man news

NAME
     news - print news items

USAGE
     news [ -options ] [ items ]

DESCRIPTION
     news  is  used  to keep the user informed of current events.
By
     default, these events are described by files in the directo-
ry
     /usr/local/news.

     When  invoked without arguments, news prints the contents of
all
     current files in /usr/local/news, most  recent  first,  with
each
     preceded  by  an appropriate header.  news stores the ``cur-
rency''
     time  as  the  modification   date   of   the   file   named
$HOME/.news_time
     (by default); only files more recent than this currency time
are
     considered ``current.''

     -a, --all
          option causes news to print all  items,  regardless  of
currency.  In
          this case, the stored time is not changed.

     -n, --names
          option  causes  news to report the names of the current
items without
          printing  their  contents,  and  without  changing  the
stored time.

     -s, --summary
          option causes news to report how many current items ex-
ist, without
          printing their names or contents, and without  changing
the stored
          time.   It  is  useful to include such an invocation of
news in one's
          .profile file, or in the system's /etc/profile.

     -d, --directory
          choose an alternate directory of news files.

     -c, --currency
          choose an alternate file for the  purpose  of  choosing
current
          news files (default: $HOME/.news_time).  If there are
          several different news directories on a system, it's
          probably  better  to  select  a different user currency
file for
          each of them.

     -p, --page
          option causes news output to be re-directed to a pager.
If the
          environment  variable $PAGER is set, the output will be
directed to
          that program;  otherwise  it  will  be  re-directed  to
"|more".

     -h, --help
          prints this output.

     All  other  arguments  are assumed to be specific news items
that are to be
     printed.

HISTORY
     Written  07-Feb-2000  by  Bill   Seligman   <mailto://selig-
man@nevis.columbia.edu> 
     to help maintain the Nevis Linux cluster.