update.

[chise/xemacs-chise.git-] / info / lispref.info-38

This is ../info/lispref.info, produced by makeinfo version 4.0 from
lispref/lispref.texi.

INFO-DIR-SECTION XEmacs Editor
START-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
* Lispref: (lispref).           XEmacs Lisp Reference Manual.
END-INFO-DIR-ENTRY

   Edition History:

   GNU Emacs Lisp Reference Manual Second Edition (v2.01), May 1993 GNU
Emacs Lisp Reference Manual Further Revised (v2.02), August 1993 Lucid
Emacs Lisp Reference Manual (for 19.10) First Edition, March 1994
XEmacs Lisp Programmer's Manual (for 19.12) Second Edition, April 1995
GNU Emacs Lisp Reference Manual v2.4, June 1995 XEmacs Lisp
Programmer's Manual (for 19.13) Third Edition, July 1995 XEmacs Lisp
Reference Manual (for 19.14 and 20.0) v3.1, March 1996 XEmacs Lisp
Reference Manual (for 19.15 and 20.1, 20.2, 20.3) v3.2, April, May,
November 1997 XEmacs Lisp Reference Manual (for 21.0) v3.3, April 1998

   Copyright (C) 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995 Free Software
Foundation, Inc.  Copyright (C) 1994, 1995 Sun Microsystems, Inc.
Copyright (C) 1995, 1996 Ben Wing.

   Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this
manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice are
preserved on all copies.

   Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of
this manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
permission notice identical to this one.

   Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this
manual into another language, under the above conditions for modified
versions, except that this permission notice may be stated in a
translation approved by the Foundation.

   Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of
this manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also
that the section entitled "GNU General Public License" is included
exactly as in the original, and provided that the entire resulting
derived work is distributed under the terms of a permission notice
identical to this one.

   Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this
manual into another language, under the above conditions for modified
versions, except that the section entitled "GNU General Public License"
may be included in a translation approved by the Free Software
Foundation instead of in the original English.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Beeping,  Prev: Display Tables,  Up: Display

Beeping
=======

   You can make XEmacs ring a bell, play a sound, or blink the screen to
attract the user's attention.  Be conservative about how often you do
this; frequent bells can become irritating.  Also be careful not to use
beeping alone when signaling an error is appropriate.  (*Note Errors::.)

 - Function: ding &optional dont-terminate sound device
     This function beeps, or flashes the screen (see `visible-bell'
     below).  It also terminates any keyboard macro currently executing
     unless DONT-TERMINATE is non-`nil'.  If SOUND is specified, it
     should be a symbol specifying which sound to make.  This sound
     will be played if `visible-bell' is `nil'. (This only works if
     sound support was compiled into the executable and you are running
     on the console of a Sun SparcStation, SGI, HP9000s700, or Linux
     PC. Otherwise you just get a beep.) The optional third argument
     specifies what device to make the sound on, and defaults to the
     selected device.

 - Function: beep &optional dont-terminate sound device
     This is a synonym for `ding'.

 - User Option: visible-bell
     This variable determines whether XEmacs should flash the screen to
     represent a bell.  Non-`nil' means yes, `nil' means no.  On TTY
     devices, this is effective only if the Termcap entry for the
     terminal type has the visible bell flag (`vb') set.

 - Variable: sound-alist
     This variable holds an alist associating names with sounds.  When
     `beep' or `ding' is called with one of the name symbols, the
     associated sound will be generated instead of the standard beep.

     Each element of `sound-alist' is a list describing a sound.  The
     first element of the list is the name of the sound being defined.
     Subsequent elements of the list are alternating keyword/value
     pairs:

    `sound'
          A string of raw sound data, or the name of another sound to
          play.  The symbol `t' here means use the default X beep.

    `volume'
          An integer from 0-100, defaulting to `bell-volume'.

    `pitch'
          If using the default X beep, the pitch (Hz) to generate.

    `duration'
          If using the default X beep, the duration (milliseconds).

     For compatibility, elements of `sound-alist' may also be:

        * `( sound-name . <sound> )'

        * `( sound-name <volume> <sound> )'

     You should probably add things to this list by calling the function
     `load-sound-file'.

     Caveats:

        - You can only play audio data if running on the console screen
          of a Sun SparcStation, SGI, or HP9000s700.

        - The pitch, duration, and volume options are available
          everywhere, but many X servers ignore the `pitch' option.

     The following beep-types are used by XEmacs itself:

    `auto-save-error'
          when an auto-save does not succeed

    `command-error'
          when the XEmacs command loop catches an error

    `undefined-key'
          when you type a key that is undefined

    `undefined-click'
          when you use an undefined mouse-click combination

    `no-completion'
          during completing-read

    `y-or-n-p'
          when you type something other than 'y' or 'n'

    `yes-or-no-p'
          when you type something other than 'yes' or 'no'

    `default'
          used when nothing else is appropriate.

     Other lisp packages may use other beep types, but these are the
     ones that the C kernel of XEmacs uses.

 - User Option: bell-volume
     This variable specifies the default volume for sounds, from 0 to
     100.

 - Command: load-default-sounds
     This function loads and installs some sound files as beep-types.

 - Command: load-sound-file filename sound-name &optional volume
     This function reads in an audio file and adds it to `sound-alist'.
     The sound file must be in the Sun/NeXT U-LAW format.  SOUND-NAME
     should be a symbol, specifying the name of the sound.  If VOLUME
     is specified, the sound will be played at that volume; otherwise,
     the value of BELL-VOLUME will be used.

 - Function: play-sound sound &optional volume device
     This function plays sound SOUND, which should be a symbol
     mentioned in `sound-alist'.  If VOLUME is specified, it overrides
     the value (if any) specified in `sound-alist'.  DEVICE specifies
     the device to play the sound on, and defaults to the selected
     device.

 - Command: play-sound-file file &optional volume device
     This function plays the named sound file at volume VOLUME, which
     defaults to `bell-volume'.  DEVICE specifies the device to play
     the sound on, and defaults to the selected device.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Hash Tables,  Next: Range Tables,  Prev: Display,  Up: Top

Hash Tables
***********

 - Function: hash-table-p object
     This function returns `t' if OBJECT is a hash table, else `nil'.

* Menu:

* Introduction to Hash Tables:: Hash tables are fast data structures for
                                implementing simple tables (i.e. finite
                                mappings from keys to values).
* Working With Hash Tables::    Hash table functions.
* Weak Hash Tables::            Hash tables with special garbage-collection
                                behavior.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Introduction to Hash Tables,  Next: Working With Hash Tables,  Up: Hash Tables

Introduction to Hash Tables
===========================

   A "hash table" is a data structure that provides mappings from
arbitrary Lisp objects called "keys" to other arbitrary Lisp objects
called "values".  A key/value pair is sometimes called an "entry" in
the hash table.  There are many ways other than hash tables of
implementing the same sort of mapping, e.g.  association lists (*note
Association Lists::) and property lists (*note Property Lists::), but
hash tables provide much faster lookup when there are many entries in
the mapping.  Hash tables are an implementation of the abstract data
type "dictionary", also known as "associative array".

   Internally, hash tables are hashed using the "linear probing" hash
table implementation method.  This method hashes each key to a
particular spot in the hash table, and then scans forward sequentially
until a blank entry is found.  To look up a key, hash to the appropriate
spot, then search forward for the key until either a key is found or a
blank entry stops the search.  This method is used in preference to
double hashing because of changes in recent hardware.  The penalty for
non-sequential access to memory has been increasing, and this
compensates for the problem of clustering that linear probing entails.

   When hash tables are created, the user may (but is not required to)
specify initial properties that influence performance.

   Use the `:size' parameter to specify the number of entries that are
likely to be stored in the hash table, to avoid the overhead of resizing
the table.  But if the pre-allocated space for the entries is never
used, it is simply wasted and makes XEmacs slower.  Excess unused hash
table entries exact a small continuous performance penalty, since they
must be scanned at every garbage collection.  If the number of entries
in the hash table is unknown, simply avoid using the `:size' keyword.

   Use the `:rehash-size' and `:rehash-threshold' keywords to adjust
the algorithm for deciding when to rehash the hash table.  For
temporary hash tables that are going to be very heavily used, use a
small rehash threshold, for example, 0.4 and a large rehash size, for
example 2.0.  For permanent hash tables that will be infrequently used,
specify a large rehash threshold, for example 0.8.

   Hash tables can also be created by the lisp reader using structure
syntax, for example:
     #s(hash-table size 20 data (foo 1 bar 2))

   The structure syntax accepts the same keywords as `make-hash-table'
(without the `:' character), as well as the additional keyword `data',
which specifies the initial hash table contents.

 - Function: make-hash-table &key `test' `size' `rehash-size'
          `rehash-threshold' `weakness'
     This function returns a new empty hash table object.

     Keyword `:test' can be `eq', `eql' (default) or `equal'.
     Comparison between keys is done using this function.  If speed is
     important, consider using `eq'.  When storing strings in the hash
     table, you will likely need to use `equal'.

     Keyword `:size' specifies the number of keys likely to be inserted.
     This number of entries can be inserted without enlarging the hash
     table.

     Keyword `:rehash-size' must be a float greater than 1.0, and
     specifies the factor by which to increase the size of the hash
     table when enlarging.

     Keyword `:rehash-threshold' must be a float between 0.0 and 1.0,
     and specifies the load factor of the hash table which triggers
     enlarging.

     Keyword `:weakness' can be `nil' (default), `t', `key' or `value'.

     A weak hash table is one whose pointers do not count as GC
     referents: for any key-value pair in the hash table, if the only
     remaining pointer to either the key or the value is in a weak hash
     table, then the pair will be removed from the hash table, and the
     key and value collected.  A non-weak hash table (or any other
     pointer) would prevent the object from being collected.

     A key-weak hash table is similar to a fully-weak hash table except
     that a key-value pair will be removed only if the key remains
     unmarked outside of weak hash tables.  The pair will remain in the
     hash table if the key is pointed to by something other than a weak
     hash table, even if the value is not.

     A value-weak hash table is similar to a fully-weak hash table
     except that a key-value pair will be removed only if the value
     remains unmarked outside of weak hash tables.  The pair will
     remain in the hash table if the value is pointed to by something
     other than a weak hash table, even if the key is not.

 - Function: copy-hash-table hash-table
     This function returns a new hash table which contains the same
     keys and values as HASH-TABLE.  The keys and values will not
     themselves be copied.

 - Function: hash-table-count hash-table
     This function returns the number of entries in HASH-TABLE.

 - Function: hash-table-test hash-table
     This function returns the test function of HASH-TABLE.  This can
     be one of `eq', `eql' or `equal'.

 - Function: hash-table-size hash-table
     This function returns the current number of slots in HASH-TABLE,
     whether occupied or not.

 - Function: hash-table-rehash-size hash-table
     This function returns the current rehash size of HASH-TABLE.  This
     is a float greater than 1.0; the factor by which HASH-TABLE is
     enlarged when the rehash threshold is exceeded.

 - Function: hash-table-rehash-threshold hash-table
     This function returns the current rehash threshold of HASH-TABLE.
     This is a float between 0.0 and 1.0; the maximum "load factor" of
     HASH-TABLE, beyond which the HASH-TABLE is enlarged by rehashing.

 - Function: hash-table-weakness hash-table
     This function returns the weakness of HASH-TABLE.  This can be one
     of `nil', `t', `key' or `value'.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Working With Hash Tables,  Next: Weak Hash Tables,  Prev: Introduction to Hash Tables,  Up: Hash Tables

Working With Hash Tables
========================

 - Function: puthash key value hash-table
     This function hashes KEY to VALUE in HASH-TABLE.

 - Function: gethash key hash-table &optional default
     This function finds the hash value for KEY in HASH-TABLE.  If
     there is no entry for KEY in HASH-TABLE, DEFAULT is returned
     (which in turn defaults to `nil').

 - Function: remhash key hash-table
     This function removes the entry for KEY from HASH-TABLE.  Does
     nothing if there is no entry for KEY in HASH-TABLE.

 - Function: clrhash hash-table
     This function removes all entries from HASH-TABLE, leaving it
     empty.

 - Function: maphash function hash-table
     This function maps FUNCTION over entries in HASH-TABLE, calling it
     with two args, each key and value in the hash table.

     FUNCTION may not modify HASH-TABLE, with the one exception that
     FUNCTION may remhash or puthash the entry currently being
     processed by FUNCTION.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Weak Hash Tables,  Prev: Working With Hash Tables,  Up: Hash Tables

Weak Hash Tables
================

   A "weak hash table" is a special variety of hash table whose
elements do not count as GC referents.  For any key-value pair in such a
hash table, if either the key or value (or in some cases, if one
particular one of the two) has no references to it outside of weak hash
tables (and similar structures such as weak lists), the pair will be
removed from the table, and the key and value collected.  A non-weak
hash table (or any other pointer) would prevent the objects from being
collected.

   Weak hash tables are useful for keeping track of information in a
non-obtrusive way, for example to implement caching.  If the cache
contains objects such as buffers, markers, image instances, etc. that
will eventually disappear and get garbage-collected, using a weak hash
table ensures that these objects are collected normally rather than
remaining around forever, long past their actual period of use.
(Otherwise, you'd have to explicitly map over the hash table every so
often and remove unnecessary elements.)

   There are three types of weak hash tables:

fully weak hash tables
     In these hash tables, a pair disappears if either the key or the
     value is unreferenced outside of the table.

key-weak hash tables
     In these hash tables, a pair disappears if the key is unreferenced
     outside of the table, regardless of how the value is referenced.

value-weak hash tables
     In these hash tables, a pair disappears if the value is
     unreferenced outside of the table, regardless of how the key is
     referenced.

   Also see *Note Weak Lists::.

   Weak hash tables are created by specifying the `:weakness' keyword to
`make-hash-table'.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Range Tables,  Next: Databases,  Prev: Hash Tables,  Up: Top

Range Tables
************

   A range table is a table that efficiently associated values with
ranges of integers.

   Note that range tables have a read syntax, like this:

     #s(range-table data ((-3 2) foo (5 20) bar))

   This maps integers in the range (-3, 2) to `foo' and integers in the
range (5, 20) to `bar'.

 - Function: range-table-p object
     Return non-`nil' if OBJECT is a range table.

* Menu:

* Introduction to Range Tables:: Range tables efficiently map ranges of
                                 integers to values.
* Working With Range Tables::    Range table functions.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Introduction to Range Tables,  Next: Working With Range Tables,  Up: Range Tables

Introduction to Range Tables
============================

 - Function: make-range-table
     Make a new, empty range table.

 - Function: copy-range-table old-table
     Make a new range table which contains the same values for the same
     ranges as the given table.  The values will not themselves be
     copied.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Working With Range Tables,  Prev: Introduction to Range Tables,  Up: Range Tables

Working With Range Tables
=========================

 - Function: get-range-table pos table &optional default
     This function finds value for position POS in TABLE.  If there is
     no corresponding value, return DEFAULT (defaults to `nil').

 - Function: put-range-table start end val table
     This function sets the value for range (START, END) to be VAL in
     TABLE.

 - Function: remove-range-table start end table
     This function removes the value for range (START, END) in TABLE.

 - Function: clear-range-table table
     This function flushes TABLE.

 - Function: map-range-table function table
     This function maps FUNCTION over entries in TABLE, calling it with
     three args, the beginning and end of the range and the
     corresponding value.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Databases,  Next: Processes,  Prev: Range Tables,  Up: Top

Databases
*********

 - Function: databasep object
     This function returns non-`nil' if OBJECT is a database.

* Menu:

* Connecting to a Database::
* Working With a Database::
* Other Database Functions::

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Connecting to a Database,  Next: Working With a Database,  Up: Databases

Connecting to a Database
========================

 - Function: open-database file &optional type subtype access mode
     This function opens database FILE, using database method TYPE and
     SUBTYPE, with access rights ACCESS and permissions MODE.  ACCESS
     can be any combination of `r' `w' and `+', for read, write, and
     creation flags.

     TYPE can have the value `'dbm' or `'berkeley_db' to select the
     type of database file to use.  (Note:  XEmacs may not support both
     of these types.)

     For a TYPE of `'dbm', there are no subtypes, so SUBTYPE should by
     `nil'.

     For a TYPE of `'berkeley_db', the following subtypes are
     available:  `'hash', `'btree', and `'recno'.  See the manpages for
     the Berkeley DB functions to more information about these types.

 - Function: close-database obj
     This function closes database OBJ.

 - Function: database-live-p obj
     This function returns `t' iff OBJ is an active database, else
     `nil'.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Working With a Database,  Next: Other Database Functions,  Prev: Connecting to a Database,  Up: Databases

Working With a Database
=======================

 - Function: get-database key dbase &optional default
     This function finds the value for KEY in DATABASE.  If there is no
     corresponding value, DEFAULT is returned (`nil' if DEFAULT is
     omitted).

 - Function: map-database function dbase
     This function maps FUNCTION over entries in DATABASE, calling it
     with two args, each key and value in the database.

 - Function: put-database key val dbase &optional replace
     This function stores KEY and VAL in DATABASE.  If optional fourth
     arg REPLACE is non-`nil', replace any existing entry in the
     database.

 - Function: remove-database key dbase
     This function removes KEY from DATABASE.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Other Database Functions,  Prev: Working With a Database,  Up: Databases

Other Database Functions
========================

 - Function: database-file-name obj
     This function returns the filename associated with the database
     OBJ.

 - Function: database-last-error &optional obj
     This function returns the last error associated with database OBJ.

 - Function: database-subtype obj
     This function returns the subtype of database OBJ, if any.

 - Function: database-type obj
     This function returns the type of database OBJ.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Processes,  Next: System Interface,  Prev: Databases,  Up: Top

Processes
*********

   In the terminology of operating systems, a "process" is a space in
which a program can execute.  XEmacs runs in a process.  XEmacs Lisp
programs can invoke other programs in processes of their own.  These are
called "subprocesses" or "child processes" of the XEmacs process, which
is their "parent process".

   A subprocess of XEmacs may be "synchronous" or "asynchronous",
depending on how it is created.  When you create a synchronous
subprocess, the Lisp program waits for the subprocess to terminate
before continuing execution.  When you create an asynchronous
subprocess, it can run in parallel with the Lisp program.  This kind of
subprocess is represented within XEmacs by a Lisp object which is also
called a "process".  Lisp programs can use this object to communicate
with the subprocess or to control it.  For example, you can send
signals, obtain status information, receive output from the process, or
send input to it.

 - Function: processp object
     This function returns `t' if OBJECT is a process, `nil' otherwise.

* Menu:

* Subprocess Creation::      Functions that start subprocesses.
* Synchronous Processes::    Details of using synchronous subprocesses.
* MS-DOS Subprocesses::      On MS-DOS, you must indicate text vs binary
                                for data sent to and from a subprocess.
* Asynchronous Processes::   Starting up an asynchronous subprocess.
* Deleting Processes::       Eliminating an asynchronous subprocess.
* Process Information::      Accessing run-status and other attributes.
* Input to Processes::       Sending input to an asynchronous subprocess.
* Signals to Processes::     Stopping, continuing or interrupting
                               an asynchronous subprocess.
* Output from Processes::    Collecting output from an asynchronous subprocess.
* Sentinels::                Sentinels run when process run-status changes.
* Process Window Size::      Changing the logical window size of a process.
* Transaction Queues::       Transaction-based communication with subprocesses.
* Network::                  Opening network connections.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Subprocess Creation,  Next: Synchronous Processes,  Up: Processes

Functions that Create Subprocesses
==================================

   There are three functions that create a new subprocess in which to
run a program.  One of them, `start-process', creates an asynchronous
process and returns a process object (*note Asynchronous Processes::).
The other two, `call-process' and `call-process-region', create a
synchronous process and do not return a process object (*note
Synchronous Processes::).

   Synchronous and asynchronous processes are explained in following
sections.  Since the three functions are all called in a similar
fashion, their common arguments are described here.

   In all cases, the function's PROGRAM argument specifies the program
to be run.  An error is signaled if the file is not found or cannot be
executed.  If the file name is relative, the variable `exec-path'
contains a list of directories to search.  Emacs initializes
`exec-path' when it starts up, based on the value of the environment
variable `PATH'.  The standard file name constructs, `~', `.', and
`..', are interpreted as usual in `exec-path', but environment variable
substitutions (`$HOME', etc.) are not recognized; use
`substitute-in-file-name' to perform them (*note File Name Expansion::).

   Each of the subprocess-creating functions has a BUFFER-OR-NAME
argument which specifies where the standard output from the program will
go.  If BUFFER-OR-NAME is `nil', that says to discard the output unless
a filter function handles it.  (*Note Filter Functions::, and *Note
Read and Print::.)  Normally, you should avoid having multiple
processes send output to the same buffer because their output would be
intermixed randomly.

   All three of the subprocess-creating functions have a `&rest'
argument, ARGS.  The ARGS must all be strings, and they are supplied to
PROGRAM as separate command line arguments.  Wildcard characters and
other shell constructs are not allowed in these strings, since they are
passed directly to the specified program.

   *Please note:* The argument PROGRAM contains only the name of the
program; it may not contain any command-line arguments.  You must use
ARGS to provide those.

   The subprocess gets its current directory from the value of
`default-directory' (*note File Name Expansion::).

   The subprocess inherits its environment from XEmacs; but you can
specify overrides for it with `process-environment'.  *Note System
Environment::.

 - Variable: exec-directory
     The value of this variable is the name of a directory (a string)
     that contains programs that come with XEmacs, that are intended
     for XEmacs to invoke.  The program `wakeup' is an example of such
     a program; the `display-time' command uses it to get a reminder
     once per minute.

 - User Option: exec-path
     The value of this variable is a list of directories to search for
     programs to run in subprocesses.  Each element is either the name
     of a directory (i.e., a string), or `nil', which stands for the
     default directory (which is the value of `default-directory').

     The value of `exec-path' is used by `call-process' and
     `start-process' when the PROGRAM argument is not an absolute file
     name.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Synchronous Processes,  Next: MS-DOS Subprocesses,  Prev: Subprocess Creation,  Up: Processes

Creating a Synchronous Process
==============================

   After a "synchronous process" is created, XEmacs waits for the
process to terminate before continuing.  Starting Dired is an example of
this: it runs `ls' in a synchronous process, then modifies the output
slightly.  Because the process is synchronous, the entire directory
listing arrives in the buffer before XEmacs tries to do anything with
it.

   While Emacs waits for the synchronous subprocess to terminate, the
user can quit by typing `C-g'.  The first `C-g' tries to kill the
subprocess with a `SIGINT' signal; but it waits until the subprocess
actually terminates before quitting.  If during that time the user
types another `C-g', that kills the subprocess instantly with `SIGKILL'
and quits immediately.  *Note Quitting::.

   The synchronous subprocess functions returned `nil' in version 18.
In version 19, they return an indication of how the process terminated.

 - Function: call-process program &optional infile destination display
          &rest args
     This function calls PROGRAM in a separate process and waits for it
     to finish.

     The standard input for the process comes from file INFILE if
     INFILE is not `nil' and from `/dev/null' otherwise.  The argument
     DESTINATION says where to put the process output.  Here are the
     possibilities:

    a buffer
          Insert the output in that buffer, before point.  This
          includes both the standard output stream and the standard
          error stream of the process.

    a string
          Find or create a buffer with that name, then insert the
          output in that buffer, before point.

    `t'
          Insert the output in the current buffer, before point.

    `nil'
          Discard the output.

    0
          Discard the output, and return immediately without waiting
          for the subprocess to finish.

          In this case, the process is not truly synchronous, since it
          can run in parallel with Emacs; but you can think of it as
          synchronous in that Emacs is essentially finished with the
          subprocess as soon as this function returns.

    (REAL-DESTINATION ERROR-DESTINATION)
          Keep the standard output stream separate from the standard
          error stream; deal with the ordinary output as specified by
          REAL-DESTINATION, and dispose of the error output according
          to ERROR-DESTINATION.  The value `nil' means discard it, `t'
          means mix it with the ordinary output, and a string specifies
          a file name to redirect error output into.

          You can't directly specify a buffer to put the error output
          in; that is too difficult to implement.  But you can achieve
          this result by sending the error output to a temporary file
          and then inserting the file into a buffer.

     If DISPLAY is non-`nil', then `call-process' redisplays the buffer
     as output is inserted.  Otherwise the function does no redisplay,
     and the results become visible on the screen only when XEmacs
     redisplays that buffer in the normal course of events.

     The remaining arguments, ARGS, are strings that specify command
     line arguments for the program.

     The value returned by `call-process' (unless you told it not to
     wait) indicates the reason for process termination.  A number
     gives the exit status of the subprocess; 0 means success, and any
     other value means failure.  If the process terminated with a
     signal, `call-process' returns a string describing the signal.

     In the examples below, the buffer `foo' is current.

          (call-process "pwd" nil t)
               => nil
          
          ---------- Buffer: foo ----------
          /usr/user/lewis/manual
          ---------- Buffer: foo ----------
          
          (call-process "grep" nil "bar" nil "lewis" "/etc/passwd")
               => nil
          
          ---------- Buffer: bar ----------
          lewis:5LTsHm66CSWKg:398:21:Bil Lewis:/user/lewis:/bin/csh
          
          ---------- Buffer: bar ----------

     The `insert-directory' function contains a good example of the use
     of `call-process':

          (call-process insert-directory-program nil t nil switches
                        (if full-directory-p
                            (concat (file-name-as-directory file) ".")
                          file))

 - Function: call-process-region start end program &optional delete
          destination display &rest args
     This function sends the text between START to END as standard
     input to a process running PROGRAM.  It deletes the text sent if
     DELETE is non-`nil'; this is useful when BUFFER is `t', to insert
     the output in the current buffer.

     The arguments DESTINATION and DISPLAY control what to do with the
     output from the subprocess, and whether to update the display as
     it comes in.  For details, see the description of `call-process',
     above.  If DESTINATION is the integer 0, `call-process-region'
     discards the output and returns `nil' immediately, without waiting
     for the subprocess to finish.

     The remaining arguments, ARGS, are strings that specify command
     line arguments for the program.

     The return value of `call-process-region' is just like that of
     `call-process': `nil' if you told it to return without waiting;
     otherwise, a number or string which indicates how the subprocess
     terminated.

     In the following example, we use `call-process-region' to run the
     `cat' utility, with standard input being the first five characters
     in buffer `foo' (the word `input').  `cat' copies its standard
     input into its standard output.  Since the argument DESTINATION is
     `t', this output is inserted in the current buffer.

          ---------- Buffer: foo ----------
          input-!-
          ---------- Buffer: foo ----------
          
          (call-process-region 1 6 "cat" nil t)
               => nil
          
          ---------- Buffer: foo ----------
          inputinput-!-
          ---------- Buffer: foo ----------

     The `shell-command-on-region' command uses `call-process-region'
     like this:

          (call-process-region
           start end
           shell-file-name      ; Name of program.
           nil                  ; Do not delete region.
           buffer               ; Send output to `buffer'.
           nil                  ; No redisplay during output.
           "-c" command)        ; Arguments for the shell.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: MS-DOS Subprocesses,  Next: Asynchronous Processes,  Prev: Synchronous Processes,  Up: Processes

MS-DOS Subprocesses
===================

   On MS-DOS, you must indicate whether the data going to and from a
synchronous subprocess are text or binary.  Text data requires
translation between the end-of-line convention used within Emacs (a
single newline character) and the convention used outside Emacs (the
two-character sequence, CRLF).

   The variable `binary-process-input' applies to input sent to the
subprocess, and `binary-process-output' applies to output received from
it.  A non-`nil' value means the data is non-text; `nil' means the data
is text, and calls for conversion.

 - Variable: binary-process-input
     If this variable is `nil', convert newlines to CRLF sequences in
     the input to a synchronous subprocess.

 - Variable: binary-process-output
     If this variable is `nil', convert CRLF sequences to newlines in
     the output from a synchronous subprocess.

   *Note Files and MS-DOS::, for related information.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Asynchronous Processes,  Next: Deleting Processes,  Prev: MS-DOS Subprocesses,  Up: Processes

Creating an Asynchronous Process
================================

   After an "asynchronous process" is created, Emacs and the Lisp
program both continue running immediately.  The process may thereafter
run in parallel with Emacs, and the two may communicate with each other
using the functions described in following sections.  Here we describe
how to create an asynchronous process with `start-process'.

 - Function: start-process name buffer-or-name program &rest args
     This function creates a new asynchronous subprocess and starts the
     program PROGRAM running in it.  It returns a process object that
     stands for the new subprocess in Lisp.  The argument NAME
     specifies the name for the process object; if a process with this
     name already exists, then NAME is modified (by adding `<1>', etc.)
     to be unique.  The buffer BUFFER-OR-NAME is the buffer to
     associate with the process.

     The remaining arguments, ARGS, are strings that specify command
     line arguments for the program.

     In the example below, the first process is started and runs
     (rather, sleeps) for 100 seconds.  Meanwhile, the second process
     is started, and given the name `my-process<1>' for the sake of
     uniqueness.  It inserts the directory listing at the end of the
     buffer `foo', before the first process finishes.  Then it
     finishes, and a message to that effect is inserted in the buffer.
     Much later, the first process finishes, and another message is
     inserted in the buffer for it.

          (start-process "my-process" "foo" "sleep" "100")
               => #<process my-process>
          
          (start-process "my-process" "foo" "ls" "-l" "/user/lewis/bin")
               => #<process my-process<1>>
          
          ---------- Buffer: foo ----------
          total 2
          lrwxrwxrwx  1 lewis     14 Jul 22 10:12 gnuemacs --> /emacs
          -rwxrwxrwx  1 lewis     19 Jul 30 21:02 lemon
          
          Process my-process<1> finished
          
          Process my-process finished
          ---------- Buffer: foo ----------

 - Function: start-process-shell-command name buffer-or-name command
          &rest command-args
     This function is like `start-process' except that it uses a shell
     to execute the specified command.  The argument COMMAND is a shell
     command name, and COMMAND-ARGS are the arguments for the shell
     command.

 - Variable: process-connection-type
     This variable controls the type of device used to communicate with
     asynchronous subprocesses.  If it is non-`nil', then PTYs are
     used, when available.  Otherwise, pipes are used.

     PTYs are usually preferable for processes visible to the user, as
     in Shell mode, because they allow job control (`C-c', `C-z', etc.)
     to work between the process and its children whereas pipes do not.
     For subprocesses used for internal purposes by programs, it is
     often better to use a pipe, because they are more efficient.  In
     addition, the total number of PTYs is limited on many systems and
     it is good not to waste them.

     The value `process-connection-type' is used when `start-process'
     is called.  So you can specify how to communicate with one
     subprocess by binding the variable around the call to
     `start-process'.

          (let ((process-connection-type nil))  ; Use a pipe.
            (start-process ...))

     To determine whether a given subprocess actually got a pipe or a
     PTY, use the function `process-tty-name' (*note Process
     Information::).

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Deleting Processes,  Next: Process Information,  Prev: Asynchronous Processes,  Up: Processes

Deleting Processes
==================

   "Deleting a process" disconnects XEmacs immediately from the
subprocess, and removes it from the list of active processes.  It sends
a signal to the subprocess to make the subprocess terminate, but this is
not guaranteed to happen immediately.  The process object itself
continues to exist as long as other Lisp objects point to it.

   You can delete a process explicitly at any time.  Processes are
deleted automatically after they terminate, but not necessarily right
away.  If you delete a terminated process explicitly before it is
deleted automatically, no harm results.

 - Variable: delete-exited-processes
     This variable controls automatic deletion of processes that have
     terminated (due to calling `exit' or to a signal).  If it is
     `nil', then they continue to exist until the user runs
     `list-processes'.  Otherwise, they are deleted immediately after
     they exit.

 - Function: delete-process name
     This function deletes the process associated with NAME, killing it
     with a `SIGHUP' signal.  The argument NAME may be a process, the
     name of a process, a buffer, or the name of a buffer.

          (delete-process "*shell*")
               => nil

 - Function: process-kill-without-query process &optional
          require-query-p
     This function declares that XEmacs need not query the user if
     PROCESS is still running when XEmacs is exited.  The process will
     be deleted silently.  If REQUIRE-QUERY-P is non-`nil', then XEmacs
     _will_ query the user (this is the default).  The return value is
     `t' if a query was formerly required, and `nil' otherwise.

          (process-kill-without-query (get-process "shell"))
               => t

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Process Information,  Next: Input to Processes,  Prev: Deleting Processes,  Up: Processes

Process Information
===================

   Several functions return information about processes.
`list-processes' is provided for interactive use.

 - Command: list-processes
     This command displays a listing of all living processes.  In
     addition, it finally deletes any process whose status was `Exited'
     or `Signaled'.  It returns `nil'.

 - Function: process-list
     This function returns a list of all processes that have not been
     deleted.

          (process-list)
               => (#<process display-time> #<process shell>)

 - Function: get-process name
     This function returns the process named NAME, or `nil' if there is
     none.  An error is signaled if NAME is not a string.

          (get-process "shell")
               => #<process shell>

 - Function: process-command process
     This function returns the command that was executed to start
     PROCESS.  This is a list of strings, the first string being the
     program executed and the rest of the strings being the arguments
     that were given to the program.

          (process-command (get-process "shell"))
               => ("/bin/csh" "-i")

 - Function: process-id process
     This function returns the PID of PROCESS.  This is an integer that
     distinguishes the process PROCESS from all other processes running
     on the same computer at the current time.  The PID of a process is
     chosen by the operating system kernel when the process is started
     and remains constant as long as the process exists.

 - Function: process-name process
     This function returns the name of PROCESS.

 - Function: process-status process-name
     This function returns the status of PROCESS-NAME as a symbol.  The
     argument PROCESS-NAME must be a process, a buffer, a process name
     (string) or a buffer name (string).

     The possible values for an actual subprocess are:

    `run'
          for a process that is running.

    `stop'
          for a process that is stopped but continuable.

    `exit'
          for a process that has exited.

    `signal'
          for a process that has received a fatal signal.

    `open'
          for a network connection that is open.

    `closed'
          for a network connection that is closed.  Once a connection
          is closed, you cannot reopen it, though you might be able to
          open a new connection to the same place.

    `nil'
          if PROCESS-NAME is not the name of an existing process.

          (process-status "shell")
               => run
          (process-status (get-buffer "*shell*"))
               => run
          x
               => #<process xx<1>>
          (process-status x)
               => exit

     For a network connection, `process-status' returns one of the
     symbols `open' or `closed'.  The latter means that the other side
     closed the connection, or XEmacs did `delete-process'.

     In earlier Emacs versions (prior to version 19), the status of a
     network connection was `run' if open, and `exit' if closed.

 - Function: process-kill-without-query-p process
     This function returns whether PROCESS will be killed without
     querying the user, if it is running when XEmacs is exited.  The
     default value is `nil'.

 - Function: process-exit-status process
     This function returns the exit status of PROCESS or the signal
     number that killed it.  (Use the result of `process-status' to
     determine which of those it is.)  If PROCESS has not yet
     terminated, the value is 0.

 - Function: process-tty-name process
     This function returns the terminal name that PROCESS is using for
     its communication with Emacs--or `nil' if it is using pipes
     instead of a terminal (see `process-connection-type' in *Note
     Asynchronous Processes::).

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Input to Processes,  Next: Signals to Processes,  Prev: Process Information,  Up: Processes

Sending Input to Processes
==========================

   Asynchronous subprocesses receive input when it is sent to them by
XEmacs, which is done with the functions in this section.  You must
specify the process to send input to, and the input data to send.  The
data appears on the "standard input" of the subprocess.

   Some operating systems have limited space for buffered input in a
PTY.  On these systems, Emacs sends an EOF periodically amidst the
other characters, to force them through.  For most programs, these EOFs
do no harm.

 - Function: process-send-string process-name string
     This function sends PROCESS-NAME the contents of STRING as
     standard input.  The argument PROCESS-NAME must be a process or
     the name of a process.  If it is `nil', the current buffer's
     process is used.

     The function returns `nil'.

          (process-send-string "shell<1>" "ls\n")
               => nil
          
          
          ---------- Buffer: *shell* ----------
          ...
          introduction.texi               syntax-tables.texi~
          introduction.texi~              text.texi
          introduction.txt                text.texi~
          ...
          ---------- Buffer: *shell* ----------

 - Command: process-send-region process-name start end
     This function sends the text in the region defined by START and
     END as standard input to PROCESS-NAME, which is a process or a
     process name.  (If it is `nil', the current buffer's process is
     used.)

     An error is signaled unless both START and END are integers or
     markers that indicate positions in the current buffer.  (It is
     unimportant which number is larger.)

 - Function: process-send-eof &optional process-name
     This function makes PROCESS-NAME see an end-of-file in its input.
     The EOF comes after any text already sent to it.

     If PROCESS-NAME is not supplied, or if it is `nil', then this
     function sends the EOF to the current buffer's process.  An error
     is signaled if the current buffer has no process.

     The function returns PROCESS-NAME.

          (process-send-eof "shell")
               => "shell"

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Signals to Processes,  Next: Output from Processes,  Prev: Input to Processes,  Up: Processes

Sending Signals to Processes
============================

   "Sending a signal" to a subprocess is a way of interrupting its
activities.  There are several different signals, each with its own
meaning.  The set of signals and their names is defined by the operating
system.  For example, the signal `SIGINT' means that the user has typed
`C-c', or that some analogous thing has happened.

   Each signal has a standard effect on the subprocess.  Most signals
kill the subprocess, but some stop or resume execution instead.  Most
signals can optionally be handled by programs; if the program handles
the signal, then we can say nothing in general about its effects.

   The set of signals and their names is defined by the operating
system; XEmacs has facilities for sending only a few of the signals
that are defined.  XEmacs can send signals only to its own subprocesses.

   You can send signals explicitly by calling the functions in this
section.  XEmacs also sends signals automatically at certain times:
killing a buffer sends a `SIGHUP' signal to all its associated
processes; killing XEmacs sends a `SIGHUP' signal to all remaining
processes.  (`SIGHUP' is a signal that usually indicates that the user
hung up the phone.)

   Each of the signal-sending functions takes two optional arguments:
PROCESS-NAME and CURRENT-GROUP.

   The argument PROCESS-NAME must be either a process, the name of one,
or `nil'.  If it is `nil', the process defaults to the process
associated with the current buffer.  An error is signaled if
PROCESS-NAME does not identify a process.

   The argument CURRENT-GROUP is a flag that makes a difference when
you are running a job-control shell as an XEmacs subprocess.  If it is
non-`nil', then the signal is sent to the current process-group of the
terminal that XEmacs uses to communicate with the subprocess.  If the
process is a job-control shell, this means the shell's current subjob.
If it is `nil', the signal is sent to the process group of the
immediate subprocess of XEmacs.  If the subprocess is a job-control
shell, this is the shell itself.

   The flag CURRENT-GROUP has no effect when a pipe is used to
communicate with the subprocess, because the operating system does not
support the distinction in the case of pipes.  For the same reason,
job-control shells won't work when a pipe is used.  See
`process-connection-type' in *Note Asynchronous Processes::.

 - Function: interrupt-process &optional process-name current-group
     This function interrupts the process PROCESS-NAME by sending the
     signal `SIGINT'.  Outside of XEmacs, typing the "interrupt
     character" (normally `C-c' on some systems, and `DEL' on others)
     sends this signal.  When the argument CURRENT-GROUP is non-`nil',
     you can think of this function as "typing `C-c'" on the terminal
     by which XEmacs talks to the subprocess.

 - Function: kill-process &optional process-name current-group
     This function kills the process PROCESS-NAME by sending the signal
     `SIGKILL'.  This signal kills the subprocess immediately, and
     cannot be handled by the subprocess.

 - Function: quit-process &optional process-name current-group
     This function sends the signal `SIGQUIT' to the process
     PROCESS-NAME.  This signal is the one sent by the "quit character"
     (usually `C-b' or `C-\') when you are not inside XEmacs.

 - Function: stop-process &optional process-name current-group
     This function stops the process PROCESS-NAME by sending the signal
     `SIGTSTP'.  Use `continue-process' to resume its execution.

     On systems with job control, the "stop character" (usually `C-z')
     sends this signal (outside of XEmacs).  When CURRENT-GROUP is
     non-`nil', you can think of this function as "typing `C-z'" on the
     terminal XEmacs uses to communicate with the subprocess.

 - Function: continue-process &optional process-name current-group
     This function resumes execution of the process PROCESS by sending
     it the signal `SIGCONT'.  This presumes that PROCESS-NAME was
     stopped previously.

 - Function: signal-process pid signal
     This function sends a signal to process PID, which need not be a
     child of XEmacs.  The argument SIGNAL specifies which signal to
     send; it should be an integer.

\1f
File: lispref.info,  Node: Output from Processes,  Next: Sentinels,  Prev: Signals to Processes,  Up: Processes

Receiving Output from Processes
===============================

   There are two ways to receive the output that a subprocess writes to
its standard output stream.  The output can be inserted in a buffer,
which is called the associated buffer of the process, or a function
called the "filter function" can be called to act on the output.  If
the process has no buffer and no filter function, its output is
discarded.

* Menu:

* Process Buffers::       If no filter, output is put in a buffer.
* Filter Functions::      Filter functions accept output from the process.
* Accepting Output::      Explicitly permitting subprocess output.
                            Waiting for subprocess output.