1 This is ../info/xemacs.info, produced by makeinfo version 4.0 from
4 INFO-DIR-SECTION XEmacs Editor
6 * XEmacs: (xemacs). XEmacs Editor.
9 This file documents the XEmacs editor.
11 Copyright (C) 1985, 1986, 1988 Richard M. Stallman. Copyright (C)
12 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994 Lucid, Inc. Copyright (C) 1993, 1994 Sun
13 Microsystems, Inc. Copyright (C) 1995 Amdahl Corporation.
15 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this
16 manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice are
17 preserved on all copies.
19 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of
20 this manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also
21 that the sections entitled "The GNU Manifesto", "Distribution" and "GNU
22 General Public License" are included exactly as in the original, and
23 provided that the entire resulting derived work is distributed under the
24 terms of a permission notice identical to this one.
26 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this
27 manual into another language, under the above conditions for modified
28 versions, except that the sections entitled "The GNU Manifesto",
29 "Distribution" and "GNU General Public License" may be included in a
30 translation approved by the author instead of in the original English.
33 File: xemacs.info, Node: Top, Next: License, Up: (dir)
38 XEmacs is the extensible, customizable, self-documenting real-time
39 display editor. This Info file describes how to edit with Emacs and
40 some of how to customize it, but not how to extend it. It corresponds
41 to XEmacs version 21.0.
43 This manual is intended as a detailed reference to XEmacs. If you
44 are looking for an introductory manual, see the New User's Guide.
48 * License:: The GNU General Public License gives you permission
49 to redistribute XEmacs on certain terms; and also
50 explains that there is no warranty.
51 * Distrib:: How to get XEmacs.
52 * Intro:: An introduction to XEmacs concepts.
53 * Glossary:: The glossary.
54 * Manifesto:: What's GNU? Gnu's Not Unix!
56 Indices, nodes containing large menus
57 * Key Index:: An item for each standard XEmacs key sequence.
58 * Command Index:: An item for each command name.
59 * Variable Index:: An item for each documented variable.
60 * Concept Index:: An item for each concept.
62 Important General Concepts
63 * Frame:: How to interpret what you see on the screen.
64 * Keystrokes:: Keyboard gestures XEmacs recognizes.
66 The XEmacs Pull-down Menus available under X.
68 Starting Emacs from the shell.
69 * Exiting:: Stopping or killing XEmacs.
71 Hairy startup options.
73 How XEmacs finds Directories and Files.
74 * Packages:: How XEmacs organizes its high-level functionality.
76 Fundamental Editing Commands
77 * Basic:: The most basic editing commands.
78 * Undo:: Undoing recently made changes in the text.
79 * Minibuffer:: Entering arguments that are prompted for.
80 * M-x:: Invoking commands by their names.
81 * Help:: Commands for asking XEmacs about its commands.
83 Important Text-Changing Commands
84 * Mark:: The mark: how to delimit a ``region'' of text.
86 Selecting text with the mouse.
87 * Additional Mouse Operations::
88 Other operations available from the mouse.
89 * Killing:: Killing text.
90 * Yanking:: Recovering killed text. Moving text.
91 * Using X Selections::
92 Using primary selection, cut buffers, and highlighted regions.
94 Other ways of copying text.
95 * Rectangles:: Operating on the text inside a rectangle on the screen.
96 * Registers:: Saving a text string or a location in the buffer.
97 * Display:: Controlling what text is displayed.
98 * Search:: Finding or replacing occurrences of a string.
99 * Fixit:: Commands especially useful for fixing typos.
102 * Files:: All about handling files.
103 * Buffers:: Multiple buffers; editing several files at once.
104 * Windows:: Viewing two pieces of text at once.
105 * Mule:: Using world scripts.
108 * Major Modes:: Text mode vs. Lisp mode vs. C mode ...
109 * Indentation:: Editing the white space at the beginnings of lines.
110 * Text:: Commands and modes for editing English.
111 * Programs:: Commands and modes for editing programs.
112 * Running:: Compiling, running and debugging programs.
113 * Abbrevs:: How to define text abbreviations to reduce
114 the number of characters you must type.
115 * Picture:: Editing pictures made up of characters
116 using the quarter-plane screen model.
117 * Sending Mail:: Sending mail in XEmacs.
118 * Reading Mail:: Reading mail in XEmacs.
119 * Calendar/Diary:: A Calendar and diary facility in XEmacs.
120 * Sorting:: Sorting lines, paragraphs or pages within XEmacs.
121 * Shell:: Executing shell commands from XEmacs.
122 * Narrowing:: Restricting display and editing to a portion
124 * Hardcopy:: Printing buffers or regions.
126 A command can allow you to do editing
127 "within the command". This is called a
128 `recursive editing level'.
129 * Dissociated Press:: Dissociating text for fun.
130 * CONX:: A different kind of dissociation.
131 * Amusements:: Various games and hacks.
132 * Emulation:: Emulating some other editors with XEmacs.
133 * Customization:: Modifying the behavior of XEmacs.
135 Recovery from Problems.
136 * Quitting:: Quitting and aborting.
137 * Lossage:: What to do if XEmacs is hung or malfunctioning.
138 * Bugs:: How and when to report a bug.
140 Here are some other nodes which are really inferiors of the ones
141 already listed, mentioned here so you can get to them in one step:
143 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
145 The Organization of the Frame
147 * Point:: The place in the text where editing commands operate.
148 * Echo Area:: Short messages appear at the bottom of the frame.
149 * Mode Line:: Interpreting the mode line.
150 * XEmacs under X:: Some information on using XEmacs under the X
155 * Intro to Keystrokes:: Keystrokes as building blocks of key sequences.
156 * Representing Keystrokes:: Using lists of modifiers and keysyms to
157 represent keystrokes.
158 * Key Sequences:: Combine key strokes into key sequences you can
160 * String Key Sequences:: Available for upward compatibility.
161 * Meta Key:: Using <ESC> to represent <Meta>
162 * Super and Hyper Keys:: Adding modifier keys on certain keyboards.
163 * Character Representation:: How characters appear in XEmacs buffers.
164 * Commands:: How commands are bound to key sequences.
168 * File Menu:: Items on the File menu.
169 * Edit Menu:: Items on the Edit menu.
170 * Apps Menu:: Items on the Apps menu.
171 * Options Menu:: Items on the Options menu.
172 * Buffers Menu:: Information about the Buffers menu.
173 * Tools Menu:: Items on the Tools menu.
174 * Help Menu:: Items on the Help menu.
175 * Menu Customization:: Adding and removing menu items and related
180 * Packages:: Introduction to XEmacs Packages.
181 * Package Terminology:: Understanding different kinds of packages.
182 * Installing Packages:: How to install packages.
183 * Building Packages:: Building packages from sources.
184 * Local.rules File:: An important part of building packages.
185 * Creating Packages:: The basics.
186 * Available Packages:: A brief directory of packaged LISP.
188 Basic Editing Commands
190 * Blank Lines:: Commands to make or delete blank lines.
191 * Continuation Lines:: Lines too wide for the frame.
192 * Position Info:: What page, line, row, or column is point on?
193 * Arguments:: Numeric arguments for repeating a command.
197 * File: Minibuffer File. Entering file names with the minibuffer.
198 * Edit: Minibuffer Edit. How to edit in the minibuffer.
199 * Completion:: An abbreviation facility for minibuffer input.
200 * Repetition:: Re-executing commands that used the minibuffer.
202 The Mark and the Region
204 * Setting Mark:: Commands to set the mark.
205 * Using Region:: Summary of ways to operate on contents of the region.
206 * Marking Objects:: Commands to put region around textual units.
207 * Mark Ring:: Previous mark positions saved so you can go back there.
211 * Kill Ring:: Where killed text is stored. Basic yanking.
212 * Appending Kills:: Several kills in a row all yank together.
213 * Earlier Kills:: Yanking something killed some time ago.
217 * X Clipboard Selection:: Pasting to the X clipboard.
218 * X Selection Commands:: Other operations on the selection.
219 * X Cut Buffers:: X cut buffers are available for compatibility.
220 * Active Regions:: Using zmacs-style highlighting of the
225 * Position: RegPos. Saving positions in registers.
226 * Text: RegText. Saving text in registers.
227 * Rectangle: RegRect. Saving rectangles in registers.
228 * Configurations: RegConfig. Saving window configurations in registers.
229 * Files: RegFiles. File names in registers.
230 * Numbers: RegNumbers. Numbers in registers.
231 * Bookmarks:: Bookmarks are like registers, but persistent.
233 Controlling the Display
235 * Scrolling:: Moving text up and down in a window.
236 * Horizontal Scrolling:: Moving text left and right in a window.
237 * Selective Display:: Hiding lines with lots of indentation.
238 * Display Vars:: Information on variables for customizing display.
240 Searching and Replacement
242 * Incremental Search:: Search happens as you type the string.
243 * Non-Incremental Search:: Specify entire string and then search.
244 * Word Search:: Search for sequence of words.
245 * Regexp Search:: Search for match for a regexp.
246 * Regexps:: Syntax of regular expressions.
247 * Search Case:: To ignore case while searching, or not.
248 * Replace:: Search, and replace some or all matches.
249 * Other Repeating Search:: Operating on all matches for some regexp.
253 * Unconditional Replace:: Replacing all matches for a string.
254 * Regexp Replace:: Replacing all matches for a regexp.
255 * Replacement and Case:: How replacements preserve case of letters.
256 * Query Replace:: How to use querying.
258 Commands for Fixing Typos
260 * Kill Errors:: Commands to kill a batch of recently entered text.
261 * Transpose:: Exchanging two characters, words, lines, lists...
262 * Fixing Case:: Correcting case of last word entered.
263 * Spelling:: Apply spelling checker to a word, or a whole file.
267 * File Names:: How to type and edit file name arguments.
268 * Visiting:: Visiting a file prepares XEmacs to edit the file.
269 * Saving:: Saving makes your changes permanent.
270 * Reverting:: Reverting cancels all the changes not saved.
271 * Auto Save:: Auto Save periodically protects against loss of data.
272 * Version Control:: Version control systems (RCS and SCCS).
273 * ListDir:: Listing the contents of a file directory.
274 * Comparing Files:: Finding where two files differ.
275 * Dired:: ``Editing'' a directory to delete, rename, etc.
277 * Misc File Ops:: Other things you can do on files.
281 * Backup:: How XEmacs saves the old version of your file.
282 * Interlocking:: How XEmacs protects against simultaneous editing
283 of one file by two users.
287 * Names: Backup Names. How backup files are named;
288 Choosing single or numbered backup files.
289 * Deletion: Backup Deletion. XEmacs deletes excess numbered backups.
290 * Copying: Backup Copying. Backups can be made by copying or renaming.
292 Auto-Saving: Protection Against Disasters
294 * Files: Auto Save Files.
295 * Control: Auto Save Control.
296 * Recover:: Recovering text from auto-save files.
300 * Concepts of VC:: Basic version control information;
301 checking files in and out.
302 * Editing with VC:: Commands for editing a file maintained
303 with version control.
304 * Variables for Check-in/out:: Variables that affect the commands used
305 to check files in or out.
306 * Log Entries:: Logging your changes.
307 * Change Logs and VC:: Generating a change log file from log
309 * Old Versions:: Examining and comparing old versions.
310 * VC Status:: Commands to view the VC status of files and
312 * Renaming and VC:: A command to rename both the source and
313 master file correctly.
314 * Snapshots:: How to make and use snapshots, a set of
315 file versions that can be treated as a unit.
316 * Version Headers:: Inserting version control headers into
321 * Making Snapshots:: The snapshot facilities.
322 * Snapshot Caveats:: Things to be careful of when using snapshots.
324 Dired, the Directory Editor
326 * Enter: Dired Enter. How to invoke Dired.
327 * Edit: Dired Edit. Editing the Dired buffer.
328 * Deletion: Dired Deletion. Deleting files with Dired.
329 * Immed: Dired Immed. Other file operations through Dired.
331 Using Multiple Buffers
333 * Select Buffer:: Creating a new buffer or reselecting an old one.
334 * List Buffers:: Getting a list of buffers that exist.
335 * Misc Buffer:: Renaming; changing read-onliness; copying text.
336 * Kill Buffer:: Killing buffers you no longer need.
337 * Several Buffers:: How to go through the list of all buffers
338 and operate variously on several of them.
342 * Basic Window:: Introduction to XEmacs windows.
343 * Split Window:: New windows are made by splitting existing windows.
344 * Other Window:: Moving to another window or doing something to it.
345 * Pop Up Window:: Finding a file or buffer in another window.
346 * Change Window:: Deleting windows and changing their sizes.
350 * Choosing Modes:: How major modes are specified or chosen.
354 * Indentation Commands:: Various commands and techniques for indentation.
355 * Tab Stops:: You can set arbitrary "tab stops" and then
356 indent to the next tab stop when you want to.
357 * Just Spaces:: You can request indentation using just spaces.
359 Commands for Human Languages
361 * Text Mode:: The major modes for editing text files.
362 * Nroff Mode:: The major mode for editing input to the formatter nroff.
363 * TeX Mode:: The major modes for editing input to the formatter TeX.
364 * Outline Mode:: The major mode for editing outlines.
365 * Words:: Moving over and killing words.
366 * Sentences:: Moving over and killing sentences.
367 * Paragraphs:: Moving over paragraphs.
368 * Pages:: Moving over pages.
369 * Filling:: Filling or justifying text
370 * Case:: Changing the case of text
374 * Editing: TeX Editing. Special commands for editing in TeX mode.
375 * Printing: TeX Print. Commands for printing part of a file with TeX.
379 * Format: Outline Format. What the text of an outline looks like.
380 * Motion: Outline Motion. Special commands for moving through outlines.
381 * Visibility: Outline Visibility. Commands to control what is visible.
385 * Auto Fill:: Auto Fill mode breaks long lines automatically.
386 * Fill Commands:: Commands to refill paragraphs and center lines.
387 * Fill Prefix:: Filling when every line is indented or in a comment, etc.
391 * Program Modes:: Major modes for editing programs.
392 * Lists:: Expressions with balanced parentheses.
393 There are editing commands to operate on them.
394 * Defuns:: Each program is made up of separate functions.
395 There are editing commands to operate on them.
396 * Grinding:: Adjusting indentation to show the nesting.
397 * Matching:: Insertion of a close-delimiter flashes matching open.
398 * Comments:: Inserting, filling and aligning comments.
399 * Balanced Editing:: Inserting two matching parentheses at once, etc.
400 * Lisp Completion:: Completion on symbol names in Lisp code.
401 * Documentation:: Getting documentation of functions you plan to call.
402 * Change Log:: Maintaining a change history for your program.
403 * Tags:: Go directly to any function in your program in one
404 command. Tags remembers which file it is in.
405 * Fortran:: Fortran mode and its special features.
406 * Asm Mode:: Asm mode and its special features.
408 Indentation for Programs
411 * Multi-line Indent:: Commands to reindent many lines at once.
412 * Lisp Indent:: Specifying how each Lisp function should be indented.
413 * C Indent:: Choosing an indentation style for C code.
417 * Tag Syntax:: Tag syntax for various types of code and text files.
418 * Create Tags Table:: Creating a tags table with `etags'.
419 * Select Tags Table:: How to visit a tags table.
420 * Find Tag:: Commands to find the definition of a specific tag.
421 * Tags Search:: Using a tags table for searching and replacing.
422 * List Tags:: Listing and finding tags defined in a file.
426 * Motion: Fortran Motion. Moving point by statements or subprograms.
427 * Indent: Fortran Indent. Indentation commands for Fortran.
428 * Comments: Fortran Comments. Inserting and aligning comments.
429 * Columns: Fortran Columns. Measuring columns for valid Fortran.
430 * Abbrev: Fortran Abbrev. Built-in abbrevs for Fortran keywords.
434 * Commands: ForIndent Commands. Commands for indenting Fortran.
435 * Numbers: ForIndent Num. How line numbers auto-indent.
436 * Conv: ForIndent Conv. Conventions you must obey to avoid trouble.
437 * Vars: ForIndent Vars. Variables controlling Fortran indent style.
439 Compiling and Testing Programs
441 * Compilation:: Compiling programs in languages other than Lisp
443 * Modes: Lisp Modes. Various modes for editing Lisp programs, with
444 different facilities for running the Lisp programs.
445 * Libraries: Lisp Libraries. Creating Lisp programs to run in XEmacs.
446 * Eval: Lisp Eval. Executing a single Lisp expression in XEmacs.
447 * Debug: Lisp Debug. Debugging Lisp programs running in XEmacs.
448 * Interaction: Lisp Interaction. Executing Lisp in an XEmacs buffer.
449 * External Lisp:: Communicating through XEmacs with a separate Lisp.
453 * Loading:: Loading libraries of Lisp code into XEmacs for use.
454 * Compiling Libraries:: Compiling a library makes it load and run faster.
455 * Mocklisp:: Converting Mocklisp to Lisp so XEmacs can run it.
459 * Defining Abbrevs:: Defining an abbrev, so it will expand when typed.
460 * Expanding Abbrevs:: Controlling expansion: prefixes, canceling expansion.
461 * Editing Abbrevs:: Viewing or editing the entire list of defined abbrevs.
462 * Saving Abbrevs:: Saving the entire list of abbrevs for another session.
463 * Dynamic Abbrevs:: Abbreviations for words already in the buffer.
467 * Basic Picture:: Basic concepts and simple commands of Picture Mode.
468 * Insert in Picture:: Controlling direction of cursor motion
469 after "self-inserting" characters.
470 * Tabs in Picture:: Various features for tab stops and indentation.
471 * Rectangles in Picture:: Clearing and superimposing rectangles.
475 * Format: Mail Format. Format of the mail being composed.
476 * Headers: Mail Headers. Details of allowed mail header fields.
477 * Mode: Mail Mode. Special commands for editing mail being composed.
479 Running Shell Commands from XEmacs
481 * Single Shell:: How to run one shell command and return.
482 * Interactive Shell:: Permanent shell taking input via XEmacs.
483 * Shell Mode:: Special XEmacs commands used with permanent shell.
487 * Minor Modes:: Each minor mode is one feature you can turn on
488 independently of any others.
489 * Variables:: Many XEmacs commands examine XEmacs variables
490 to decide what to do; by setting variables,
491 you can control their functioning.
492 * Keyboard Macros:: A keyboard macro records a sequence of keystrokes
493 to be replayed with a single command.
494 * Key Bindings:: The keymaps say what command each key runs.
495 By changing them, you can "redefine keys".
496 * Syntax:: The syntax table controls how words and expressions
498 * Init File:: How to write common customizations in the init file.
499 * Audible Bell:: Changing how XEmacs sounds the bell.
500 * Faces:: Changing the fonts and colors of a region of text.
501 * X Resources:: X resources controlling various aspects of the
506 * Examining:: Examining or setting one variable's value.
507 * Easy Customization:: Convenient and easy customization of variables.
508 * Edit Options:: Examining or editing list of all variables' values.
509 * Locals:: Per-buffer values of variables.
510 * File Variables:: How files can specify variable values.
514 * Basic Kbd Macro:: Defining and running keyboard macros.
515 * Save Kbd Macro:: Giving keyboard macros names; saving them in files.
516 * Kbd Macro Query:: Keyboard macros that do different things each use.
518 Customizing Key Bindings
520 * Keymaps:: Definition of the keymap data structure.
521 Names of XEmacs's standard keymaps.
522 * Rebinding:: How to redefine one key's meaning conveniently.
523 * Disabling:: Disabling a command means confirmation is required
524 before it can be executed. This is done to protect
525 beginners from surprises.
529 * Entry: Syntax Entry. What the syntax table records for each character.
530 * Change: Syntax Change. How to change the information.
534 * Init Syntax:: Syntax of constants in Emacs Lisp.
535 * Init Examples:: How to do some things with an init file.
536 * Terminal Init:: Each terminal type can have an init file.
538 Dealing with XEmacs Trouble
540 * Stuck Recursive:: `[...]' in mode line around the parentheses.
541 * Screen Garbled:: Garbage on the screen.
542 * Text Garbled:: Garbage in the text.
543 * Unasked-for Search:: Spontaneous entry to incremental search.
544 * Emergency Escape:: Emergency escape---
545 What to do if XEmacs stops responding.
546 * Total Frustration:: When you are at your wits' end.
549 File: xemacs.info, Node: License, Next: Distrib, Prev: Top, Up: Top
551 GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE
552 **************************
554 Version 1, February 1989
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745 INABILITY TO USE THE PROGRAM (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF
746 DATA OR DATA BEING RENDERED INACCURATE OR LOSSES SUSTAINED BY YOU
747 OR THIRD PARTIES OR A FAILURE OF THE PROGRAM TO OPERATE WITH ANY
748 OTHER PROGRAMS), EVEN IF SUCH HOLDER OR OTHER PARTY HAS BEEN
749 ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
751 END OF TERMS AND CONDITIONS
753 Appendix: How to Apply These Terms to Your New Programs
754 =======================================================
756 If you develop a new program, and you want it to be of the greatest
757 possible use to humanity, the best way to achieve this is to make it
758 free software which everyone can redistribute and change under these
761 To do so, attach the following notices to the program. It is safest
762 to attach them to the start of each source file to most effectively
763 convey the exclusion of warranty; and each file should have at least the
764 "copyright" line and a pointer to where the full notice is found.
766 ONE LINE TO GIVE THE PROGRAM'S NAME AND A BRIEF IDEA OF WHAT IT DOES.
767 Copyright (C) 19YY NAME OF AUTHOR
769 This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
770 it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
771 the Free Software Foundation; either version 1, or (at your option)
774 This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
775 but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
776 MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
777 GNU General Public License for more details.
779 You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
780 along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software
781 Foundation, Inc., 675 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
783 Also add information on how to contact you by electronic and paper
786 If the program is interactive, make it output a short notice like
787 this when it starts in an interactive mode:
789 Gnomovision version 69, Copyright (C) 19YY NAME OF AUTHOR
790 Gnomovision comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; for details type `show w'.
791 This is free software, and you are welcome to redistribute it
792 under certain conditions; type `show c' for details.
794 The hypothetical commands `show w' and `show c' should show the
795 appropriate parts of the General Public License. Of course, the
796 commands you use may be called something other than `show w' and `show
797 c'; they could even be mouse-clicks or menu items--whatever suits your
800 You should also get your employer (if you work as a programmer) or
801 your school, if any, to sign a "copyright disclaimer" for the program,
802 if necessary. Here a sample; alter the names:
804 Yoyodyne, Inc., hereby disclaims all copyright interest in the
805 program `Gnomovision' (a program to direct compilers to make passes
806 at assemblers) written by James Hacker.
808 SIGNATURE OF TY COON, 1 April 1989
809 Ty Coon, President of Vice
811 That's all there is to it!
814 File: xemacs.info, Node: Distrib, Next: Intro, Prev: License, Up: Top
819 XEmacs is "free"; this means that everyone is free to use it and
820 free to redistribute it on a free basis. XEmacs is not in the public
821 domain; it is copyrighted and there are restrictions on its
822 distribution, but these restrictions are designed to permit everything
823 that a good cooperating citizen would want to do. What is not allowed
824 is to try to prevent others from further sharing any version of XEmacs
825 that they might get from you. The precise conditions are found in the
826 GNU General Public License that comes with XEmacs and also appears
827 following this section.
829 The easiest way to get a copy of XEmacs is from someone else who has
830 it. You need not ask for permission to do so, or tell any one else;
833 If you have access to the Internet, you can get the latest version of
834 XEmacs from the anonymous FTP server `ftp.xemacs.org' in the directory
835 `/pub/xemacs'. It can also be found at numerous other archive sites
836 around the world; check the file `etc/DISTRIB' in an XEmacs
837 distribution for the latest known list.
839 Getting Other Versions of Emacs
840 ===============================
842 The Free Software Foundation's version of Emacs (called "FSF Emacs"
843 in this manual and often referred to as "GNU Emacs") is available by
844 anonymous FTP from `prep.ai.mit.edu'.
846 Win-Emacs, an older version of XEmacs that runs on Microsoft Windows
847 and Windows NT, is available by anonymous FTP from `ftp.netcom.com' in
848 the directory `/pub/pe/pearl', or from `ftp.cica.indiana.edu' as the
849 files `wemdemo*.zip' in the directory `/pub/pc/win3/demo'.
852 File: xemacs.info, Node: Intro, Next: Glossary, Prev: Distrib, Up: Top
857 You are reading about XEmacs, an incarnation of the advanced,
858 self-documenting, customizable, extensible real-time display editor
859 Emacs. XEmacs provides many powerful display and user-interface
860 capabilities not found in other Emacsen and is mostly upwardly
861 compatible with GNU Emacs from the Free Software Foundation (referred
862 to as "FSF Emacs" in this manual). XEmacs also comes standard with a
863 great number of useful packages.
865 We say that XEmacs is a "display" editor because normally the text
866 being edited is visible on the screen and is updated automatically as
867 you type. *Note Display: Frame.
869 We call XEmacs a "real-time" editor because the display is updated
870 very frequently, usually after each character or pair of characters you
871 type. This minimizes the amount of information you must keep in your
872 head as you edit. *Note Real-time: Basic.
874 We call XEmacs advanced because it provides facilities that go beyond
875 simple insertion and deletion: filling of text; automatic indentation of
876 programs; viewing two or more files at once; and dealing in terms of
877 characters, words, lines, sentences, paragraphs, and pages, as well as
878 expressions and comments in several different programming languages.
879 It is much easier to type one command meaning "go to the end of the
880 paragraph" than to find that spot with simple cursor keys.
882 "Self-documenting" means that at any time you can type a special
883 character, `Control-h', to find out what your options are. You can
884 also use `C-h' to find out what a command does, or to find all the
885 commands relevant to a topic. *Note Help::.
887 "Customizable" means you can change the definitions of XEmacs
888 commands. For example, if you use a programming language in which
889 comments start with `<**' and end with `**>', you can tell the XEmacs
890 comment manipulation commands to use those strings (*note Comments::).
891 Another sort of customization is rearrangement of the command set. For
892 example, you can set up the four basic cursor motion commands (up,
893 down, left and right) on keys in a diamond pattern on the keyboard if
894 you prefer. *Note Customization::.
896 "Extensible" means you can go beyond simple customization and write
897 entirely new commands, programs in the Lisp language to be run by
898 XEmacs's own Lisp interpreter. XEmacs is an "on-line extensible"
899 system: it is divided into many functions that call each other. You can
900 redefine any function in the middle of an editing session and replace
901 any part of XEmacs without making a separate copy of all of XEmacs.
902 Most of the editing commands of XEmacs are written in Lisp; the few
903 exceptions could have been written in Lisp but are written in C for
904 efficiency. Only a programmer can write an extension to XEmacs, but
905 anybody can use it afterward.
908 File: xemacs.info, Node: Frame, Next: Keystrokes, Prev: Concept Index, Up: Top
914 In many environments, such as a tty terminal, an XEmacs frame
915 literally takes up the whole screen. If you are running XEmacs in
916 a multi-window system like the X Window System, the XEmacs frame
917 takes up one X window. *Note XEmacs under X::, for more
921 No matter what environment you are running in, XEmacs allows you
922 to look at several buffers at the same time by having several
923 windows be part of the frame. Often, the whole frame is taken up
924 by just one window, but you can split the frame into two or more
925 subwindows. If you are running XEmacs under the X window system,
926 that means you can have several "XEmacs windows" inside the X
927 window that contains the XEmacs frame. You can even have multiple
928 frames in different X windows, each with their own set of
931 Each XEmacs frame displays a variety of information:
932 * The biggest area usually displays the text you are editing. It may
933 consist of one window or of two or more windows if you need to
934 look at two buffers a the same time.
936 * Below each text window's last line is a "mode line" (*note Mode
937 Line::), which describes what is going on in that window. The
938 mode line is in inverse video if the terminal supports that. If
939 there are several XEmacs windows in one frame, each window has its
942 * At the bottom of each XEmacs frame is the "echo area" or
943 "minibuffer window"(*note Echo Area::). It is used by XEmacs to
944 exchange information with the user. There is only one echo area
947 * If you are running XEmacs under a graphical windowing system, a
948 menu bar at the top of the frame makes shortcuts to several of the
949 commands available (*note Pull-down Menus::).
951 * Under a graphical windowing system, a toolbar at the top of the
952 frame, just under the menu bar if it exists, provides "one-touch"
953 shortcuts to several commands. (Not yet documented.)
955 * Under a graphical windowing system, a gutter at the top (under the
956 toolbar) and/or bottom of the frame provides advanced GUI
957 facilities like tab controls for rapid switching among related
958 windows and progress bars for time-consuming operations like
959 downloads across the Internet. Gutters are an experimental feature
960 introduced in XEmacs version 21.2. (Not yet documented.)
962 You can subdivide the XEmacs frame into multiple text windows, and
963 use each window for a different file (*note Windows::). Multiple XEmacs
964 windows are tiled vertically on the XEmacs frame. The upper XEmacs
965 window is separated from the lower window by its mode line.
967 When there are multiple, tiled XEmacs windows on a single XEmacs
968 frame, the XEmacs window receiving input from the keyboard has the
969 "keyboard focus" and is called the "selected window". The selected
970 window contains the cursor, which indicates the insertion point. If
971 you are working in an environment that permits multiple XEmacs frames,
972 and you move the focus from one XEmacs frame into another, the selected
973 window is the one that was last selected in that frame.
975 The same text can be displayed simultaneously in several XEmacs
976 windows, which can be in different XEmacs frames. If you alter the text
977 in an XEmacs buffer by editing it in one XEmacs window, the changes are
978 visible in all XEmacs windows containing that buffer.
982 * Point:: The place in the text where editing commands operate.
983 * Echo Area:: Short messages appear at the bottom of the frame.
984 * Mode Line:: Interpreting the mode line.
985 * GUI Components:: Menubar, toolbars, gutters.
986 * XEmacs under X:: Some information on using XEmacs under the X
988 * XEmacs under MS Windows:: Some information on using XEmacs under
992 File: xemacs.info, Node: Point, Next: Echo Area, Prev: Frame, Up: Frame
997 When XEmacs is running, the cursor shows the location at which
998 editing commands will take effect. This location is called "point".
999 You can use keystrokes or the mouse cursor to move point through the
1000 text and edit the text at different places.
1002 While the cursor appears to point AT a character, you should think
1003 of point as BETWEEN two characters: it points BEFORE the character on
1004 which the cursor appears. The exception is at the end of the line,
1005 where the cursor appears after the last character of the line. Where
1006 the display is capable, the cursor at the end of the line will appear
1007 differently from a cursor over whitespace at the end of the line. (In
1008 an X Windows frame, the end-of-line cursor is half the width of a
1009 within-line cursor.) Sometimes people speak of "the cursor" when they
1010 mean "point," or speak of commands that move point as "cursor motion"
1013 Each XEmacs frame has only one cursor. When output is in progress,
1014 the cursor must appear where the typing is being done. This does not
1015 mean that point is moving. It is only that XEmacs has no way to show
1016 you the location of point except when the terminal is idle.
1018 If you are editing several files in XEmacs, each file has its own
1019 point location. A file that is not being displayed remembers where
1020 point is. Point becomes visible at the correct location when you look
1023 When there are multiple text windows, each window has its own point
1024 location. The cursor shows the location of point in the selected
1025 window. The visible cursor also shows you which window is selected. If
1026 the same buffer appears in more than one window, point can be moved in
1027 each window independently.
1029 The term `point' comes from the character `.', which was the command
1030 in TECO (the language in which the original Emacs was written) for
1031 accessing the value now called `point'.
1034 File: xemacs.info, Node: Echo Area, Next: Mode Line, Prev: Point, Up: Frame
1039 The line at the bottom of the frame (below the mode line) is the
1040 "echo area". XEmacs uses this area to communicate with the user:
1042 * "Echoing" means printing out the characters that the user types.
1043 XEmacs never echoes single-character commands. Multi-character
1044 commands are echoed only if you pause while typing them: As soon
1045 as you pause for more than one second in the middle of a command,
1046 all the characters of the command so far are echoed. This is
1047 intended to "prompt" you for the rest of the command. Once
1048 echoing has started, the rest of the command is echoed immediately
1049 as you type it. This behavior is designed to give confident users
1050 fast response, while giving hesitant users maximum feedback. You
1051 can change this behavior by setting a variable (*note Display
1054 * If you issue a command that cannot be executed, XEmacs may print
1055 an "error message" in the echo area. Error messages are
1056 accompanied by a beep or by flashing the frame. Any input you
1057 have typed ahead is thrown away when an error happens.
1059 * Some commands print informative messages in the echo area. These
1060 messages look similar to error messages, but are not announced
1061 with a beep and do not throw away input. Sometimes a message
1062 tells you what the command has done, when this is not obvious from
1063 looking at the text being edited. Sometimes the sole purpose of a
1064 command is to print a message giving you specific information.
1065 For example, the command `C-x =' is used to print a message
1066 describing the character position of point in the text and its
1067 current column in the window. Commands that take a long time
1068 often display messages ending in `...' while they are working, and
1069 add `done' at the end when they are finished.
1071 * The echo area is also used to display the "minibuffer", a window
1072 that is used for reading arguments to commands, such as the name
1073 of a file to be edited. When the minibuffer is in use, the echo
1074 area displays with a prompt string that usually ends with a colon.
1075 The cursor appears after the prompt. You can always get out of
1076 the minibuffer by typing `C-g'. *Note Minibuffer::.