etc/ERC-NEWS

   1 ERC NEWS                                                       -*- outline -*-
   2
   3 Copyright (C) 2006, 2007  Free Software Foundation, Inc.
   4 See the end of the file for license conditions.
   5
   6 * Changes in ERC 5.3
   7
   8 ** New function `erc-tls' is to be used for connecting to a server via TLS.
   9 It requires the tls.el library.
  10
  11 ** The function `erc-ssl' will now always use ssl.el, even in the version
  12 of ERC that comes with Emacs.
  13
  14 ** Type `C-u' before `C-c C-j' to prompt for a channel key
  15 `erc-join-channel' now accepts a prefix-argument to prompt for the key
  16 when channels are protected by keywords.
  17
  18 ** Changes and additions to modules
  19
  20 *** Channel tracking (erc-track.el)
  21
  22 If erc-track-position-in-mode-line is set to nil, the tracking
  23 information won't be shown in the mode line, which is a change
  24 from the previous behavior of showing it "After all other
  25 information".
  26
  27 * Changes in ERC 5.2
  28
  29 ** M-x erc RET now starts ERC.
  30 `erc-select' has been changed to `erc'.  `erc-select' still remains as
  31 an alias of `erc'. Likewise, `erc-select-ssl' has been renamed to
  32 `erc-ssl' with `erc-select-ssl' as its alias.  The function that was
  33 known as `erc' is now `erc-open'.
  34
  35 ** Open query buffers by default when private messages are received.
  36 The default value of `erc-auto-query' has been changed to 'bury.
  37
  38 ** New command: /RECONNECT
  39 This command tries to reconnect to the current IRC server exactly
  40 once.  It does not work in server buffers (throws an error before the
  41 command is run), but works in query and channel buffers.
  42
  43 ** In MS-DOS environments, look for _ercrc.el rather than .ercrc.el.
  44
  45 ** Fix buggy interaction with multi-tty Emacs.
  46
  47 ** After running /QUIT, make sure that the IRC process is killed within
  48 4 seconds.  Freenode, in particular, needs this at times.
  49
  50 ** If the IRC process has not responded to our PINGs within a certain
  51 time, kill it and restart the connection.  See
  52 `erc-server-auto-reconnect', `erc-server-reconnect-attempts',
  53 `erc-server-reconnect-timeout', `erc-server-send-ping-interval', and
  54 `erc-server-send-ping-timeout' to fine-tune ERC's behavior.
  55
  56 ** Avoid getting into an infinite connection loop.
  57 Previously, this could happen if your nick was banned, you were using
  58 Tor, incorrect information was entered, or the connection was bad.
  59
  60 ** Make ban messages less confusing.
  61
  62 ** Restore the point correctly when reconnecting to an IRC server.
  63
  64 ** Make /IGNORE and /UNIGNORE prompt to determine whether their
  65 argument is a user or a regexp.  This results in less-confusing
  66 behavior when trying to ignore someone who has a bracket in their
  67 nick.
  68
  69 ** Make the default port "6667" rather than "ircd", because some
  70 operating systems don't know what port "ircd" maps to.
  71
  72 ** Fix several bugs in erc-iswitchb (C-c C-b).
  73
  74 ** Clean up internal documentation.
  75 Special thanks go to Juanma Barranquero for the thorough vetting of
  76 ERC's internal documentation.
  77
  78 ** Display a more informative message when a module is not found.
  79
  80 ** Fix a bug where paths were being colored like IRC commands.
  81
  82 ** In the customize interface for `erc-modules', add the name of the module.
  83 This makes it easier to find modules by name.
  84
  85 ** erc-server-send-ping-interval: Change to use a default of 30 seconds.
  86
  87 ** Some files which are included with the release of ERC 5.2 will not
  88 appear in the version of ERC that is bundled with Emacs 22.  These
  89 extras files may be found at:
  90
  91  o http://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/erc/erc-5.2-extras.tar.gz, or
  92  o http://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/erc/erc-5.2-extras.zip.
  93
  94 ** Renamed files
  95
  96 Several files were renamed so as to make them distinct to users of the
  97 MS-DOS operating system.
  98
  99  o erc-autojoin.el -> erc-join.el
 100  o erc-complete.el -> erc-hecomplete.el
 101  o erc-nickserv.el -> erc-services.el
 102  o ChangeLog.NNNN -> ChangeLog.NN
 103
 104 ** Header line changes
 105
 106 *** Remove "[IRC]" from the header line.
 107
 108 *** Add the %l format character to `erc-header-line-format',
 109
 110 *** Document how to remove the header line.
 111 Namely: (setq erc-header-line-format nil).
 112
 113 ** New options
 114
 115 *** erc-server-reconnect-attempts: Determines the number of
 116 reconnection attempts that ERC will make per server.
 117
 118 *** erc-server-reconnect-timeout: Determines the amount of time,
 119 in seconds, that ERC will wait between successive reconnect attempts.
 120
 121 *** erc-server-send-ping-timeout: Determines when to consider a connection
 122 stalled and restart it.  The default is after 120 seconds.
 123
 124 *** erc-system-name: Determines the system name to use when logging in.
 125 The default is to figure this out by calling `system-name'.
 126
 127 ** New face: `erc-my-nick-face'
 128 This helps make it easier to distinguish messages sent by yourself
 129 from messages sent by other users when the value of the variable
 130 `erc-show-my-nick' is non-nil.
 131
 132 ** Namespace changes
 133
 134 *** New macro: `erc-with-server-buffer'
 135 Switches to the current ERC server buffer and runs some code.  If no
 136 server buffer is available, return nil.  This is a useful way to
 137 access variables in the server buffer.
 138
 139 *** New function: `erc-open-server-buffer-p'
 140 Returns non-nil if the given buffer is an ERC server buffer that has
 141 an open IRC process.
 142
 143 *** New function: `erc-format-lag-time'
 144 Returns the estimated lag time to server, `erc-server-lag'.
 145
 146 *** Renamed items
 147
 148  o `erc-server-setup-periodical-server-ping' is now
 149    `erc-server-setup-periodical-ping'
 150
 151  o `erc-away-p' is now `erc-away-time'
 152
 153 ** Changes to the ERC manual
 154
 155 *** New section: Sample Session.
 156 Describes a sample ERC session for connecting to the #emacs channel on
 157 Freenode.  Also mention the #erc channel.
 158
 159 *** New section: Special Features.
 160 Describes some of the special features of ERC.
 161
 162 *** Getting Started: Mention ~/.emacs.d/.ercrc.el and the Customize
 163 interface.
 164
 165 *** Development: Mention ErcDevelopment page on emacswiki.org.
 166
 167 *** Tips and Tricks: Remove empty section for now.
 168
 169 *** Options: Mention how to see available ERC options.
 170
 171 *** Sample Configuration: Add an example of how to configure ERC.
 172
 173 ** New modules
 174
 175 *** Autoaway (erc-autoaway.el)
 176
 177 **** Make this much more reliable.
 178
 179 **** Avoid duplicate messages when coming back from being away.
 180
 181 **** Fix bug where autoaway was enabled just by loading the file.
 182
 183 *** BBDB (erc-bbdb.el)
 184
 185 **** Display information on how to cancel merging of info or how to
 186 create a new John Doe record.
 187
 188 **** Make it so that information from /whois continues to come in, even
 189 while prompting for a record to merge.
 190
 191 **** Make hitting C-g correctly abort merging the record.
 192
 193 *** Capab identify (erc-capab.el)
 194 Mark users who haven't identified to NickServ on servers supporting
 195 CAPAB IDENTIFY-MSG.
 196
 197 ** Changes and additions to modules
 198
 199 *** Button (erc-button.el)
 200
 201 **** Make <backtab> go to the previous button.
 202
 203 *** Channel tracking (erc-track.el)
 204
 205 **** Use mouse-face and help-echo for channel names in the mode-line.
 206 This helps people using a mouse know that they are buttons and can be
 207 clicked on.
 208
 209 **** Fix issue where C-c C-SPC could conflict with user-defined keybindings.
 210 This is accomplished by moving these bindings to their own global
 211 minor mode.  Now the default is to check whether the user has bound
 212 something to C-c C-SPC or C-c C-@.  If they have, prompt them about
 213 whether to really override that binding.  This also has the effect of
 214 preventing ERC from clobbering rcirc's keybinding, unless this is
 215 desired.  See `erc-track-enable-keybindings' for more details.
 216
 217 **** New option: erc-track-enable-keybindings.
 218 Determine whether or not to enable the C-c C-SPC and C-c C-@
 219 keybindings.  The default is to ask whether to do this if a binding to
 220 these keys already exists.  It can also be set to t or nil to always
 221 bind or never bind, respectively.
 222
 223 **** Remove `track-when-inactive' module.
 224 See `erc-track-when-inactive' for further details.
 225
 226 **** New option: erc-track-when-inactive.
 227 This option replaces the track-when-inactive module.  Set it to
 228 non-nil to track activity even in visible buffers when inactive.  The
 229 default is nil.
 230
 231 **** Remove the `track-modified-channels' alias for the `track' module.
 232
 233 *** DCC support (erc-dcc.el)
 234
 235 **** Add Usage section to Commentary.
 236
 237 **** Fix a bug in the server message output.
 238
 239 *** Filling (erc-fill.el)
 240
 241 **** Fix bug involving messages that start with one or more blank lines.
 242
 243 *** Identd (erc-identd.el)
 244
 245 **** New option `erc-identd-port'
 246 Specifies the port to use if none is given as an argument to
 247 `erc-identd-start'.  This is placed in the new customization group
 248 `erc-identd'.
 249
 250 **** New function: `erc-identd-quickstart'
 251 Ignores any arguments and calls `erc-identd-start'.
 252
 253 *** Channel lists (erc-list.el)
 254
 255 **** Enable by default, except in the version of ERC bundled with Emacs 22.
 256
 257 *** Logging (erc-log.el)
 258
 259 **** Make sure filenames are safe to use before writing to them.
 260
 261 **** Save all log buffers when exiting Emacs.
 262
 263 **** erc-generate-log-file-name-function: Add option for
 264 `erc-generate-log-file-name-network', which is a new function that
 265 uses the network name rather than the server name when possible.
 266
 267 *** Menu (erc-menu.el)
 268
 269 **** Name the menu "ERC" instead of "IRC" to avoid confusion with rcirc
 270 and other clients.
 271
 272 **** Make this into a proper module and load it by default.
 273
 274 **** Add "Current channel" submenu.
 275
 276 *** Networks (erc-networks.el)
 277
 278 **** Add support for Ars OpenIRC, LinuxChix, and OFTC networks.
 279
 280 **** Escape periods in Konfido.Net and Kewl.Org.
 281
 282 *** Internet services / Nickserv (erc-nickserv.el)
 283
 284 **** Add new 'both method for the `erc-nickserv-identify-mode' option
 285 and make it the default.  This tries to do the right thing both when a
 286 known nickserv message exists for an IRC network, and when it does
 287 not.
 288
 289 **** Support nickserv authentication on OFTC, Azzurra, Ars, and QuakeNet.
 290
 291 **** Support authentication on BitlBee.
 292
 293 **** Make source code easier to understand by using accessor functions.
 294
 295 *** Sound support (erc-sound.el)
 296
 297 **** Make this work with both Emacs 21 and Emacs 22.
 298
 299 *** Timestamps (erc-stamp.el)
 300
 301 **** Exclude the newline from the erc-timestamp field.
 302
 303 **** New function: `erc-toggle-timestamps'.
 304 Toggles display of timestamps.
 305
 306 * Changes in ERC 5.1.4
 307
 308 ** Make find-function and find-variable work in Emacs 22 for
 309 names that are constructed by `define-erc-module'.
 310
 311 ** Fix bug introduced in ERC 5.1.3 that caused messages to go the
 312 wrong buffer.
 313
 314 ** Changes and additions to modules
 315
 316 *** Highlighting (erc-match.el)
 317
 318 **** Don't activate view-mode.
 319
 320 *** Logging (erc-log.el)
 321
 322 **** When this module is activated, make sure logging is enabled on
 323 already-opened buffers.  Ditto for disabling logging when the module
 324 is deactivated.
 325
 326 **** Fix some errors that occur when exiting Emacs without first
 327 quitting open IRC servers.
 328
 329 * Changes in ERC 5.1.3
 330
 331 ** Fix use of /quote command with no initial whitespace.
 332
 333 ** Make it possible to customize the colorization of the header line.
 334 The `erc-header-line' face is used to color the header line.
 335 The `erc-header-line-face-method' determines the method to use when
 336 colorizing the header line.
 337
 338 ** Add the new function `erc-handle-irc-url', which is a suitable
 339 candidate to use for `url-irc-function'.  This permits some
 340 integration of url.el and ERC.
 341
 342 ** Fix several errors that occur when server or channel buffers are killed
 343 prematurely.
 344
 345 ** Fix toggling of flood control.
 346
 347 ** Match the patterns in `erc-encoding-coding-alist' as regexps,
 348 instead of verbatim text.  Also, match case-insensitively.
 349
 350 ** The /SMV command has been removed, since we no longer have
 351 meaningful module-specific version information.
 352
 353 ** Fix a "(stringp nil)" error that can happen when doing /PART.
 354
 355 ** Use a better example in the `erc-part-reason-various-alist'
 356 documentation.
 357
 358 ** When using `erc-quit-reason-various' and `erc-part-reason-various'
 359 and no matches are found, default to using the ERC version string
 360 rather than "nil".
 361
 362 ** Add the `list' and `page' modules to the `erc-modules' customize
 363 interface.
 364
 365 ** Changes to the ERC manual
 366
 367 *** Update the list of available modules.
 368
 369 *** Revise information about releases and development.
 370
 371 *** Provide a simpler example in the "Getting Started" chapter.
 372
 373 *** Fully document how to connect to an IRC server in the new
 374 "Connecting" chapter.
 375
 376 ** Changes and additions to modules
 377
 378 *** Autoaway (erc-autoaway.el)
 379
 380 **** Rename the `erc-autoaway-use-emacs-idle' option to
 381 `erc-autoaway-idle-method'.
 382
 383 **** Add support for autoaway based on user idle time.
 384 This is now the default.
 385
 386 **** If you set the AWAY status yourself, erc-autoaway will not
 387 interfere by un-setting AWAY prematurely.
 388
 389 **** If you are set away while visiting a non-ERC buffer,
 390 erc-autoaway used to fail in bringing the user back.  This is now
 391 fixed.
 392
 393 *** BBDB (erc-bbdb.el)
 394
 395 **** Add new option `erc-bbdb-electric-p', which determines whether
 396 to make the BBDB buffer electric.  This defaults to not electric.
 397
 398 *** Button (erc-button.el)
 399
 400 **** Use <backtab> instead of <C-tab> for `erc-button-previous'.
 401
 402 *** Identd (erc-identd.el)
 403
 404 **** Fix a bug that involves starting the identd server.
 405
 406 **** Make this work with Emacs 22.
 407
 408 **** Provide a real ERC module named `identd'.
 409
 410 **** Don't create an extra buffer for the identd process.
 411
 412 *** Channel lists (erc-list.el)
 413
 414 **** Enable by default, except in the version of ERC bundled with Emacs 22.
 415
 416 *** Logging (erc-log.el)
 417
 418 **** By default, don't insert old logs when opening an ERC buffer.
 419 This may be changed by customizing `erc-log-insert-log-on-open'.
 420
 421 **** New option `erc-log-write-after-send' determines whether the
 422 log file will be written to after every sent message.  The default is
 423 not to do this.
 424
 425 **** New option `erc-log-write-after-insert' determines whether the
 426 log file will be written to when new text is added to a logged ERC
 427 buffer.  The default is not to do this.  With this option and the
 428 previous option, logging should no longer slow down ERC as much.
 429
 430 **** Default to saving buffers and queries on quit.
 431 This may be changed by customizing the `erc-save-buffer-on-quit' and
 432 `erc-save-queries-on-quit' options, respectively.
 433
 434 **** Only perform logging when the `logging' module is added to
 435 `erc-modules'.  This prevents logging from being activated just by
 436 loading the erc-log.el file, and makes logging act like other ERC
 437 modules.
 438
 439 *** Programmable completion (erc-pcomplete.el)
 440
 441 **** Don't complete the user's current nickname.
 442
 443 * Changes in ERC 5.1.2
 444
 445 ** Fix compiler errors in erc-autojoin.el and erc-dcc.el.
 446
 447 ** Move to end of prompt when ERC reconnects to a server.
 448
 449 ** Changes and additions to modules
 450
 451 *** Spell-checking (erc-spelling.el)
 452
 453 **** Don't spell-check nicks or words that are prefixed with '/'.
 454
 455 **** Remove flyspell properties from words we shouldn't spell-check.
 456
 457 **** Fix an issue that caused the ispell process to reload every time
 458 we switch to an ERC buffer.
 459
 460 *** Timestamps (erc-stamp.el)
 461
 462 **** Fix an inconsistency in calculating width of right timestamps.
 463
 464 **** Rename option `erc-timestamp-right-align-by-pixel' to
 465 `erc-timestamp-use-align-to'.  This controls whether to use the more
 466 fail-proof method of aligning right timestamps, as mentioned below.
 467
 468 **** Fix a right timestamp spacing problem that used to occur when
 469 erc-stamp.el was byte-compiled.  Now that this is fixed, it is safe to
 470 use the method that aligns right timestamps perfectly in Emacs22 with
 471 X.  If the current version of Emacs doesn't support this method, use
 472 the simpler method, which is prone to alignment issues for math
 473 symbols and other variable-width text.
 474
 475 A side effect of using this new method is that there will only be one
 476 space before a right timestamp in any saved logs.  If this is
 477 unacceptable, set `erc-timestamp-use-align-to' to nil.
 478
 479 * Changes in ERC 5.1.1
 480
 481 ** Fix a requirement on cl.el.
 482
 483 ** Use tls.el for SSL connections, rather than ssl.el.
 484
 485 ** Changes and additions to modules
 486
 487 *** ibuffer integration (erc-ibuffer.el)
 488
 489 **** Update this to work with the version of ibuffer.el that comes with
 490 recent Emacs variants.
 491
 492 *** Old completion (erc-complete.el)
 493
 494 **** Fix a few errors.
 495
 496 *** Speedbar (erc-speedbar.el)
 497
 498 **** Make this work with the version of speedbar.el that comes with
 499 recent Emacs variants.
 500
 501 *** Timestamps (erc-stamp.el)
 502
 503 **** By default, use a more failsafe method of displaying right timestamps.
 504 To get right timestamps to align perfectly in Emacs22 using X, set the
 505 new `erc-timestamp-right-align-by-pixel' option to non-nil.
 506
 507 *** Viper compatibility (erc-viper.el)
 508
 509 **** Since most of these changes are now merged into Emacs22, detect
 510 whether we need these changes and install them only if necessary.
 511
 512 * Changes in ERC 5.1
 513
 514 ** Improve XEmacs compatibility.
 515
 516 ** Namespace changes
 517
 518 *** Now ERC doesn't use global variable space.
 519 Renamed all variables that didn't start with "erc-".
 520
 521   o `away' is now `erc-away'
 522
 523   o `current-nick' is now `erc-server-current-nick'
 524
 525   o `last-peers' is now `erc-server-last-peers'
 526
 527   o `last-ping-time' is now `erc-server-last-ping-time'
 528
 529   o `last-sent-time' is now `erc-server-last-sent-time'
 530
 531   o `lines-sent' is now `erc-server-lines-sent'
 532
 533   o `quitting' is now `erc-server-quitting'
 534
 535 *** Remove the `with-erc-channel-buffer' function.
 536
 537 ** Bugfixes
 538
 539 *** Don't inadvertently destroy face properties.
 540
 541 *** Load erc scripts in a safer way.
 542
 543 *** Don't insert a timestamp if text at point is invisible.
 544
 545 *** Don't hide messages from those in `erc-fools' by default.
 546 Color their nicks instead.
 547
 548 *** Use a more foolproof method of encoding and decoding strings
 549 before sending to a channel.
 550
 551 ** Backend changes
 552
 553 *** Renamed some server-specific variables
 554
 555   o `erc-announced-server-name' is now `erc-server-announced-name'
 556
 557   o `erc-auto-reconnect' is now `erc-server-auto-reconnect'
 558
 559   o `erc-connect-function' is now `erc-server-connect-function'
 560
 561   o `erc-default-coding-system' is now `erc-server-coding-system'
 562
 563   o `erc-duplicate-timeout' is now `erc-server-duplicate-timeout'
 564
 565   o `erc-duplicates' is now `erc-server-duplicates'
 566
 567   o `erc-lag' is now `erc-server-lag'
 568
 569   o `erc-prevent-duplicates' is now `erc-server-prevent-duplicates'
 570
 571   o `erc-previous-read' is now `erc-server-filter-data'
 572
 573   o `erc-process' is now `erc-server-process'
 574
 575   o `erc-ping-handler' is now `erc-server-send-ping-handler'
 576
 577   o `erc-ping-interval' is now `erc-server-send-ping-interval'
 578
 579 *** Renamed some functions
 580
 581   o `erc-connect' is now `erc-server-connect'
 582
 583   o `erc-process-filter' is now `erc-server-filter-function'
 584
 585   o `erc-send-command' is now `erc-server-send'
 586
 587   o `erc-send-single-line' is now `erc-send-input'
 588
 589   o `erc-setup-periodical-server-ping' is now
 590     `erc-server-setup-periodical-server-ping'
 591
 592   o `erc-split-command is now `erc-split-line'
 593
 594 *** New options
 595
 596   o erc-server-flood-margin, erc-server-flood-penalty: New options
 597     that allow tweaking of flood control.
 598
 599   o erc-split-line-length: The maximum line length of a single
 600     message.
 601
 602 *** New variables
 603
 604   o erc-server-flood-last-message, erc-server-flood-queue,
 605     erc-server-flood-timer: Flood control.
 606
 607   o erc-server-processing-p: Indicate when we're currently processing
 608     a message.
 609
 610 *** Remove some options
 611
 612   o `erc-flood-limit'
 613   o `erc-flood-limit2'
 614
 615 ** New customization group `erc-server' for dealing with IRC servers.
 616
 617 ** ERC can now be installed by doing `make install' from the command line.
 618
 619 ** ERC now has a manual in erc.texi.
 620 Type `make doc' to generate HTML and Info versions of it.
 621
 622 ** ERC no longer depends on cl.el.
 623 Only the macros in cl-macs.el are used.
 624
 625 ** Fix an edge case when quitting as new messages come in.
 626
 627 ** Make flood protection toggle-able as on/off, removing the 'strict option.
 628
 629 ** If possible, re-use channel buffers when reconnecting to a server.
 630
 631 ** Text in ERC buffers is now read-only by default.
 632 To get the previous behavior,
 633
 634 ** Changes and additions to modules
 635
 636 *** Auto-join (erc-autojoin.el)
 637
 638 **** Recognize the Azzurra server.
 639
 640 *** BBDB (erc-bbdb.el)
 641
 642 **** When the user types /WHOIS, ask for a record to merge to.
 643
 644 **** Store the displayed name of a BitlBee contact.
 645 The new `erc-bbdb-bitlbee-name-field' option specifies the field to use
 646 to store this information.
 647
 648 **** Don't prompt for a name on /JOIN or /NICK.
 649
 650 *** Button (erc-button.el)
 651
 652 **** Fix customization of `erc-button-alist'
 653
 654 **** New option `erc-button-nickname-face' determines the face to use
 655 when coloring ERC nicknames.
 656
 657 *** Channel tracking (erc-track.el)
 658
 659 **** Remove channels from the modified channels list if not currently
 660 connected.  This should remove residue from the mode line after
 661 quitting ERC.
 662
 663 **** Recognize buttonized text
 664
 665 *** Highlighting (erc-match.el)
 666
 667 **** Highlight current nickname by default.
 668
 669 **** Added the option of beeping when certain matches occur.
 670 Add `erc-beep-on-match' to `erc-text-matched-hook' to enable
 671 beeping.  Set the new variable `erc-beep-match-types' which match
 672 types that make beeps.
 673
 674 *** Nicklist (erc-nicklist.el)
 675
 676 **** Fix a couple of errors.
 677
 678 **** Make sure a stray mouse click doesn't trigger an error.
 679
 680 **** Insert icons from the /images directory next to nicks.
 681 This indicates their away status.  The location is customizable via
 682 the new `erc-nicklist-icons-directory' option.
 683
 684 If you do not want these icons, set `erc-nicklist-use-icons' to nil.
 685
 686 *** Nickserv identification (erc-nickserv.el)
 687
 688 **** Recognize Azzurra and OFTC networks.
 689
 690 *** Old completion (erc-complete.el)
 691
 692 **** Disable by default.
 693
 694 *** Programmable completion (erc-pcomplete.el)
 695
 696 **** Enable by default.
 697
 698 *** Timestamps (erc-stamp.el)
 699
 700 **** On Emacs22, align right timestamps perfectly, even if variable-width
 701 characters are used.  If we aren't using Emacs22, move text farther
 702 away from the right margin when variable-width characters are used.
 703 It is considered better to misalign the stamp by a bit than to go past
 704 the right margin.
 705
 706 **** Enable by default
 707
 708 ** New modules
 709
 710 *** Spell-checking (erc-spelling.el)
 711
 712 **** Use flyspell in ERC.
 713
 714 *** Viper compatibility (erc-viper.el)
 715
 716 **** Helps ERC work correctly in viper-mode.
 717
 718 * Changes in ERC 5.0.4
 719
 720 ** Fix a problem with undo in channels.
 721
 722 * Changes in ERC 5.0.3
 723
 724 ** Fix typo in the `ctcp-request-to' entry of the English catalog.
 725
 726 ** Debugging with edegug has been made easier in all of the
 727 erc-with-* and with-erc* macros.
 728
 729 ** Non-ASCII character sets should be better supported when sending
 730 and processing messages.
 731
 732 ** A load failure with erc-autoaway.el and Emacs21 has been fixed.
 733
 734 ** A few XEmacs warnings were fixed.
 735
 736 ** Changes and additions to modules
 737
 738 *** Backend (erc-backend.el)
 739
 740 **** Move the check for hidden messages into `erc-display-message'
 741 so there isn't so much replicated code.
 742
 743 **** Add `definition-name' property to constructed symbols so that
 744 `find-function' and `find-variable' will be able to locate them.
 745
 746 **** Make sure logs are inserted info the correct channel buffers.
 747 There was previously an error when using `erc-insert-log-on-open' in
 748 combination with autojoin to multiple channels.
 749
 750 *** Button (erc-button.el)
 751
 752 **** The layering of `erc-button-face' on other faces in ERC buffers
 753 has been improved.
 754
 755 *** Channel tracking (erc-track.el)
 756
 757 **** Use optimal amount of whitespace around modified channels
 758 indicator.  Previously, there was an additional unnecessary space.
 759
 760 **** Fix an error that occurred when unchecked buffers existed when
 761 invoking /QUIT.
 762
 763 * Changes in ERC 5.0.2
 764
 765 ** If a channel key is required for a certain channel, ERC will prompt
 766 for one if `erc-prompt-for-channel-key' is non-nil.
 767
 768 ** ERC doesn't try to reconnect if the network connection is refused
 769 when using `open-network-stream-nowait' as the `erc-connect-function'.
 770
 771 ** Messages from multiple servers will not go to the currently active
 772 buffer.  The messages from each server will be contained in the most
 773 recently active channel/server buffer that corresponds with the
 774 server.
 775
 776 ** Some text messages were cleaned up slightly.
 777
 778 ** Button faces should no longer "cover" other faces.
 779
 780 ** Made some XEmacs compatibility fixes.
 781
 782 ** Nicknames containing a backslash are now correctly highlighted as
 783 current-nick and buttonized as nicks.
 784
 785 ** `erc-server-select' doesn't offer networks without servers as a
 786 choice anymore.
 787
 788 ** Non-ASCII character support has been improved.
 789
 790 ** Changes and additions to modules
 791
 792 *** Menu (erc-menu.el)
 793
 794 **** You can now save logs and truncate buffers from the menu-bar.
 795
 796 * Changes in ERC 5.0.1
 797
 798 ** Narrowing in ERC buffers no longer causes formatting errors.
 799
 800 ** The BBDB module now loads correctly when customizing `erc-modules'.
 801
 802 ** The value of `erc-button-face' is now respected.
 803
 804 ** Fixed a bug which caused a read-only error during connection.
 805
 806 ** Server buffers are now tracked correctly.
 807 This means that `erc-track-priority-faces-only', `erc-track-exclude',
 808 and `erc-track-exclude-types' now work with server buffers.
 809
 810 * Changes in ERC 5.0
 811
 812 ** Channel members are now stored as a hash-table.
 813 `erc-server-users' and `erc-channel-users' are now hash-tables, rather
 814 than alists.  This significantly increases performance, especially in
 815 large channels.  Each channel member is stored as an `erc-server-user'
 816 struct, with additional information about the channels they are on
 817 stored in an `erc-channel-user' struct.  Code using old alist-style
 818 channel members needs to be updated to work with hash-tables.
 819 This new code also removes the need for erc-members.el, which has been
 820 removed.
 821
 822 ** The way ERC deals with input from the server has changed.
 823 All server response code is now in a new file, erc-backend.el.  There
 824 should be no real user visible changes.  There are, however, a few
 825 major changes for implementers, and module writers:
 826
 827 *** The PARSED response that all handlers get called with is
 828     no longer a vector, but an `erc-response' struct.
 829
 830     This means LESS MAGIC NUMBERS in the ERC source code, but a few
 831     changes in how you get at parsed responses.
 832
 833     The sender is accessed via `erc-response.sender'.
 834
 835     The command is accessed via `erc-response.command'.
 836
 837     The arguments to the command (everything after the command and
 838     before the colon) are accessed via `erc-response.command-args'.
 839     This is a /list/ of arguments in the order they appear in the
 840     unparsed response.
 841
 842     The contents of the response is accessed via
 843     `erc-response.contents'.
 844
 845     Should, for some reason, you want to do something with the
 846     /unparsed/ response, you can get it via `erc-response.unparsed'.
 847
 848 *** The `erc-server-hook-list' mechanism is gone.
 849
 850     All server response handlers should be defined with
 851     `define-erc-response-handler'.  This defines functions and
 852     corresponding hook variables.
 853
 854     The mapping of server commands to hook variables is no longer
 855     done via `erc-event-to-hook', but through an #'equal hashtable,
 856     `erc-server-responses'.  In order to find a hook you do:
 857
 858     (erc-get-hook command)
 859
 860     See the docstring of `define-erc-response-handler' for more
 861     information.
 862
 863 *** ALL hook variables have been renamed.
 864
 865     In accordance with recommendations in the Emacs Lisp manual,
 866     the hook variables are no longer called `erc-server-FOO-hook',
 867     but rather `erc-server-FOO-functions'.  This is to indicate
 868     that the functions they call take arguments.
 869
 870     All the modules in ERC have been updated to reflect this change,
 871     but external module authors should beware.
 872
 873 ** The values of `erc-mode-line-format' and `erc-header-line-format'
 874 are now defined as strings to be formatted using `format-spec'.
 875 `erc-mode-line-format' does not replace the whole mode-line anymore,
 876 only `mode-line-buffer-identification' is set.  This way, personal
 877 mode-line configurations are not modified and all key bindings work as
 878 expected.  The process status (connecting, closed) is now shown in
 879 `mode-line-process'.
 880
 881 ** Customization of ERC variables has been made easier.  Variables
 882 have been split into more groups for better organization.
 883
 884 ** New variables
 885
 886   o `erc-send-whitespace-lines' - Set this to send lines even if they
 887     are empty.
 888
 889   o `erc-manual-set-nick-on-bad-nick-p' - If the nickname you chose is
 890     already taken or not allowed, your nick is not changed and you can
 891     try again manually if this is non-nil.
 892
 893   o `erc-mode-line-away-status-format' - You can now set what is shown
 894     in the mode-line when you are away.
 895
 896   o `erc-header-line-uses-help-echo-p' - The header-line now uses the
 897     help-echo property. You can set this to nil to disable it.
 898
 899   o `erc-format-query-as-channel-p' - Set this to nil to have messages
 900     in the query buffer formatted like private messages.
 901
 902   o `erc-show-channel-key-p' - The channel key is now shown with the
 903     other channel modes in the header line. Set this to nil if you
 904     want it hidden.
 905
 906   o `erc-prompt-for-channel-key' - Set this if you want to be prompted
 907     for the channel key (channel's mode is +k) when you call
 908     `erc-join-channel' interactively.
 909
 910   o `erc-kill-server-buffer-on-quit' - If non-nil, kill the server
 911     buffer automatically when you quit.
 912
 913 ** New hooks
 914
 915   o `erc-join-hook' - Called when you join a channel.
 916
 917   o `erc-kick-hook' - Called when you are kicked from a channel. The
 918     channel's buffer is sent as an argument to functions called from
 919     this hook.
 920
 921   o `erc-nick-changed-functions' - Whenever your nickname changes
 922     successfully, the functions in this hook are run with the
 923     arguments NEW-NICK and OLD-NICK.
 924
 925 ** New command /WHOAMI - Do a /WHOIS on your current nickname.
 926
 927 ** The key binding for changing channel modes is now C-c C-o.
 928
 929 ** Removed variables
 930
 931   o `erc-echo-notices-in-minibuffer-flag' and
 932     `erc-echo-notices-in-current-buffer' - You should use
 933     `erc-echo-notice-hook' and `erc-echo-notice-always-hook' instead.
 934
 935   o `erc-prompt-interactive-input' has been removed (commented out)
 936     because nickname completion does not work with it.
 937
 938   o All INFO buffer-related variables and functions have been removed.
 939
 940 ** You can now disable modules by setting `erc-modules' with the
 941 customization interface.
 942
 943 ** Changes and additions to modules
 944
 945 *** Autoaway (erc-autoaway.el)
 946
 947 **** New variable `erc-autoaway-no-auto-back-regexp' - Add text which,
 948 when you type anything matching it, will not automatically discard
 949 your away status when `erc-auto-discard-away' is non-nil.
 950
 951 *** Filling (erc-fill.el)
 952
 953 **** New variable `erc-fill-variable-maximum-indentation' - Don't
 954 indent more than this many characters when indenting a message from a
 955 user with a long nickname.
 956
 957 *** Goodies (erc-goodies.el)
 958
 959 **** Miscellaneous small modules have been moved from erc.el.
 960 The functions erc-add-scroll-to-bottom, erc-make-read-only,
 961 erc-send-distinguish-noncommands, erc-interpret-controls, erc-unmorse,
 962 erc-smiley, and erc-occur, which were defined in the main erc.el file
 963 have been moved to erc-goodies.el and have mostly been translated to
 964 the modules scrolltobottom, readonly, noncommands, irccontrols, smiley
 965 and unmorse.
 966
 967 **** New variables
 968
 969   o `erc-input-line-position' - The line number to use with
 970     `erc-scroll-to-bottom'.
 971
 972   o `erc-beep-p' - Beep if there is a \C-g control character in a
 973     message.
 974
 975 *** Channel lists (erc-list.el)
 976
 977 **** New variable `erc-chanlist-highlight-face' - A face used for
 978 highlighting the current line.
 979
 980 *** Highlighting (erc-match.el)
 981
 982 **** `erc-current-nick-highlight-type' has new options: 'keyword and
 983 'nick-or-keyword.
 984
 985 *** Menu (erc-menu.el)
 986
 987 **** The `IRC' menu is now automatically added to `erc-mode' buffers.
 988
 989 *** Networks (erc-nets.el)
 990
 991 **** The functions for determining current network are in this file.
 992 There were a couple of functions spread about in different files which
 993 each had a different way of determining the current network.  The
 994 methods have been combined, and the big list of known networks
 995 (`erc-networks-alist') is being put to use.  You can access the
 996 network's name by calling the new function `erc-network'.  This
 997 returns the name of the current network as a symbol or 'Unknown if it
 998 could not determine which network it is.
 999
1000 *** Nicklist (erc-nicklist.el)
1001
1002 **** ERC has a new way of displaying nicknames in a channel.
1003 The new file erc-nicklist.el defines a new command `erc-nicklist'
1004 which pops up a small Emacs window showing the nicknames of all
1005 members of the current channel.  The implementation is not complete
1006 and is rather proof-of-concept for now.  The result is something a bit
1007 like erc-speedbar, but not quite as invasive, and doesn't require use
1008 of a new frame.
1009
1010 *** Internet services / Nickserv (erc-nickserv.el)
1011
1012 **** Network detection is now taken care of by erc-nets.el.
1013 The function `erc-current-network' is deprecated, use `erc-network'
1014 instead.  The variable `erc-networks' has been removed, use
1015 `erc-networks-alist'.  The network symbols used in
1016 `erc-nickserv-alist' now match those in `erc-networks-alist'.
1017
1018 **** New variable `erc-nickserv-identify-mode' - Choose which method
1019 to use for automatic identification: you can wait for Nickserv to ask
1020 you to identify (the default), or send an identify message
1021 automatically after you change your nickname.
1022
1023 *** Speedbar (erc-speedbar.el)
1024
1025 **** New variable `erc-speedbar-sort-users-type' - Sort users in a
1026 channel by activity, alphabetically, or not at all.
1027
1028 *** Timestamps (erc-stamp.el)
1029
1030 **** `erc-timestamp-only-if-changed-flag' now works when
1031 `erc-insert-timestamp-function' is set to 'erc-insert-timestamp-left.
1032
1033 **** New variable `erc-timestamp-intangible' - Set this to nil if
1034 timestamps should not have the 'intangible property.
1035
1036 *** Channel tracking (erc-track.el)
1037
1038 **** Using faces to indicate channel activity in the modeline now works
1039 in XEmacs.
1040
1041 **** New variables
1042
1043   o `erc-track-priority-faces-only' - Ignore changes in a channel
1044     unless there is a face from the `erc-track-faces-priority-list' in
1045     the message.
1046
1047   o `erc-track-exclude-server-buffer' - Ignore changes in the server
1048     buffer.
1049
1050   o `erc-track-position-in-mode-line' - Set the position in the
1051     mode-line where modified channels are shown (only works in GNU
1052     Emacs versions above 21.3).
1053
1054 * Changes in ERC 4.0
1055
1056 ** The module system has again changed a lot.  You can now customize
1057   the variable `erc-modules' and define once and for all which
1058   extension modules you want to use.  This unfortunately may require
1059   you to change your current erc initialisation code a bit, if you
1060   have some existing customsations.  On the other hand, this change
1061   makes the configuration of extension modules a lot easier for new
1062   users.  In theory, you should be able to configure all aspects of
1063   ERC by using the customize interface, you should no longer really
1064   need to write Lisp code for trivial customizations.
1065
1066   By default, the following modules are now loaded: (pcomplete
1067   netsplit fill track ring button autojoin)
1068
1069   Please use M-x customize-variable RET erc-modules RET to change the
1070   default if it does not suite your needs.
1071
1072 ** THe symbol used in `erc-nickserv-passwords' for debian.org IRC servers
1073   (formerly called OpenProjects, now FreeNode) has changed from
1074   openprojects to freenode.  You may need to update your configuration
1075   for a successful automatic nickserv identification.
1076
1077 * Changes in ERC 3.0.cvs.20030119
1078
1079 ** New module erc-dcc:
1080
1081 This finally implements DCC.  It requires server sockets to fully work
1082 in both directions.  This feature is currently only available in Emacs
1083 21.3.50 (CVS). Here is a short list of what should work though.
1084
1085 ** Compatibility:
1086   * Emacs 21.2, DCC get, and accepting DCC chat offers.
1087   * XEmacs 21, Only accepting DCC chat offers.
1088
1089 ** erc is switching to global-minor-modes for activation of submodules.
1090
1091 This allows you to customize such a mode and get automatic loading of
1092 the module.  No longer putting a lot of require statments in .emacs.
1093 At least this is the long-term plan, not all modules are converted
1094 yet.
1095
1096 ** The most important user visible change is that you now need to activate
1097 erc-completion-mode, to get TAB completion.  The new completion code
1098 is based on pcomplete.  To get the old code, manually load
1099 erc-complete and bind TAB to erc-complete in erc-mode-map.
1100
1101 To activate completion on startup, put (erc-completion-mode 1) in your
1102 .emacs file.
1103
1104 Same applies to timestamps.  You no longer need to (require
1105 'erc-stamp), you can customize the variable `erc-timestamp-mode', and
1106 the rest should be automatic.
1107
1108 \f
1109 This file is part of GNU Emacs.
1110
1111 GNU Emacs is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
1112 it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
1113 the Free Software Foundation; either version 3, or (at your option)
1114 any later version.
1115
1116 GNU Emacs is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
1117 but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
1118 MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
1119 GNU General Public License for more details.
1120
1121 You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
1122 along with GNU Emacs; see the file COPYING.  If not, write to the
1123 Free Software Foundation, Inc., 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor,
1124 Boston, MA 02110-1301, USA.
1125
1126 arch-tag: 2b21b387-6cdc-4192-889c-6743cfffdcb1