindings
5. Defining aliases for character sets
6. Setting variables based upon mailbox
7. Keyboard macros
8. Using color and mono video attributes
9. Ignoring (weeding) unwanted message headers
10. Alternative addresses
11. Mailing lists
12. Using Multiple spool mailboxes
13. Monitoring incoming mail
14. User defined headers
15. Defining the order of headers when viewing messages
16. Specify default save mailbox
17. Specify default Fcc: mailbox when composing
18. Specify default save filename and default Fcc: mailbox at once
19. Change settings based upon message recipients
20. Change settings before formatting a message
21. Choosing the cryptographic key of the recipient
22. Adding key sequences to the keyboard buffer
23. Executing functions
24. Message Scoring
25. Spam detection
26. Setting and Querying Variables
26.1. Commands
26.2. User-defined variables
27. Reading initialization commands from another file
28. Removing hooks
29. Format Strings
29.1. Basic usage
29.2. Filters
4. Advanced Usage
1. Regular Expressions
2. Patterns: Searching, Limiting and Tagging
2.1. Pattern Modifier
2.2. Simple Patterns
2.3. Complex Patterns
2.4. Searching by Date
3. Using Tags
4. Using Hooks
4.1. Message Matching in Hooks
5. External Address Queries
6. Mailbox Formats
7. Mailbox Shortcuts
8. Handling Mailing Lists
9. Editing threads
9.1. Linking threads
9.2. Breaking threads
10. Delivery Status Notification (DSN) Support
11. Start a WWW Browser on URLs (EXTERNAL)
5. Mutt's MIME Support
1. Using MIME in Mutt
1.1. Viewing MIME messages in the pager
1.2. The Attachment Menu
1.3. The Compose Menu
2. MIME Type configuration with mime.types
3. MIME Viewer configuration with mailcap
3.1. The Basics of the mailcap file
3.2. Secure use of mailcap
3.3. Advanced mailcap Usage
3.4. Example mailcap files
4. MIME Autoview
5. MIME Multipart/Alternative
6. Attachment Searching and Counting
7. MIME Lookup
6. Optional features
1. General notes
1.1. Enabling/disabling features
1.2. URL syntax
2. SSL/TLS Support
3. POP3 Support
4. IMAP Support
4.1. The Folder Browser
4.2. Authentication
5. SMTP Support
6. Managing multiple accounts
7. Local caching
7.1. Header caching
7.2. Body caching
7.3. Maintenance
8. Exact address generation
7. Performance tuning
1. Reading and writing mailboxes
2. Reading messages from remote folders
3. Searching and limiting
8. Reference
1. Command line options
2. Configuration Commands
3. Configuration variables
3.1. abort_nosubject
3.2. abort_unmodified
3.3. alias_file
3.4. alias_format
3.5. allow_8bit
3.6. allow_ansi
3.7. arrow_cursor
3.8. ascii_chars
3.9. askbcc
3.10. askcc
3.11. assumed_charset
3.12. attach_charset
3.13. attach_format
3.14. attach_sep
3.15. attach_split
3.16. attribution
3.17. autoedit
3.18. auto_tag
3.19. beep
3.20. beep_new
3.21. bounce
3.22. bounce_delivered
3.23. braille_friendly
3.24. check_mbox_size
3.25. charset
3.26. check_new
3.27. collapse_unread
3.28. uncollapse_jump
3.29. compose_format
3.30. config_charset
3.31. confirmappend
3.32. confirmcreate
3.33. connect_timeout
3.34. content_type
3.35. copy
3.36. crypt_use_gpgme
3.37. crypt_use_pka
3.38. crypt_autopgp
3.39. crypt_autosmime
3.40. date_format
3.41. default_hook
3.42. delete
3.43. delete_untag
3.44. digest_collapse
3.45. display_filter
3.46. dotlock_program
3.47. dsn_notify
3.48. dsn_return
3.49. duplicate_threads
3.50. edit_headers
3.51. editor
3.52. encode_from
3.53. envelope_from_address
3.54. escape
3.55. fast_reply
3.56. fcc_attach
3.57. fcc_clear
3.58. folder
3.59. folder_format
3.60. followup_to
3.61. force_name
3.62. forward_decode
3.63. forward_edit
3.64. forward_format
3.65. forward_quote
3.66. from
3.67. gecos_mask
3.68. hdrs
3.69. header
3.70. help
3.71. hidden_host
3.72. hide_limited
3.73. hide_missing
3.74. hide_thread_subject
3.75. hide_top_limited
3.76. hide_top_missing
3.77. history
3.78. history_file
3.79. honor_followup_to
3.80. hostname
3.81. ignore_linear_white_space
3.82. ignore_list_reply_to
3.83. imap_authenticators
3.84. imap_check_subscribed
3.85. imap_delim_chars
3.86. imap_headers
3.87. imap_idle
3.88. imap_keepalive
3.89. imap_list_subscribed
3.90. imap_login
3.91. imap_pass
3.92. imap_passive
3.93. imap_peek
3.94. imap_servernoise
3.95. imap_user
3.96. implicit_autoview
3.97. include
3.98. include_onlyfirst
3.99. indent_string
3.100. index_format
3.101. ispell
3.102. keep_flagged
3.103. locale
3.104. mail_check
3.105. mailcap_path
3.106. mailcap_sanitize
3.107. header_cache
3.108. maildir_header_cache_verify
3.109. header_cache_pagesize
3.110. header_cache_compress
3.111. maildir_trash
3.112. mark_old
3.113. markers
3.114. mask
3.115. mbox
3.116. mbox_type
3.117. metoo
3.118. menu_context
3.119. menu_move_off
3.120. menu_scroll
3.121. meta_key
3.122. mh_purge
3.123. mh_seq_flagged
3.124. mh_seq_replied
3.125. mh_seq_unseen
3.126. mime_forward
3.127. mime_forward_decode
3.128. mime_forward_rest
3.129. mix_entry_format
3.130. mixmaster
3.131. move
3.132. message_cachedir
3.133. message_cache_clean
3.134. message_format
3.135. narrow_tree
3.136. net_inc
3.137. pager
3.138. pager_context
3.139. pager_format
3.140. pager_index_lines
3.141. pager_stop
3.142. crypt_autosign
3.143. crypt_autoencrypt
3.144. pgp_ignore_subkeys
3.145. crypt_replyencrypt
3.146. crypt_replysign
3.147. crypt_replysignencrypted
3.148. crypt_timestamp
3.149. pgp_use_gpg_agent
3.150. crypt_verify_sig
3.151. smime_is_default
3.152. smime_ask_cert_label
3.153. smime_decrypt_use_default_key
3.154. pgp_entry_format
3.155. pgp_good_sign
3.156. pgp_check_exit
3.157. pgp_long_ids
3.158. pgp_retainable_sigs
3.159. pgp_autoinline
3.160. pgp_replyinline
3.161. pgp_show_unusable
3.162. pgp_sign_as
3.163. pgp_strict_enc
3.164. pgp_timeout
3.165. pgp_sort_keys
3.166. pgp_mime_auto
3.167. pgp_auto_decode
3.168. pgp_decode_command
3.169. pgp_getkeys_command
3.170. pgp_verify_command
3.171. pgp_decrypt_command
3.172. pgp_clearsign_command
3.173. pgp_sign_command
3.174. pgp_encrypt_sign_command
3.175. pgp_encrypt_only_command
3.176. pgp_import_command
3.177. pgp_export_command
3.178. pgp_verify_key_command
3.179. pgp_list_secring_command
3.180. pgp_list_pubring_command
3.181. forward_decrypt
3.182. smime_timeout
3.183. smime_encrypt_with
3.184. smime_keys
3.185. smime_ca_location
3.186. smime_certificates
3.187. smime_decrypt_command
3.188. smime_verify_command
3.189. smime_verify_opaque_command
3.190. smime_sign_command
3.191. smime_sign_opaque_command
3.192. smime_encrypt_command
3.193. smime_pk7out_command
3.194. smime_get_cert_command
3.195. smime_get_signer_cert_command
3.196. smime_import_cert_command
3.197. smime_get_cert_email_command
3.198. smime_default_key
3.199. ssl_client_cert
3.200. ssl_force_tls
3.201. ssl_starttls
3.202. certificate_file
3.203. ssl_usesystemcerts
3.204. entropy_file
3.205. ssl_use_sslv2
3.206. ssl_use_sslv3
3.207. ssl_use_tlsv1
3.208. ssl_min_dh_prime_bits
3.209. ssl_ca_certificates_file
3.210. pipe_split
3.211. pipe_decode
3.212. pipe_sep
3.213. pop_authenticators
3.214. pop_auth_try_all
3.215. pop_checkinterval
3.216. pop_delete
3.217. pop_host
3.218. pop_last
3.219. pop_reconnect
3.220. pop_user
3.221. pop_pass
3.222. post_indent_string
3.223. postpone
3.224. postponed
3.225. preconnect
3.226. print
3.227. print_command
3.228. print_decode
3.229. print_split
3.230. prompt_after
3.231. query_command
3.232. query_format
3.233. quit
3.234. quote_regexp
3.235. read_inc
3.236. read_only
3.237. realname
3.238. recall
3.239. record
3.240. reply_regexp
3.241. reply_self
3.242. reply_to
3.243. resolve
3.244. reverse_alias
3.245. reverse_name
3.246. reverse_realname
3.247. rfc2047_parameters
3.248. save_address
3.249. save_empty
3.250. save_history
3.251. save_name
3.252. score
3.253. score_threshold_delete
3.254. score_threshold_flag
3.255. score_threshold_read
3.256. send_charset
3.257. sendmail
3.258. sendmail_wait
3.259. shell
3.260. sig_dashes
3.261. sig_on_top
3.262. signature
3.263. simple_search
3.264. smart_wrap
3.265. smileys
3.266. sleep_time
3.267. smtp_authenticators
3.268. smtp_pass
3.269. smtp_url
3.270. sort
3.271. sort_alias
3.272. sort_aux
3.273. sort_browser
3.274. sort_re
3.275. spam_separator
3.276. spoolfile
3.277. status_chars
3.278. status_format
3.279. status_on_top
3.280. strict_threads
3.281. suspend
3.282. text_flowed
3.283. thread_received
3.284. thorough_search
3.285. tilde
3.286. time_inc
3.287. timeout
3.288. tmpdir
3.289. to_chars
3.290. tunnel
3.291. use_8bitmime
3.292. use_domain
3.293. use_envelope_from
3.294. use_from
3.295. use_idn
3.296. use_ipv6
3.297. user_agent
3.298. visual
3.299. wait_key
3.300. weed
3.301. wrap
3.302. wrap_search
3.303. wrapmargin
3.304. write_inc
3.305. write_bcc
4. Functions
4.1. generic
4.2. index
4.3. pager
4.4. alias
4.5. query
4.6. attach
4.7. compose
4.8. postpone
4.9. browser
4.10. pgp
4.11. smime
4.12. mix
4.13. editor
9. Miscellany
1. Acknowledgements
2. About this document

List of Tables

2.1. Most common navigation keys
2.2. Most common line editor keys
2.3. Most common message index keys
2.4. Most common pager keys
2.5. ANSI escape sequences
2.6. Color sequences
2.7. Most common thread mode keys
2.8. Most common mail sending keys
2.9. Most common compose menu keys
2.10. PGP key menu flags
2.11. Message forwarding/bouncing keys
3.1. Symbolic key names
4.1. Pattern modifiers
4.2. Simple search keywords
4.3. Date units
8.1. Command line options
8.2. Default generic function bindings
8.3. Default index function bindings
8.4. Default pager function bindings
8.5. Default alias function bindings
8.6. Default query function bindings
8.7. Default attach function bindings
8.8. Default compose function bindings
8.9. Default postpone function bindings
8.10. Default browser function bindings
8.11. Default pgp function bindings
8.12. Default smime function bindings
8.13. Default mix function bindings
8.14. Default editor function bindings
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   Chapter 1. Introduction