.TH gaim 1

.SH NAME

Gaim v@VERSION@ \- Instant Messaging client

.SH SYNOPSIS

.TP 5

\fBgaim \fI[options]\fR

.SH DESCRIPTION

.PP

\fBgaim\fR is a GTK2-based Instant Messaging (IM) application. It supports

multiple protocols via modules, including AIM, ICQ, Yahoo!, MSN, Jabber,

IRC, Napster, Gadu-Gadu and Zephyr. It has many common features found in

other clients, as well as many unique features. Gaim is not endorsed by or

affiliated with America Online, ICQ, Microsoft, or Yahoo.

.SH OPTIONS

The following options are provided by \fBgaim\fR using the standard GNU

command line syntax:

.TP

.B \-a, \-\-acct

Launch the \fBAccount Editor\fR rather than the \fBLogin\fR window on

start.

.TP

.B \-d, \-\-debug

Print debugging messages to stdout. These are the same debugging messages

that are displayed in the \fBDebug\fR window.

.TP

.B \-c, \-\-config=\fIDIR\fB

Use \fIDIR\fR as the directory for config files instead of \fI~/.gaim\fR.

.TP

.B \-h, \-\-help

Print this help and exit.

.TP

.B \-l, \-\-login[=\fINAME\fB]

Automatically login on start using the default account or the account

specified by the \fINAME\fR parameter.

.TP

.B \-n, \-\-loginwin

Don't automatically login when \fBgaim\fR starts. Show the \fBLogin\fR

window instead.

.TP

.B \-u, \-\-user=\fINAME\fB

Use account \fINAME\fR as default.

.TP

.B \-v, \-\-version

Display the version information window.

.TP

.B \-w, \-\-away[=\fIMESG\fB]

Automatically go away on signon. You may optionally use the \fIMESG\fR

parameter to set the away message.

.SH BUDDY LIST

The \fBBuddy List\fR window is \fBgaim\fR's main interface window. Using

this window you can see which of your buddies is online, away, idle, etc.

You can also add and remove buddies from your buddy list.

The \fBBuddy List\fR window contains a list of your buddies who are online

and have allowed you to be notified of their presence. The icon to the

left of each buddy indicates the buddy's current state and the protocol

they are using. Double clicking a buddy will open a new \fBConversation\fR

window. Right clicking will pop up a menu:

.TP

.B Get Info

Retrieves and displays information about the buddy. This information is

also known as a Profile.

.TP

.B IM

Opens a new \fBConversation\fR window to the selected buddy.

.TP

.B Send File

Sends a file to the selected buddy (only available on protocols that support

file transfer).

.TP

.B Add Buddy Pounce

A Buddy Pounce is a configurable automated action to be performed when the

buddy's state changes. This will open the \fBBuddy Pounce\fR dialog to be

discussed later.

.TP

.B View Log

\fBgaim\fR is capable of automatically log its activities. These logs are

either plain text files (with a .log extension) or html files (with a

.html extension) located under the \fI~/.gaim/logs\fR directory. This

menu command will attempt to view this file with \fBgaim\fR's internal log

viewer.

.TP

.B Alias

Create an alias for this buddy. This will open up a new dialog in which

one can give this buddy an alternate name to appear on the buddy list and

in conversations.

For example, if a buddy's name screen name was jsmith1281xx and his real

name was 'John Q. Smith,' one could create an alias as to identify the

buddy by his common name.

.LP

The remainder of the menu will consist of protocol specific commands.

These commands vary depending on the protocol.

.LP

At the bottom of the \fBBuddy List\fR are several buttons (if enabled in

\fBPreferences\fR):

.TP

.B IM

Opens a new \fBConversation\fR window to to the selected buddy, or brings

up the \fBNew Message\fR dialog box if no buddy is selected.

.TP

.B Info

Retrieves and display information about the selected buddy, or brings up

the \fBGet User Info\fR dialog box if no buddy is selected.

.TP

.B Chat

Brings up the \fBJoin Chat\fR dialog box, prompting the user to select

which username to use and what chat group to join.

.TP

.B Away

Brings up a menu of all available \fBAway Messages\fR. If an item is

selected, all online accounts will use this item as their away message.

.SH ACCOUNT EDITOR

The account editor consists of a list of accounts and information about

them. Clicking \fIDelete\fR will delete the currently selected account.

Clicking \fIAdd\fR or \fIModify\fR will invoke a \fBModify Account\fR

window. Here, you can add or alter account information. When creating a

new account, you will submit your screen name and password. You will also

choose your protocol.

If \fIRemember Password\fR is chosen, the password will be saved in

\fBgaim\fR's configuration file.

If \fIAuto-Login\fR is chosen, this account will automatically login upon

starting \fBgaim\fR.

Each protocol has it's own specific options that can be found in the

modify screen.

.SH PREFERENCES

All options take effect immediately.

.SH Interface

\fIDisplay remote nicknames if no alias is set\fR: Toggles whether server

nickname data should be used if no local alias exists.

.SH Buddy List

\fISorting\fR: Toggles the order in which buddies are shown in your

\fBBuddy List\fR between none, alphabetical, by status and by log size.

\fIShow buttons as\fR: Toggles between picture-only, text-only, picture and

text or no buttons view of the buttons on the \fBBuddy List\fR.

\fIRaise window on events\fR: Tells \fBgaim\fR to bring the \fBBuddy

List\fR window to the top when buddies sign in or out.

\fIShow numbers in groups\fR: The number of buddies from each group

currently logged in will be shown along with the total number of buddies in

the group.

\fIShow buddy icons\fR: Toggles the display of buddies' custom icons.

\fIShow warning levels\fR: Each buddy's warning level will be displayed

next to the screen name. As a buddy's warning level increases, outgoing

messages are more and more severely rate-limited.

\fIShow idle times\fR: The amount of time each buddy has been idle will be

displayed next to the screen name (if the buddy has opted to have their

client report this information).

\fIDim idle buddies\fR: If enabled, idle buddies will be displayed in grey

text instead of black text.

\fIAutomatically expand contacts\fR: If enabled, contacts will

automatically expand to show the associated buddies when the mouse is held

over the contact for a short period.

.SH Conversations

\fIShow buttons as...\fR: The selected item will determine whether

picture-only, text-only, combined picture/text, or no buttons will be used

for \fBConversation\fR windows.

\fIEnable "slash" commands\fR: Determines whether messages starting with

"slash" (eg. /help) will be interpreted as commands by \fBgaim\fR, or if they

will just be sent as messages.

\fIShow formatting toolbar\fR: Display the formatting toolbar between the

upper and lower text boxes in conversations.

\fIShow aliases in tabs/titles\fR: Displays buddy alias instead of screen

name in window tabs and titles.

\fIShow buddy icons\fR: For protocols that support it, buddy icons allow

buddies to send small pictures to be displayed during the course of a

conversation. Turning this option off hides those pictures.

\fIEnable buddy icon animation\fR: If these pictures happen to be animated,

this option will enable the animation, otherwise only the first frame will

be displayed.

\fINotify buddies that you are typing to them\fR: Some protocols allow

clients to tell their buddies when they are typing. This option enables

this feature for protocols that supports it.

\fIRaise IM windows on events\fR: If enabled, IM \fBConversation\fR windows

will be brought to the top when new messages are received.

\fIRaise Chat windows on events\fR: If enabled, chat \fBConversation\fR windows

will be brought to the top when new messages are received.

\fIUse multi-colored screen names in chats\fR: Color code the screen names of

users in chat rooms.

.TP

.B Tab Options

\fIShow IMs and chats in tabbed windows\fR: Tabbed chatting allows one to

have multiple conversations without multiple windows.

\fIShow close buttons on tabs\fR: Adds a close button to each tab.

\fITab Placement...\fR: Specifies where tabs are shown in the conversation

window.

\fI New conversation placement...\fR: Determines where new conversations will

be placed (Last created window / New window / windows grouped by group or

account / separate windows for IMs and Chats).

.TP

.B Message Text

\fIShow timestamp on messages\fR: Toggles the timestamp behavior for

conversations. Per-conversation behavior can be changed by pressing

\fIF2\fR in the \fBConversation\fR window.

\fIHighlight misspelled words\fR: Toggles highlighting of misspelled words

as you type.

\fIIgnore colors/font faces/font sizes\fR: Tells \fBgaim\fR to disregard

buddies' color/font/size information in displaying IMs or Chats.

\fIDefault Formatting\fR: Allows specifying the default formatting to apply

to all outgoing messages (only applicable to protocols that support

formatting in messages).

.TP

.B Shortcuts

Allows the user to determine which keyboard shortcuts are available.

.TP

.B Smiley Themes

Allows the user to choose between different smiley themes. The "none" theme

will disable graphical emoticons - they will be displayed as text instead.

.SH Sounds

\fISounds while away\fR: Determines whether sounds are played when an away

message is up.

\fISound Method\fR lets the user choose between different playback methods.

The user can also manually enter a command to be executed when a sound is

to be played (\fI%s\fR expands to the full path to the file name).

.TP

.B Sound Events

Lets the user choose when and what sounds are to be played.

.SH Network

.TP

.B IP Address

\fIAutodetect IP Address\fR: \fBGaim\fR will attempt to automatically determine

your IP address for use in file transfers and Direct IMs.

\fIPublic IP\fR: What IP address to use for file transfer and Direct IMs. This

is mainly useful for users with multiple network interfaces or behind NAT.

.TP

.B Ports

\fIManually specify range of ports to listen on\fR: Specify specific ports to

listen on, overriding any defaults.

.TP

.B Proxy Server

The configuration section to enable \fBgaim\fR to operate through a proxy

server. \fBgaim\fR currently supports SOCKS 4/5 and HTTP proxies.

.SH Browser

Allows the user to select \fBgaim\fR's default web browser. Firefox, Galeon,

Konqueror, Mozilla, Netscape and Opera are supported natively. The user

can also manually enter a command to be executed when a link is clicked

(\fI%s\fR expands to the URL). For example, \fIxterm -e lynx "%s"\fR will

open the link with lynx. \fIOpen new window by default\fR makes the

browser use a new window instead of using the current window (or spawning a

new tab).

.SH Logging

\fIMessage Logs\fR lets the user choose whether \fBConversations\fR and/or

\fBBuddy Chats\fR will be logged as well as whether logs will be in HTML or

plain text format. \fISystem Logs\fR describes the types of events to be

logged.

.SH Away / Idle

\fIQueue new messages when away\fR: Messages received since going Away will

not be shown until away status is removed.

\fISend auto-response\fR: If someone messages you while away, your

auto-response will be sent.

\fIOnly send auto-response when idle\fR: If someone messages you while

away, your auto-response will only be sent if \fBgaim\fR decides that the

connection is idle.

\fIIdle time reporting\fR: If \fINone\fR is selected, account idle time

will not be reported. \fIGaim usage\fR infers your idle time from your

usage of \fBgaim\fR. \fIX usage\fR infers your idle time from \fBX\fR

(this option may not be universally available).

\fIAuto-away\fR: Determines if and under what conditions \fBgaim\fR will

automatically turn on the Away status.

.TP

.B Away Messages

Lets the user add/edit/remove available \fBAway Messages\fR.

.SH Plugins

Allows the user to enable add-on plugins for \fBgaim\fR. Several of these

come with \fBgaim\fR, while others must be downloaded separately. The

\fIDescription\fR field gives the plugin author's description of the

plugin, while the \fIDetails\fR field gives the plugin's authorship, URL,

and file name/location information.

Some plugins can be configured. If you load such a plugin, its

configuration preferences will appear as a submenu to \fBPlugins\fR, with

the submenu title determined by the plugin's name.

.SH Protocols

Protocols provide protocol specific preferences here.

.SH CONVERSATIONS

When starting a new conversation, the user is presented with the

\fBConversation\fR window. The conversation appears in the upper text box

and the user types his/her message in the lower text box. Between the two

is a row of settings, represented by icons. Some or all buttons may not be

active if the protocol does not support the specific formatting. From left

to right:

.TP

.B Bold

Turns on/off bold.

.TP

.B Italics

Turns on/off italics.

.TP

.B Underline

Turns on/off underline.

.TP

.B Decrease font size

Increases the size of the message text.

.TP

.B Increase font size

Decreases the size of the message text.

.TP

.B Select a foreground color

Changes the foreground color of the message text.

.TP

.B Select a background color

Changes the background color of the message text.

.TP

.B Add image

Inserts an in-line image in the message.

.TP

.B Add hyperlink

Adds a clickable link to the message.

.TP

.B Add smiley

Adds an emoticon (smiley) to your message.

Beneath the lower text box is a row of buttons that execute commands:

.TP

.B Warn

This issues a warning to the other person in the conversation (not

available in all protocols).

.TP

.B Block

This adds the other person to your deny list (not available in all

protocols).

.TP

.B Send File

Send a file to this user. This option is only available on protocols where

\fBGaim\fR supports file transfer.

.TP

.B Add

This adds this user to your buddy list. This option is not available if

the user is already on your list.

.TP

.B Remove

This removes this user from your buddy list. This option is not available

if the user is not on your list.

.TP

.B Info

This gets information (a profile) about the other person in the

conversation (not available in all protocols).

.TP

.B Send

This sends what's currently in the lower text box

.SH BUDDY CHATS

For protocols that allow it, \fBBuddy Chats\fR can be entered through the

\fIFile\fR menu or the \fIChat\fR button at the bottom of the \fBBuddy

List\fR's \fBOnline\fR tab.

Additional commands available in chat, depending on the protocol are:

.TP

.B Whisper

The text will appear in the chat conversation, but it will only be visible

to the sender and the receiver.

.TP

.B Invite

Invite other people to join the chat room.

.TP

.B Ignore

Ignore anything said by the chosen person

.TP

.B Set Topic

Set the topic of the chat room. This is usually a brief sentence

describing the nature of the chat--an explanation of the chat room's name.

.SH AWAY MESSAGES

Most protocols allow for away messages. When a user is \fIAway\fR, he can

leave an informative message for others to see. The \fBAway\fR submenu of

the \fBTools\fR menu is used to add and remove away messages.

\fINew Away Message\fR provides space for one to enter an away message and

a title for that message. If \fISave\fR or \fISave & Use\fR are chosen,

this message will be saved. It can later be referred to by the title given

to it.

\fIRemove Away Message\fR is a submenu containing the titles of saved away

messages. Clicking on one of these titles will remove the away message

associated with it.

The rest of the \fIaway\fR menu provides the user with a way to assign

different away messages to different connections. Choosing \fISet All

Away\fR will set away all the connections capable of the away state.

.SH BUDDY POUNCE

A Buddy Pounce is an automated trigger that occurs when a buddy returns to

a normal state from an away state. The \fBNew Buddy Pounce\fR dialog box

can be activated by selecting the \fIBuddy Pounce\fR submenu from the

\fBTools\fR menu. A pounce can be set to occur on any combination of the

events listed, and any combination of actions can result. If \fISave this

pounce after activation\fR is checked, the trigger will remain until it is

removed from the \fIRemove Buddy Pounce\fR menu.

.SH PLUGINS

\fBGaim\fR allows for dynamic loading of plugins to add extra functionality

to \fBgaim\fR. Plugins can be enabled and configured from the

\fBPreferences\fR window. See \fIplugins/HOWTO\fR for more information on

writing plugins.

.SH PERL

\fBGaim\fR allows for perl scripting. See \fIPerl Scripting HOWTO\fR in

the Gaim documentation for more information about perl scripting.

.SH TCL

\fBGaim\fR allows for Tcl scripting. See \fIplugins/tcl/TCL-HOWTO\fR for

more information about Tcl scripting.

.SH FILES

\fI@prefix@/bin/gaim\fR: \fBgaim\fR's location.

.br

\fI@prefix@/lib/gaim/\fR: \fBgaim\fR's plugins directory.

.br

\fI~/.gaim/prefs.xml\fR: \fBgaim\fR's configuration file.

.br

\fI~/.gaim/accounts.xml\fR: information about your accounts.

.br

\fI~/.gaim/status.xml\fR: stores your away messages.

.br

\fI~/.gaim/pounces.xml\fR: stores your buddy pounces.

.br

\fI~/.gaim/logs/PROTOCOL/ACCOUNT/SCREENNAME/DATE.log\fR: conversation logs.

.br

\fI~/.gaim/blist.xml\fR: the buddy list.

.br

\fI~/.gaim/plugins/\fR: users local plugins

.SH BUGS

Known bugs are listed at

.br

\fIhttp://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=235&atid=100235\fR

.SH PATCHES

If you fix a bug in \fBgaim\fR (or otherwise enhance it), please submit a

patch (using \fIcvs diff -up > my.diff\fR against the latest CVS version)

at

.br

\fIhttp://sourceforge.net/tracker/?func=add&group_id=235&atid=300235\fR

Before sending a bug report, please verify that you have the latest

version of \fBgaim\fR. Many bugs (major and minor) are fixed

at each release, and if yours is out of date, the problem may already

have been solved.

.SH SEE ALSO

\fIhttp://gaim.sourceforge.net/\fR

.br

\fIhttp://www.sourceforge.net/projects/gaim/\fR

.SH LICENSE

This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify

it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by

the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or

(at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but

\fBWITHOUT ANY WARRANTY\fR; without even the implied warranty of

MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU

General Public License for more details.

You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License

along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software

Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307 USA

.SH AUTHORS

\fBGaim\fR's active developers are:

Rob Flynn (maintainer) <\fIgaim@robflynn.com\fR>

.br

Sean Egan (lead developer) <\fIbj91704@binghamton.edu\fR>

.br

Christian 'ChipX86' Hammond (developer & webmaster)

.br

Herman Bloggs (win32 port) <\fIhermanator12002@yahoo.com\fR>

.br

Nathan 'faceprint' Walp (developer)

.br

Mark 'KingAnt' Doliner (developer)

.br

Ethan 'Paco-Paco' Blanton (developer)

.br

Tim 'marv' Ringenbach (developer)

.br

Luke 'LSchiere' Schierer (support)

.br

Stu 'nosnilmot' Tomlinson (developer)

Our crazy patch writers include:

Benjamin Miller

.br

Decklin Foster

.br

Etan 'deryni' Reisner

.br

Robert 'Robot101' McQueen

.br

Kevin 'SimGuy' Stange

.br

Gary 'grim' Kramlich

.br

Ka-Hing 'javabsp' Cheung

.br

Felipe 'shx' Contreras

.br

Daniel 'datallah' Atallah

The retired developers of \fBgaim\fR are:

Adam Fritzler (former libfaim maintainer)

.br

Eric Warmenhoven (former lead developer) <\fIwarmenhoven@yahoo.com\fR>

.br

Jim Duchek (former maintainer)

.br

Jim Seymour (former Jabber developer)

.br

Mark Spencer (original author) <\fImarkster@marko.net\fR>

.br

Syd Logan (hacker and designated driver [lazy bum])

This manpage was originally written by Dennis Ristuccia <\fIdennis@dennisr.net\fR>. It has been updated and largely rewritten by Sean Egan <\fIbj91704@binghamton.edu\fR> and Ben Tegarden <\fItegarden@uclink.berkeley.edu\fR>.