\nI use Emacs for reading and sending email, so I’ve been using emacs-lisp to send mailshots for years (but in a rather clunky way).\n<\/p>\n
\nThe big shortcoming is that it is not hugely convenient getting the data (e.g., student names, email addresses, marks, comments) into emacs-lisp data structures, or conveniently writing the emails.\n<\/p>\n
\n \nI present an example here: how to send mails giving feedback on performance in a test.\n<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \nFirst we put the data in an org-mode table, giving it a name. \nThen we write the email (exactly the content of a message-mode Emacs mail-buffer, before sending), but with “%s” marking locations where we insert variable information. This is input as an org-mode EXAMPLE, with a name.\n<\/p>\n \nThe boilerplate defines fields to fill as:\n<\/p>\n \nNote that the boilerplate defines the complete contents of a mail message buffer (apart from the signature, which can be inserted afterwards, as below).\n<\/p>\n \nThe next block explicitly refers to the student data and the boilerplate (“ \nThe block then applies the defun to each element of the student-data list (using \nThe end result is multiple mail buffers, one per student, each containing a mail message ready to send. You can then visit the buffers, and verify before sending. Insert the command \nAn example mail buffer:\n<\/p>\n \nThis is nice because we can enter the data conveniently in an \nIt is also possible to generate arbitrarily complex HTML and multipart emails, but that’s a topic for another day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I use Emacs for reading and sending email, so I’ve been using emacs-lisp to send mailshots for years (but in a rather clunky way). The big shortcoming is that it is not hugely convenient getting the data (e.g., student names, email addresses, marks, comments) into emacs-lisp data structures, or conveniently writing the emails. org-mode makes … Continue reading Emacs and org-mode for sending mailshots<\/span> org-mode<\/code> makes it all easier.\n<\/p>\norg-mode<\/code> tables are very ergonomic to enter data directly in. You could also cut and paste a CSV and convert it (insert, highlight, type “C-|”), but it’s likely better to use org-mode to enter the data in the first place.\n<\/p>\n\r\n#+NAME: assignment1\r\n| 1 | Sleepy | 5 |\r\n| 2 | Sneezy | 15 |\r\n| 3 | Doc | 10 |\r\n<\/pre>\n
\r\n#+NAME: boilerplate\r\n#+BEGIN_EXAMPLE \r\nTo: %s\r\nSubject: Assignment 1\r\nBCC: brendan.halpin@ul.ie\r\n--text follows this line--\r\nDear %s,\r\n\r\nHomework assignment 1\r\n\r\nYour mark on assignment 1 was %s\/20. In other words, you %s.\r\n\r\nRegards,\r\n\r\nSnow White\r\n-- \r\n#+END_EXAMPLE\r\n<\/pre>\n
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:var boilerplate=boilerplate students=assignment1<\/code>“), and then defines a function, make-message<\/code>, which works on each row of the student data table and\n<\/p>\n\n
\nwith our own<\/li>\n
\nto delete if necessary)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nmapcar<\/code>, which is like the apply<\/code> family in R).\n<\/p>\n\r\n#+BEGIN_SRC emacs-lisp :results none :var boilerplate=boilerplate students=assignment1\r\n(defun<\/span> make-message<\/span> (student)\r\n (compose-mail)\r\n (delete-region (point-min) (point-max))\r\n (insert (format boilerplate\r\n (format \"dwarf%s@forest.mine\"<\/span> (nth 0 student))\r\n (nth 1 student)\r\n (nth 2 student)\r\n (cond<\/span> ((< (nth 2 student) 10)\r\n \"fluffed it\"<\/span>)\r\n ((= (nth 2 student) 10)\r\n \"did okay\"<\/span>)\r\n ((> (nth 2 student) 10)\r\n \"aced it\"<\/span>))))\r\n (insert \"Snow White Housekeeping and Judgementals<\/span>\r\nThe Dwarves' House<\/span>\r\nEnchanted Forest\"<\/span>)\r\n (rename-uniquely)\r\n (set-buffer-modified-p nil)) ;; <\/span>make easy to delete for debug<\/span>\r\n\r\n\r\n(mapcar (lambda<\/span> (student) (make-message student))\r\n students)\r\n#+END_SRC\r\n<\/pre>\n<\/div>\nmessage-send-and-exit<\/code> at the end of the defun if you are truly reckless!\n<\/p>\n\r\nTo: dwarf3@forest.mine\r\nSubject: Assignment 1\r\nBCC: brendan.halpin@ul.ie\r\n--text follows this line--\r\nDear Doc,\r\n\r\nHomework assignment 1\r\n\r\nYour mark on assignment 1 was 10\/20. In other words, you did okay.\r\n\r\nRegards,\r\n\r\nSnow White\r\n-- \r\nSnow White Housekeeping and Judgementals\r\nThe Dwarves' House\r\nEnchanted Forest\r\n<\/pre>\n
org-mode<\/code> table, and similarly enter the email boilerplate in an org-mode<\/code> EXAMPLE<\/code> block without worrying too much about escaping quotation marks etc. However, what is really nice is that we can\n<\/p>\n\n