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Escaping Mail

Have you ever been writing a mail message, and wished you could correct a typo? Or wondered how people include a copy of YOUR mail in THEIR mail ? If you are using "mail" then next time you are in a mail message, you can see all the tilde escapes by typing "~?" like in this example with the list of tilde escapes appearing temporarily on the screen.

  $ mail foo
  subject: Hi!
~?


 ~~               Quote a single tilde
 ~b users         Add users to "blind" cc list
 ~c users         Add users to cc list
 ~d               Read in dead.letter
 ~e               Edit the message buffer
 ~f messages      Read in message, do not right shift
 ~h               Prompt for to list, subject and cc list
 ~m messages      Read in messages, right shifted by a tab
 ~p               Print the message buffer
 ~r file          Read a file into the message buffer
 ~s subject       Set subject
 ~t users         Add users to list
 ~v               Invoke display editor on message
 ~w file          Write message onto file.
 ~?               Print this message
 ~!command        Invoke the shell
 ~|command        Pipe the message through the command

This list will NOT be included in your mail, and serves only as a reminder to what you are allowed to do. For example, if you wanted to add another person to the mailing list of your current mail message:

 ~h
 $ mail foo         <- allows you to add or correct senders
 Subject: Hi!         and subject line
 Cc:                <-- carbon copy to someone
 Bcc:               <-- blind carbon copy

If you want to include the mail message that you are replying to, using "~m" would copy in the current mail message and indent the mail. "~f" copies it in and doesn't indent. If you are replying to message 10, and want to include message 5 you could type :

  &=
  10
  & R
  mail foo
  subject: Hi!
  ~m 5
    << mail message 5 would be copied here >>

Finally, if you want to check what you said before you hit that final "." or "control-d", you can type "~p" and see a printout of what your message looks like. If you have goofs, go into the editor with "~e" for EX or "~v" for VI and make your corrections! Always remember that the tilde has to be in column ONE. Also, if you have problems mailing a small file to someone, check to make sure it doesn't have tildes!

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